COA (Condominium Owners Association)

What a COA is

In a condominium, each owner holds title to a unit and also shares ownership of the parts of the property that belong to everyone. The COA is the association that those owners form to take care of the shared parts and to run the community as a whole. It is usually, though not always, set up as a nonprofit corporation.

COA is a common label, not a universal legal term. Statutes and documents may call the same body a condominium association, an association of co-owners, a unit owners association or simply the association. When you read your own documents, look for the name they actually use.

What makes a condominium different

The legal difference lies in what the owner owns. California's Civil Code describes a condominium as an undivided interest in common in a portion of real property coupled with a separate interest in a space called a unit (Civil Code section 4125). Florida's condominium statute is similar: a condominium is a form of ownership in which each unit has, appurtenant to it, an undivided share in the common elements (Florida Statutes section 718.103).

That shared ownership is why a COA typically has a bigger maintenance role than an association in a neighborhood of detached houses. Roofs, hallways, elevators, pools, structure and often exterior walls are shared, so the association usually plans for them and funds them. The exact dividing line between what the association maintains and what each owner maintains is set by the declaration, not by custom, so read yours.

What a COA typically does

Responsibilities come from the governing documents and state law, but most COAs handle the following.

• Adopt an annual budget and collect regular assessments, and levy special assessments when documents and law allow.
• Maintain, repair and insure the common elements as the documents direct.
• Hold owner meetings and board elections under the bylaws.
• Enforce the declaration and any rules, using the notice and hearing steps the documents and statutes require.
• Keep records and, where state law requires it, provide them to owners and to buyers at resale.

Examples of how states define the association

These are examples only, and your state may differ. Florida defines an "association" for condominium purposes as an entity that operates the common elements owned in undivided shares by unit owners, where membership is composed exclusively of unit owners and is a required condition of unit ownership (section 718.103). Michigan's Condominium Act uses the term "association of co-owners" and provides that a condominium project's administration is governed by bylaws recorded as part of the master deed (MCL 559.153). That act also says unpaid sums assessed to a co-owner, with interest, late charges, attorney fees and fines allowed by the condominium documents, are a lien on the unit (MCL 559.208). California regulates condominiums, planned developments and other community types together under the Davis-Stirling Act, which is why California materials often speak of a common interest development rather than a COA.

Because definitions, owner rights and collection rules differ across states, confirm the rules for your property with a licensed attorney.

COA versus HOA

People often use COA and HOA loosely, and some condominium associations are formally called homeowners associations. The practical difference is the property type. A COA governs a condominium, where owners share title to common elements. An HOA more often governs a planned community of lots or townhomes where the association owns only designated common areas. See the glossary entry on POAs and APM's HOA vs POA page for related naming differences.

Related

• HOA vs POA
• POA glossary entry
• HOA assessment lien glossary entry
• HOA governing documents explained