Florida HOA Assessment Lien Priority: Where It Stands vs. Your Mortgage

When more than one lien sits against a home, priority decides who gets paid first — and it's one of the most misunderstood parts of HOA law. This is general information about how Florida §720.3085 handles assessment-lien priority, not legal advice; for a specific chain of title, a licensed Florida attorney is the right resource. Chapter 720 operates alongside the association's declaration, the recorded mortgage, Florida's recording statute (§695.11), and, for the association itself, chapter 617 or part I of chapter 607, whichever it was incorporated under (§720.302(5)).

Where the lien comes from

The lien depends on the community's documents. Section 720.3085(1) opens: "When authorized by the governing documents, the association has a lien on each parcel to secure the payment of assessments and other amounts provided for by this section." Chapter 720's definition of an assessment points the same way: a sum payable "as authorized in the governing documents, which if not paid by the owner of a parcel, can result in a lien against the parcel" (§720.301(1)).

When does a Florida HOA lien's priority start?

For most purposes, on the date the community's original declaration was recorded, not when the claim of lien is recorded. As to first mortgages of record, though, §720.3085(1) makes the lien effective only from recording of the claim of lien, and Florida's recording statute (§695.11) ranks recorded instruments by their recording sequence.

The statute's relation-back language:

"the lien is effective from and shall relate back to the date on which the original declaration of the community was recorded." — §720.3085(1), Fla. Stat.

There's an important exception for mortgages, though:

"However, as to first mortgages of record, the lien is effective from and after recording of a claim of lien in the public records of the county in which the parcel is located." — §720.3085(1), Fla. Stat.

Recording order then does the rest. Under Florida's recording statute, "The sequence of such official numbers shall determine the priority of recordation," and the instrument with the lower number has priority (§695.11). In practice, a first mortgage recorded before the claim of lien generally outranks it.

Older liens keep the priority they already had. The same subsection says it does not give any lien, mortgage, or judgment of record on July 1, 2008 "a priority that, by law, the lien, mortgage, or judgment did not have before July 1, 2008" (§720.3085(1)).

What is Florida's 12-month or 1% HOA lien rule?

It caps what a first mortgagee that takes title by foreclosure or deed in lieu owes the association for the prior owner's unpaid assessments: the lesser of 12 months of assessments or 1% of the original mortgage debt (§720.3085(2)(c)). The cap applies only if the lender initially joined the association in its foreclosure suit, with narrow exceptions.

The cap also covers the mortgagee's successor or assignee as a later holder of that mortgage. Under §720.3085(2)(c), that liability is limited to:

"the lesser of: 1. The parcel's unpaid common expenses and regular periodic or special assessments that accrued ... during the 12 months immediately preceding the acquisition of title ... or 2. One percent of the original mortgage debt." — §720.3085(2)(c), Fla. Stat.

The cap applies "only if the first mortgagee filed suit against the parcel owner and initially joined the association as a defendant in the mortgagee foreclosure action" (joinder isn't required if the association was dissolved or had no discoverable office or agent). Where it applies, this safe harbor is why a lender that forecloses doesn't inherit the full, ballooned assessment balance.

Does a buyer at a Florida foreclosure sale owe past HOA dues?

Generally yes, because the safe harbor doesn't extend to a third party who buys at the foreclosure sale. Under §720.3085(2)(a)–(b), an owner is liable for assessments that come due during ownership however title was acquired, including by foreclosure-sale purchase, and is jointly and severally liable with the previous owner for unpaid assessments due up to transfer of title.

A parcel owner is liable for assessments that come due during ownership "regardless of how his or her title to property has been acquired, including by purchase at a foreclosure sale or by deed in lieu of foreclosure" (§720.3085(2)(a)), and under §720.3085(2)(b) is "jointly and severally liable with the previous parcel owner for all unpaid assessments that came due up to the time of transfer of title."

The bigger picture

A Florida assessment lien exists when the governing documents authorize it and relates back to the declaration for priority, but a first mortgage of record that was recorded before the claim of lien generally comes first, and the safe harbor limits what a foreclosing first mortgagee owes the association. How these rules apply to a specific chain of title is fact-specific, and a licensed Florida attorney is the appropriate resource. For how the lien is created, see Florida HOA Assessment Liens Explained; for enforcement, see Can My HOA Foreclose on My Home in Florida?.

Frequently asked questions

Does the HOA lien come before my mortgage?

Generally not as to a first mortgage of record recorded before the claim of lien. While the assessment lien's priority relates back to the recorded declaration for most purposes, §720.3085(1) makes it effective only from recording of the claim of lien as to first mortgages of record, and §695.11 ranks recorded instruments by their recording sequence.

If my lender forecloses, does it owe the HOA all my back assessments?

Generally not. The §720.3085(2)(c) safe harbor caps a first mortgagee's (or its successor's) liability for assessments that came due before it took title at the lesser of 12 months of assessments or 1% of the original mortgage debt, but only if the lender initially joined the association as a defendant in its foreclosure suit (with narrow exceptions where the association was dissolved or had no discoverable office or agent for service of process).

Why does priority "relate back" to the declaration?

Because the lien right is created by the recorded governing documents that every parcel is subject to, the statute ties its effectiveness back to the date the original declaration was recorded — except as to first mortgages of record.

Sources

• §720.3085, Florida Statutes — Payment for assessments; lien claims
• §720.301, Florida Statutes — Definitions
• §695.11, Florida Statutes — Instruments deemed to be recorded from time of filing
• §720.302, Florida Statutes — Purposes, scope, and application