Rank: priority from the date of filing, not from the date of delinquency

“B. A privilege pursuant to this Part is effective against third persons from the time that the statement of privilege is filed for registry in the mortgage records and, except as otherwise provided in the Private Works Act, R.S. 9:4801 et seq., is preferred in rank to all mortgages, privileges, and other rights in the lot or unit that become effective against third persons after that time.”

Two operational consequences. Filing early buys rank against everything recorded later, including a refinance. And the Private Works Act carve-out means a contractor's privilege on the same property is not automatically behind the association's.³

The two clocks, and the reason they differ

This is the detail most likely to be got wrong, because the deadline depends on what the assessment was for.

“A.(1) Except as provided in Subsection B of this Section, if the assessment is imposed for alleged violations of community documents, the effect of recordation of a statement of privilege shall cease and the privilege preserved by it shall be extinguished as to third persons unless a notice of pendency of action in accordance with Code of Civil Procedure Article 3752 … is filed for registry in the mortgage records of the parish where the lot or unit is located within one year after the statement of privilege was filed.”

“(2) If the assessment is imposed to enforce the affirmative duty of an owner to pay monthly or periodic dues or fees, or assessments for particular expenses or capital improvements that are reasonable for the maintenance, improvement, or safety, or any combination thereof, then the effect of recordation … shall be extinguished as to third persons unless a notice of pendency of action … is filed for registry … within five years after the statement of privilege is filed.”

Violation-based assessments: one year. Dues-based assessments: five years. An association that records a single statement of privilege covering both delinquent dues and violation fines has, on the face of the statute, a one-year problem sitting inside a five-year one. Splitting the two into separate statements is the obvious response, and nothing in Part III forbids it.

What has to be in the statement

R.S. 9:1147(A) sets the content list, and it is longer than the pre-2024 version: a complete property description, the record owner's name, the date of delinquency, the amount of periodic dues including any accelerated amount, the amount of fines and late fees, and the date written demand was made. That last item is the one that ties the statement back to the thirty-day clock — and makes a statement filed too early self-evidently premature.

Three other provisions worth having on the collection file

• Fee shifting runs both ways. R.S. 9:1146(D): “the court may award the prevailing party costs of court, reasonable attorney fees, and other related costs.” “[P]revailing party” is not limited to the association.
• Multiple associations rank equally. R.S. 9:1148(C) gives privileges of more than one association equal priority absent a contrary declaration provision and absent an intervening encumbrance — relevant in Louisiana master-and-sub-association developments.
• The privilege is not the whole remedy. R.S. 9:1145(C) preserves personal liability and allows the association to acquire the lot or unit by giving in payment; R.S. 9:1145(E) requires board approval to commence an enforcement action.

The limit the Governor pointed at

None of this reaches an owner's homestead exemption. Louisiana still shields up to $35,000 of equity in a primary residence, and there is no exception for association assessments. The 2025 attempt to create one for condominium assessments passed the House 96–0 and the Senate 38–0 and was vetoed. The veto message's own summary of the existing toolkit is a fair statement of where Part III leaves an association: the law “specifically entitles COAs to not only recover unpaid assessments, but to obtain a privilege (lien) on the condominium, to accelerate assessments under certain circumstances, and to recover attorneys' fees and costs for enforcing its rights.”

What to watch next

The homestead question is now with the Louisiana State Law Institute under Senate Resolution 18 of 2026, with a report due to the Legislature on or before March 1, 2027 — before the 2027 session convenes on April 12.