LiensFL
Florida HOA Assessment Lien Priority: Where It Stands vs. Your Mortgage
By The HOARebel Team · May 26, 2026 · 2 min read
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. Chapter 720 operates alongside the association's declaration, the recorded mortgage, and other applicable law.
Priority relates back to the declaration
For most purposes, a Florida assessment lien's priority doesn't date from when the claim of lien is recorded — it reaches back to when the community's founding document was recorded:
"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: as to a first mortgage, the assessment lien is effective only from the recording of the claim of lien. In practice, a first mortgage recorded before the lien generally outranks it.
The first-mortgagee "safe harbor"
Florida caps what a first mortgage holder (or a buyer who takes title through the mortgage foreclosure) has to pay the association for the prior owner's unpaid assessments. 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.
This "safe harbor" is why a lender that forecloses doesn't inherit the full, ballooned assessment balance — and why associations often can't recover everything from the new owner after a mortgage foreclosure.
The bigger picture
A Florida assessment lien relates back to the declaration for priority, but a prior first mortgage 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 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 a first mortgage.
If my lender forecloses, does it owe the HOA all my back assessments?
No. The §720.3085(2)(c) safe harbor caps a first mortgagee's (or its successor's) liability at the lesser of 12 months of assessments or 1% of the original mortgage debt.
Why does priority "relate back" to the declaration?
Because the lien right is created by the recorded declaration that every parcel is subject to, the statute ties its effectiveness back to that recording date — except as to first mortgages.