Florida SB 56 (Ch. 2021-91): HOA and Condo Assessment Invoice and Late Notice Rules

Quick Answer

CS/CS/SB 56 (chapter 2021-91, Laws of Florida) set rules for how condominium, cooperative and homeowners' associations deliver assessment invoices, and what they must send before charging attorney fees on a late account. It also moved the notice period before a condominium or cooperative lien or foreclosure from 30 days to 45 days. It took effect July 1, 2021.

The one thing a board most needs to know: an association may not require payment of attorney fees on a past due assessment until it has mailed a written "notice of late assessment" and given the owner a chance to pay without those fees.

At a Glance

What the Law Says

The act has the same three core pieces for each type of association, plus changes to lien and foreclosure timing for condominiums and cooperatives.

1. How invoices are delivered

If an association sends an invoice for assessments or an account statement, it "must be delivered" to the owner "by first-class United States mail or by electronic transmission to the unit owner's e-mail address maintained in the association's official records." The condominium version is in 718.121(4)(a), the cooperative version in 719.108(3)(b)1., and the HOA version in 720.3085(3)(c)1.

2. Changing the delivery method

Before an association changes the method of delivery, it must:

• Mail written notice of the change to each owner at least 30 days before the first invoice goes out by the new method.
• Send that notice by first-class mail to the owner's last address in the association's records and, if that is not the unit or parcel address, also to the unit or parcel address. Notice is "deemed to have been delivered upon mailing."
• Obtain the owner's affirmative acknowledgment of the change. The owner "may make the affirmative acknowledgment electronically or in writing," and the association may not change the method until the owner has done so.

The signed or electronic acknowledgments are added to the official records list in each chapter (718.111(12)(a), 719.104(2)(a), 720.303(4)), and the enrolled bill lists them among records not accessible to owners.

3. Notice of late assessment before attorney fees

An association "may not require payment of attorney fees related to a past due assessment without first delivering a written notice of late assessment." The notice must state the amount owed and give the owner an opportunity to pay without attorney fees. It must be mailed first-class to the last address in the records and also to the unit or parcel address when different. The statute supplies a form that says the amounts "must be paid within 30 days" and that further collection action will not begin sooner than 30 days after the letter date.

The statute also creates a rebuttable presumption that the notice was mailed if a board member, officer or agent of the association, or a manager licensed under part VIII of chapter 468, "provides a sworn affidavit attesting to such mailing."

4. 45-day periods for liens and foreclosure

The enrolled bill, in its underline and strike-through markup, shows 45 days replacing 30 days in the condominium foreclosure notice in 718.116(6)(b) and in the notice of intent to record a claim of lien in 718.121(6). The same lien-notice change appears for cooperatives in 719.108(4). The current 718.121(6) text reads: "no lien may be filed by the association against a condominium unit until 45 days after the date on which a notice of intent to file a lien has been delivered." Our reading: the plain-text copy of the enrolled bill loses the markup, so confirm the current 718.116(6)(b) text with counsel.

The act did not change the HOA lien and foreclosure notice periods. Current section 720.3085(4) and (5) already read 45 days for both the lien demand and the foreclosure notice, but those subsections are not among the ones SB 56 amended (it added only paragraphs (3)(c) and (3)(d)).

What This Means in Practice

For boards and managers

• Keep the proof. The statute makes an affidavit of mailing the way to establish the presumption, so a mailing log, a copy of each letter and a signed affidavit are the record to keep.
• Do not move owners to email invoices on a notice alone. The statute requires both a 30-day mailed notice and the owner's acknowledgment. Owners who do not acknowledge stay on whatever method the association used before. Our reading.
• Sequence collection letters. The late notice, the lien notice and the foreclosure notice are separate steps with separate periods in the statute. Do not treat one letter as a substitute for another unless counsel confirms it.

For owners

• A late account does not by itself make attorney fees payable. The association must first send the written late notice and allow payment without fees.
• Your acknowledgment is required before invoices move to a new delivery method.
• Check which address the association has on file. Notices go to the last address in the association's records, plus the unit or parcel address if different.

What the law does not say

• It does not say how many invoices or what billing frequency an association must use. It only governs the method of delivery.
• It does not set a deadline for owners to give the acknowledgment.
• Open question: what happens if an association has already been emailing invoices to an owner who never acknowledged. The text speaks to changing the method; whether and how it applies to long-standing practices is a question for counsel.

Later amendments

These sections have been amended since 2021. The History line of 718.121 shows chapters 2021-99 and 2024-244 after chapter 2021-91, and 720.3085 shows chapters 2023-203 and 2024-221. For example, current 720.3085(3) now says simple interest accrues at 18 percent per year if no rate is stated, and that compound interest may not accrue. Read the current statute, not the 2021 bill alone.

Timeline

Related Florida Law

• Condominium assessments and liens (718.116)
• HOA assessments and lien claims (720.3085)
• SB 630 (2021), the companion community associations bill
• HOA records, budgets and financial reporting (720.303)
• Condominium official records (718.111)
• Cooperative Act (Chapter 719)

Board Checklist

• Find out how invoices are delivered today and whether any owner was switched to email.
• For each owner on email, confirm a stored acknowledgment exists in the official records.
• Before any delivery change, mail the 30-day notice to the owner's address of record and to the unit or parcel address if different.
• Use the statutory notice of late assessment form before any attorney fees are charged.
• Have a board member, officer, agent or licensed manager sign an affidavit of mailing for each collection letter.
• Calendar the 45-day periods for lien and foreclosure notices separately from the 30-day late notice.
• Have your attorney review your collection policy against the current text of 718.121, 718.116 and 720.3085.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did SB 56 take effect?

July 1, 2021. Section 8 of the enrolled act says "This act shall take effect July 1, 2021."

Does SB 56 apply to homeowners' associations?

Yes, in part. It added the delivery rules, the late-assessment notice and the acknowledgment record to Chapter 720 (sections 720.303 and 720.3085). The 45-day lien and foreclosure changes were made in Chapters 718 and 719.

Can an association email assessment invoices?

Yes, by "electronic transmission to the unit owner's e-mail address maintained in the association's official records." If it switches methods, it must send the 30-day mailed notice and obtain the owner's acknowledgment first.

Can an association charge attorney fees for a late payment right away?

Not under this statute. It may not require payment of attorney fees related to a past due assessment without first delivering the written notice of late assessment and giving the owner a chance to pay without them.

How can an association prove it mailed the late notice?

The statute creates a rebuttable presumption of proper mailing when a board member, officer, agent or licensed community association manager provides a sworn affidavit attesting to the mailing.

Where This Comes From

We read the enrolled text of CS/CS/SB 56 (1st Engrossed), the Florida Senate bill page with its history, vote record and statute citation table, and the current 2026 text of sections 718.121 and 720.3085 with their History lines on Online Sunshine. The official bill page is flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2021/56. We did not read the current text of 718.116, 719.104 or 719.108.

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Legal disclaimer: This article is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and associations differ. Confirm the current statute text and how it applies to your governing documents with a licensed Florida attorney before acting.