2026-09-09 · District of Columbia · Regulation

A District of Columbia condominium that has had to special-assess its owners in order to chase a developer over structural defects can apply for District money to offset the cost. The Department of Housing and Community Development's Rental Conversion and Sale Division administers a need-based assistance fund, with a maximum award of $10,000 per condominium, whose criteria were announced in August 2025.

Covered expenses are the ones that make a claim possible in the first place: inspections, cost estimates and attorney's fees. Eligibility turns on income documentation showing a majority of units, or the individual unit owner, below 80 percent of area median income. Applications go to the Division by email.

The fund implements the Condominium Warranty Claims Clarification Amendment Act of 2022, which directed DHCD to define what a “perfected” claim is and to establish need-based assistance.

The two-year clock is the whole ballgame

Under D.C. Code § 42-1903.16(b), a developer warrants the common elements and each unit against structural defects for two years. For a unit, the period runs from conveyance of that unit. For common elements, it runs from conveyance of the first unit or completion of the element, whichever is later.¹

The developer posts security — a bond, letter of credit or cash — equal to 10 percent of estimated construction or conversion costs, with a further 10 percent of the overage if actual costs exceed estimates by more than 10 percent.

What perfecting a claim requires

DHCD's own procedure form sets out four deliverables:²

• A signed formal claim letter.
• A detailed report from a structural engineer licensed in the District.
• Copies of correspondence to the developer sent before the statutory period expired, documenting a refusal to repair.
• Three cost estimates from authorised contractors.

The Division reviews within 60 days. Miss the two-year window and what remains is a Superior Court breach-of-warranty action, available within five years of the start of the warranty period under § 42-1903.17.

1. D.C. Code § 42-1903.16, Warranty against structural defects — two-year period and security requirement ↩
2. DHCD, Condominium Structural Defect Warranty Claim Procedure Form (claim-perfection requirements) ↩
3. DHCD Housing Regulation Administration — Rental Conversion and Sale Division ↩