Condo Violation vs. HOA Violation in Florida: What Is Actually Different
Updated August 2026 • 9 min read
Florida condominium associations and homeowners associations run on two different statutes — Chapter 718 for condos, Chapter 720 for HOAs — that share a nearly identical fine cap and fining-committee process but diverge on the regulator involved, the pre-lawsuit dispute track, and, most practically, who is responsible for maintaining the thing that got cited. Getting a violation notice feels the same either way; the rights and obligations behind it are not always the same.
This guide breaks down what stays identical between the two, where they genuinely diverge, and how to confirm which one actually governs your property before you assume the wrong rulebook applies.
Which Statute Governs Your Community
The distinction comes down to how ownership is legally structured, not how the buildings look:
- Chapter 720 (homeowners associations) — you own your individual lot and the structure on it in fee simple, subject to a recorded declaration of covenants. Most single-family and many townhome communities in Palm Beach County fall here.
- Chapter 718 (condominiums) — you own your unit plus an undivided share of the common elements, recorded under a declaration of condominium or master deed. Some attached-townhome communities that look identical to an HOA from the curb are actually organized this way.
Do not assume based on appearance. A row of attached townhomes can be legally structured either way, and the difference matters the moment a violation notice arrives.
Where the Violation Process Is Basically Identical
- The fine cap — $100 per day per violation, up to $1,000 aggregate for a single continuing violation, unless the governing documents authorize more, under both §720.305 (HOA) and §718.303 (condo).
- The fining-committee requirement — both chapters require an independent committee of at least three members who are not officers, directors, or employees of the association (or their spouses) to review and approve any fine before it is valid.
- The notice-and-cure sequence — written notice of the violation, an opportunity to correct it, and at least 14 days’ notice of the hearing, in both chapters.
- Lien and foreclosure exposure — both condo and HOA associations can record liens for unpaid fines or assessments and, in theory, foreclose, though both pursue that far more aggressively over assessments than over fines alone.
⚠️ Same cap, different declaration
The statutory cap is a floor for what a governing document has to respect, not a ceiling that applies uniformly everywhere. Both condo declarations and HOA covenants can authorize higher fines than the statutory default, and plenty do. Read your specific declaration before assuming the $100/$1,000 numbers are the final word for your community.
Where They Genuinely Diverge
| Condo (Ch. 718) | HOA (Ch. 720) | |
|---|---|---|
| Regulator | Closer oversight by the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes | Lighter direct DBPR oversight |
| Pre-lawsuit dispute track | Certain disputes route through DBPR-administered arbitration | Presuit mediation under §720.311, privately arranged |
| Who typically maintains the exterior | Association usually owns/maintains building exterior and structural elements | Homeowner typically owns and maintains their own exterior directly |
| Most common violation source | Limited common elements you use but do not own outright — balconies, patios, assigned parking | Features you own outright — paint, landscaping, fences, driveways |
| Building-type assumption | Can apply to attached or detached units depending on the recorded deed | Applies to individually platted lots, attached or detached |
The dispute-resolution difference is easy to miss. Our HOA mediation and arbitration guide covers the presuit mediation track that applies to Chapter 720 disputes; condo unit owners facing certain categories of dispute instead have access to a mandatory non-binding arbitration program administered by the state division, which is a meaningfully different process with its own filing steps. Confirm which track applies to your specific dispute before assuming the HOA process applies wholesale to a condo situation.
Need a professional response to your notice?
Use our free HOA Response Generator to create a customized, professional reply in minutes — the same core response strategy works whether you got the notice from a condo board or an HOA board.
Generate My Response →The Limited-Common-Element Trap
The single most common source of confusion for condo owners is assuming that anything technically owned by the association — a balcony slab, a patio, an exterior wall — is therefore the association’s problem to fix and cannot generate a violation against them personally. In practice, most declarations assign exclusive use and day-to-day maintenance of these limited common elements to the unit owner who benefits from them, which means an unapproved enclosure, visible clutter, or an unauthorized paint job on your balcony gets cited the same way an HOA would cite a homeowner’s front porch. Read the limited-common-element section of your declaration directly rather than assuming ownership structure protects you from a citation.
When to Push Back on Either Type of Citation
- The notice skipped the required process — no written notice, no cure period, or no properly composed fining committee makes a fine unenforceable under either chapter. See our Florida HOA fines guide for the full sequence.
- The rule was never actually adopted in the recorded declaration or duly noticed rules, not just a management-company preference.
- Selective enforcement — comparable units or lots cited inconsistently is evidence worth documenting either way.
Whichever chapter governs you, respond in writing before the cure deadline. Our guide to fighting an HOA violation notice and Florida hearing process guide cover the response and hearing steps that apply to both condo and HOA fining committees.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the $100-per-day fine cap apply to condos the same way it applies to HOAs?
Yes, in structure. Condominium associations operate under a parallel fining provision in Florida Statute §718.303 that mirrors the $100/day, $1,000-aggregate cap and the independent fining-committee requirement found in §720.305 for HOAs. The mechanics track closely enough that most of what applies to an HOA fine applies to a condo fine — see our full breakdown of Florida HOA fines for the process itself, since the two statutes were written to move in tandem after a series of amendments brought condo and HOA fining procedure closer together.
If I live in a condo, can the association fine me for something on my balcony or patio?
Usually yes, even though the balcony or patio may technically be a common element or a limited common element rather than something you outright own. Most condo declarations assign use and maintenance responsibility for limited common elements — balconies, patios, assigned parking spaces — to the unit owner who has exclusive use of them, which means violations there (unapproved enclosures, visible storage, unauthorized paint or flooring) get cited the same way an HOA would cite a homeowner's front yard. Read your declaration's limited-common-element section before assuming "the association owns it, so it is not my violation" — that assumption is wrong more often than it is right.
Is a townhome community an HOA or a condo?
It depends on how ownership is legally structured, not on what the buildings look like. If you own your lot and the structure on it in fee simple, subject to a declaration of covenants, you are almost certainly in an HOA under Chapter 720, even in an attached-townhome layout. If you own your unit plus an undivided percentage interest in the common elements, recorded under a declaration of condominium, you are in a condominium under Chapter 718, even in a layout that looks like a row of townhomes from the street. The recorded declaration or master deed on file with the county — not the building style — determines which chapter governs you.
Can a condo association take my unit for unpaid fines the way an HOA can lien a house?
Condo associations have parallel lien and foreclosure rights under Chapter 718, so the mechanism is not unique to single-family HOAs. As with HOAs, associations pursue liens and foreclosure far more readily over unpaid assessments than over fines alone, because assessment dollars fund real operating and reserve needs while fine collection is a lower priority even where the statute technically permits it. See our guide on what an HOA lien actually does to your title for how that process generally plays out once a debt reaches that stage — the mechanics are close enough between condos and HOAs that the same guide applies.
Where do I actually check which chapter my community falls under if I am not sure?
Pull your recorded governing document from the county clerk's official records — a "Declaration of Condominium" or "Master Deed" means Chapter 718; a "Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions" for individually platted lots means Chapter 720. Your property appraiser's parcel record will also usually show whether the property is classified as a condominium unit or a single-family/townhome lot. Do not guess based on the building type or what your neighbors call it — ask the management company directly if the recorded document is not easy to locate.
Got a violation notice in a Palm Beach County condo or HOA?
HOAFixFast connects you with local contractors who fix the underlying issue fast — whether it’s a balcony enclosure, a patio, or a front yard — so the fine clock stops regardless of which chapter governs your community.
Get Help With My Violation →