Texas Property Code 209.0062: HOA Payment Plan Guidelines for Delinquent Assessments

Quick Answer

Texas Property Code § 209.0062 requires a property owners' association with more than 14 lots to adopt "reasonable guidelines" for a payment plan that lets an owner pay delinquent assessments, and any other amount owed, in partial payments without extra "monetary penalties." The minimum plan term is three months. The section took effect January 1, 2012 and was amended September 1, 2015, and it has no stated dollar or percentage cap on interest or administrative costs.

The thing a board most needs to know: the guidelines must be filed in the county real property records, but if the association never files them, an owner can still ask for a plan.

At a Glance

What the Law Says

Section 209.0062 has five subsections. Here is what each one does, using the statute's own words where the wording matters.

• Duty to adopt guidelines (a). An association "composed of more than 14 lots shall adopt reasonable guidelines to establish an alternative payment schedule by which an owner may make partial payments" for "delinquent regular or special assessments or any other amount owed to the association without accruing additional monetary penalties."
• What is not a penalty (a). "Monetary penalties do not include reasonable costs associated with administering the payment plan or interest."
• Minimum term (b). "The minimum term for a payment plan offered by a property owners' association is three months."
• Limits an association may keep (c). The association is not required to allow a plan that extends "more than 18 months from the date of the owner's request." It is not required to enter a plan with an owner who failed to honor a previous plan "during the two years following the owner's default." It is not required to offer a plan after the cure period described in § 209.0064(b)(3) expires. And it is not required to allow a plan "more than once in any 12-month period."
• Recording (d). The association "shall file the association's guidelines under this section in the real property records of each county in which the subdivision is located."
• Failure to record (e). Not filing the guidelines "does not prohibit a property owner from receiving an alternative payment schedule."

What This Means in Practice

For boards

The statute tells you what the guidelines must make possible, not what they must say line by line. A workable policy usually answers these questions, all of which the statute leaves to the association's reasonable judgment (our reading):

• How and where an owner requests a plan, and who decides.
• How many installments, and the due dates, within the three-month minimum and the 18-month ceiling the association may enforce.
• What interest rate applies and what administrative cost is charged, keeping both "reasonable" and tied to what the association's documents allow.
• What counts as default, and how the association will document a missed payment, since § 209.0062(c) turns on whether an owner "failed to honor" a plan.

The section only lets the association charge interest and "reasonable costs associated with administering the payment plan." It does not say what a late fee, a collection letter fee or an attorney fee is. Our reading is that anything other than interest and reasonable plan-administration cost is risky to add while a plan is running, because the statute describes the plan as one "without accruing additional monetary penalties." Confirm with counsel before charging anything else.

For owners

An owner is entitled to a plan by the terms of the statute only if the association is covered (more than 14 lots) and the owner has not hit one of the § 209.0062(c) exclusions. The association is "not required" to give a plan in four situations, so an owner who has defaulted on a plan in the last two years, has already used a plan in the past 12 months, asks for more than 18 months, or waits until the cure period has expired may be turned down. The statute does not forbid an association from being more generous.

The right covers "any other amount owed," so the plan is not limited to regular assessments. Whether a particular fine or charge can be placed in a plan is a question the text answers in the owner's favor on its face, though the association's governing documents may affect other details.

Where the cure period fits

Section 209.0062(c) refers to the cure period in § 209.0064(b)(3). That subsection, as amended by S.B. 1588 in 2021, says the association may not hold an owner liable for the fees of a collection agent unless it first sends certified-mail notice that, among other things, "provides a period of at least 45 days for the owner to cure the delinquency before further collection action is taken." Under § 209.0064(b)(2), if the association is subject to § 209.0062, that notice must also describe "the options the owner has to avoid having the account turned over to a collection agent, including information regarding availability of a payment plan."

The practical sequence, in our reading: the owner's window to ask for a plan as of right runs until that 45-day period ends. If the association's notice is deficient, the clock arguably has not started. That is an open question for counsel, because the statute does not say so expressly.

What the law does NOT say

• It sets no maximum interest rate and no cap on administrative cost beyond "reasonable."
• It does not say what happens when an owner misses a plan payment, other than the two-year protection in § 209.0062(c).
• It does not set a minimum number of payments per month or require equal installments.
• It does not require the owner to pay a down payment, and it does not forbid one. Whether one is "reasonable" is open.
• It does not say the owner must request the plan in writing.

For associations with 14 or fewer lots, § 209.0062 does not apply by its terms. Their governing documents may still require a payment plan, which is why § 209.0064(b)(2) also refers to a dedicatory-instrument requirement.

Timeline

The current text of § 209.0062 shows no amendment after 2015.

Related Texas Law

• § 209.0064 and § 209.0065: collection-agent notice, the 45-day cure period and credit reporting rules.
• § 209.0063: the order in which payments are applied.
• § 209.006: notice before enforcement action.
• Foreclosure limits and redemption: what an association cannot foreclose over.
• § 209.017: justice court suits against associations.
• Chapter 209 overview and the Texas HOA laws complete guide.

Board Checklist

• Confirm the association has more than 14 lots, which makes § 209.0062 mandatory.
• Adopt written payment-plan guidelines by board action and record the date.
• File the guidelines in the real property records of every county where the subdivision lies.
• Set the interest rate and plan administration cost in writing, and keep both reasonable.
• Make the minimum term at least three months and decide how you will treat requests above 18 months.
• Track plan requests, defaults and the 12-month and two-year windows so the § 209.0062(c) exclusions are applied consistently.
• Make sure the certified-mail delinquency notice under § 209.0064(b) describes the payment plan option.
• Do not wait for recorded guidelines before honoring a plan request, since § 209.0062(e) says missing guidelines do not bar the owner.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Texas associations must offer a payment plan?

Section 209.0062(a) applies to a property owners' association "composed of more than 14 lots." Associations with 14 or fewer lots are outside this section, though their governing documents may impose a similar duty.

How long must a payment plan be?

The minimum term is three months under § 209.0062(b). The association is not required to allow a plan that runs longer than 18 months from the date of the owner's request.

Can the association charge interest on a payment plan?

Yes. Section 209.0062(a) says "monetary penalties do not include reasonable costs associated with administering the payment plan or interest," so interest and reasonable administration costs are allowed. The section does not set a rate.

Can an owner get more than one plan in a year?

Not necessarily. The association "is not required to allow an owner to enter into a payment plan more than once in any 12-month period." An association may choose to allow more.

What if the owner defaulted on an earlier plan?

The association is not required to enter a plan with an owner who failed to honor a previous plan during the two years following the owner's default under that plan.

Do the guidelines have to be recorded?

Yes, § 209.0062(d) requires filing them in the real property records of each county where the subdivision is located. But under § 209.0062(e), failure to file does not prevent an owner from receiving a plan.

Does an owner have to be offered a plan after the 45-day cure period ends?

No. Under § 209.0062(c), the association is not required to make a plan available after the cure period described in § 209.0064(b)(3) expires.

What can an owner do if the association refuses a plan the statute requires?

The section states no remedy. Section 209.017 allows an owner to bring an action for a violation of Chapter 209 in justice court. Ask a Texas attorney how that applies to a particular refusal.

Where This Comes From

We read the current text of Texas Property Code § 209.0062 as published in the 2025 Texas Statutes (history lines show the 2011 and 2015 acts), the text of § 209.0064(b) and § 209.017 as amended by the enrolled S.B. 1588 (87th Legislature, 2021), and the official statute listing at statutes.capitol.texas.gov. Interpretations labeled "our reading" are ours.

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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 Texas attorney before acting.