Fines & PenaltiesWA
Challenging an HOA Fine in Washington
By The HOARebel Team · June 2, 2026 · 2 min read
In Washington, a WUCIOA association's power to fine comes with built-in conditions: the fine must be reasonable, follow notice and a hearing, and track a schedule the board adopted and disclosed ahead of time. For your specific situation, a licensed Washington attorney is the right resource. This is general information, not legal advice.
The power and its conditions: RCW 64.90.405(2)(l)
The Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act lists the association's powers in RCW 64.90.405. The fining power appears in subsection (2)(l): the association may "[e]nforce the governing documents and, after notice and opportunity to be heard, impose and collect reasonable fines for violations of the governing documents in accordance with a previously established schedule of fines adopted by the board of directors and furnished to the owners pursuant to the requirements for notice in RCW 64.90.505."
Three conditions are built into that sentence:
- A schedule of fines, adopted in advance and disclosed. The board cannot improvise an amount; the fine must follow a schedule it previously adopted and furnished to owners.
- Notice and an opportunity to be heard before the fine is imposed — not a courtesy, but a statutory step.
- Reasonableness — the fine must be reasonable and tied to a violation of the governing documents.
How fines relate to assessments
Separately, RCW 64.90.405(2)(k) lets the association "collect assessments and impose and collect reasonable charges for late payment of assessments." Late charges and fines are distinct from one another, and an owner reviewing a balance often needs the association's records to see how a charge was categorized and calculated.
A note for older communities
The schedule-of-fines requirement in RCW 64.90.405(2)(l) is part of WUCIOA, which fully governs communities created on or after July 1, 2018. Owners in older communities may instead look to the fine provisions of RCW 64.38 (HOAs) or RCW 64.34 (condos), which also condition fines on process — a question for a licensed Washington attorney.
What people generally do
For a Washington fine, the points that commonly matter:
- The association's records — the cited rule, the adopted schedule of fines, and minutes showing how similar matters were handled.
- Whether the board actually adopted and furnished a schedule of fines before the violation.
- The notice and opportunity to be heard that RCW 64.90.405(2)(l) requires.
- How the rule has been enforced against others matters, since uneven enforcement is a recognized defense.
- A licensed Washington attorney is the resource before an unpaid fine feeds the assessment account and lien.
Sources
Free tool
Is your fine actually valid?
Answer a few questions about your notice and see how it compares to what Washington's law requires before an association can fine you — free, with the statute quoted for each step.