Fighting an Association Fine in New Hampshire: What Governs the Power

If you got a fine from your New Hampshire association and went looking for a statute that caps it, you probably came up empty. That is not an oversight — New Hampshire simply does not regulate HOA fines the way many states do. Understanding where the fine power actually comes from is the key to evaluating it. The Condominium Act and the voluntary-corporations law (RSA 292) each play a part, alongside the association's own documents and federal law such as the Fair Housing Act. This is general information, not legal advice — for how it applies to your specific situation, a licensed New Hampshire attorney is the right resource.

Where does a New Hampshire HOA's power to fine come from?

Generally, from the governing documents: the declaration, bylaws, and duly adopted rules. New Hampshire has no statutory fine cap, and the Condominium Act (RSA 356-B) lays out no fining procedure; its penalty sections, such as RSA 356-B:64, target declarants and others, not owners. For non-condo HOAs, there is no comprehensive statute at all.

Unlike states that put a dollar limit on HOA fines, New Hampshire has no statutory cap, and its Condominium Act (RSA 356-B) does not lay out a fining procedure. The Act's penalty sections (such as RSA 356-B:64) are aimed at declarants and others who violate its sales and registration rules, not at owners. For non-condominium HOAs, there is no comprehensive statute at all — see Condo vs. HOA in New Hampshire on why that distinction matters.

So the authority to fine — and any limit on it — comes primarily from the governing documents: the declaration, bylaws, and duly adopted rules. If the documents don't authorize a fine, the association's power to impose one is questionable.

What the Condominium Act does say

The Act doesn't mention fines, but it frames how condominium governing documents work:

• Self-government through bylaws. Bylaws must be recorded with the declaration, "providing for the self-government of the condominium by an association of all the unit owners" (RSA 356-B:35, I). "Subject to the declaration and this chapter, the bylaws may provide for any other necessary or appropriate matters, including matters that may be adopted as rules" (RSA 356-B:35, X).
• Everyone must follow the documents. "The declarant, the board of directors, every unit owner, and all those entitled to occupy a unit shall comply with all lawful provisions of this chapter and all provisions of the condominium instruments" (RSA 356-B:15, I). The condominium instruments are defined as "the declaration, bylaws, and site plans and floor plans" (RSA 356-B:3, VI) — so the compliance duty runs to the board as well as to owners.
• Board standards. "The board of directors shall have a fiduciary relationship to members of the unit owners' association" (RSA 356-B:35, II). Directors not appointed by the declarant "shall exercise the degree of care and loyalty to the association required of an officer or director of a corporation organized under RSA 292," and "The standards of care and loyalty described in this paragraph apply regardless of the form in which the association is organized" (RSA 356-B:40, I).

One cutoff matters for older buildings. RSA 356-B "shall apply to all condominiums and to all condominium projects," but it is not "deemed to apply to any real estate, or any interest therein, submitted to the provisions of RSA 479-A prior to September 10, 1977," apart from narrow exceptions for time-share offerings and later expansions (RSA 356-B:2, I–III). For a condominium created under the older law, more turns on its own documents.

Does New Hampshire law set fine rules for non-condo HOAs?

No. New Hampshire has no comprehensive statute for non-condo HOAs, and RSA 292, the voluntary-corporations law many of them are organized under, sets no fining rules either. RSA 292:6 leaves governance to the bylaws, and RSA 292:8-m has a few rules specific to homeowners' associations established under the chapter, but nothing on fines.

Many non-condominium HOAs are organized under RSA 292, the voluntary-corporations law. It sets no fining rules either; it leaves governance to the bylaws, which "may contain any provisions for the regulation and management of the affairs of the corporation not inconsistent with the laws of the state or the articles of agreement" (RSA 292:6). RSA 292:8-m contains a few rules specific to homeowners' associations established under the chapter — for example, a 2/3 majority to amend bylaws, budgets, and management contracts when one person acquires more than half the votes after developer control ends (RSA 292:8-m, I) — but nothing on fines.

Where the leverage usually is

Because the statute doesn't supply the rules, homeowners and attorneys tend to focus on the documents and on the association's own conduct:

• Is the fine authorized at all? A fine has to trace back to a specific provision in the declaration, bylaws, or a validly adopted rule. People commonly request the adopted fine schedule in writing to see what was authorized.
• Did the board follow its own process? Many governing documents require notice of the alleged violation and an opportunity to be heard before a fine. Because RSA 356-B:15, I requires the board to comply with the condominium instruments, a board that ignores its own procedure has a problem regardless of what the statute says about fines.
• Is the board acting with care and loyalty? For condominiums, the fiduciary and care-and-loyalty standards in RSA 356-B:35, II and 356-B:40, I are the statutory measure of board conduct.
• Is there a chance to be heard at meetings? At condominium association meetings, "Unit owners shall be given a reasonable opportunity at any meeting to comment regarding any matter affecting the association" (RSA 356-B:37, IV).

Selective enforcement

A fine can be vulnerable not because the rule is invalid, but because of how it's enforced. When the association cites one owner while ignoring identical conduct elsewhere, that uneven enforcement can raise a selective enforcement argument. Owners often document neighbors with the same condition who were never fined — photos, dates, addresses.

Records help build the picture

For condominiums, "Each unit owner shall have access to all financial information within 15 days of the unit owner's request regarding any contracts, mortgages, loans, and the terms of such loans, and any outstanding debts and balances of all accounts held by the association" (RSA 356-B:37-e, II); see Getting Your HOA's Records in New Hampshire. For non-condo HOAs, record access currently turns on the bylaws. For associations established under RSA 292, a records rule takes effect January 1, 2027 (RSA 292:8-m, III, added by 2026 N.H. Laws ch. 306): those associations must retain records including minutes, and the records must be available to members "Upon 15 days' notice in a record reasonably identifying the specific records of the association requested." Either way, the governing documents and any adopted fine schedule are the starting point.

How disputes are ultimately resolved

Under RSA 356-B:15, I, a lack of compliance with the Act or the condominium instruments "shall be grounds for an action or suit to recover sums due, for damages or injunctive relief, or for any other remedy available at law or in equity," brought by the association or, "in any proper case, by one or more aggrieved unit owners on their own behalf or as a class action." And "The prevailing party shall be entitled to all costs and attorneys' fees incurred in any proceeding under RSA 356-B:15, I" (RSA 356-B:15, II) — which cuts both ways for an owner weighing a challenge. See Enforcing Your Rights Against an Association in New Hampshire. Because so much turns on the specific documents, a licensed New Hampshire attorney is well positioned to evaluate whether a particular fine is authorized and properly imposed.

Sources

• RSA 356-B:2 — Application
• RSA 356-B:3 — Definitions
• RSA 356-B:15 — Compliance with condominium instruments
• RSA 356-B:35 — Contents of the bylaws
• RSA 356-B:37 — Meetings
• RSA 356-B:37-e — Disclosure of financial information and meeting minutes
• RSA 356-B:40 — Members of the board of directors and officers
• RSA 356-B — New Hampshire Condominium Act (full chapter)
• RSA 292:6 — Bylaws; organization
• RSA 292:8-m — Homeowners' associations
• RSA 292 — Voluntary Corporations and Associations