Which Pennsylvania Laws Govern Your HOA or Condo?

Pennsylvania uses a tidy set of "uniform" statutes for community associations, so the first step is matching your community to the right one. For your specific situation, a licensed Pennsylvania attorney is the right resource. This is general information, not legal advice.

Planned communities: the Uniform Planned Community Act (68 Pa.C.S. ch. 51)

The Uniform Planned Community Act (UPCA) is the main statute for Pennsylvania's planned communities — the typical single-family-home or townhome HOA. It addresses:

• Association powers and fines — including reasonable fines after notice and a hearing (§ 5302)
• Meetings — at least one association meeting a year, with notice (§ 5308)
• Association records — financial records on request, with an Attorney General complaint backstop (§ 5316)
• The assessment lien — automatic, reaching both assessments and fines, with a limited six-month priority (§ 5315)

Condominiums and cooperatives

If you own a condominium, the Uniform Condominium Act (68 Pa.C.S. ch. 31) governs instead, with provisions parallel to UPCA. Housing cooperatives fall under the Real Estate Cooperative Act (68 Pa.C.S. ch. 41). A licensed Pennsylvania attorney can confirm which one applies to your home.

Which communities UPCA actually covers

Under § 5102, UPCA applies to planned communities "created within this Commonwealth after the effective date of this subpart," and a specific list of sections reaches pre-existing communities for events occurring after that date. Pennsylvania also exempts the smallest communities: a planned community with "no more than 12 units" and no power to add units or convert is generally subject to only a handful of sections unless its declaration opts into full coverage. So the size and age of your community, and what its declaration says, all bear on how much of UPCA applies — a question for a licensed Pennsylvania attorney.

The Nonprofit Corporation Law of 1988 (15 Pa.C.S. ch. 51)

Most Pennsylvania associations are incorporated nonprofits under the Nonprofit Corporation Law of 1988. That entity law supplies director fiduciary duties, member-meeting and voting procedures, and recordkeeping rules that fill gaps UPCA leaves to the bylaws.

How the layers fit

1. The recorded governing documents — declaration, bylaws, and rules. UPCA sets the floor; the documents add detail but cannot subtract statutory owner rights.
2. UPCA (ch. 51) for planned communities — or the Uniform Condominium Act (ch. 31) for condos.
3. The Nonprofit Corporation Law of 1988 (15 Pa.C.S. ch. 51) for the incorporated entity.
4. Federal law — the Fair Housing Act, ADA, Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, OTARD, and the Freedom to Display the American Flag Act.

From records to fines to the assessment lien, UPCA is the starting point for most Pennsylvania homeowner questions.

Sources

• 68 Pa.C.S. § 5102 — Applicability of UPCA
• 68 Pa.C.S. ch. 51 — Uniform Planned Community Act
• 68 Pa.C.S. ch. 31 — Uniform Condominium Act