New York HOA Records Inspection
Section 1: Overview — How records inspection works in New York
New York does something unusual: it runs three separate records regimes side by side, and which one applies depends entirely on how your community is organized. Condominiums answer to the Condominium Act, found in Real Property Law Article 9-B. Cooperatives — and most New York co-ops organize as share corporations — answer to the Business Corporation Law. Homeowners associations answer to the Not-for-Profit Corporation Law. The state has no single, comprehensive HOA statute. Three provisions carry most of the weight: Real Property Law (RPL) § 339-w governs condominiums,1 Business Corporation Law (BCL) § 624 governs cooperatives,2 and Not-for-Profit Corporation Law (N-PCL) § 621 governs incorporated homeowners associations.3 Each regime works a little differently. Condominium unit owners examine the board of managers' receipts-and-expenditures records under RPL § 339-w. Cooperative shareholders inspect minutes, the shareholder list, and the books and records under BCL § 624. Members of an incorporated homeowners association inspect minutes, the membership list, and the books and records under N-PCL § 621 — and since 2017, paragraph (e-1) has also let them review invoices, ledgers, bank accounts, reconciliations, contracts, and other documents tied to how the association spends its dues.4 One more wrinkle sets New York apart: its court structure runs upside down compared with most states. The Supreme Court is the trial court, the Appellate Division is the intermediate appellate court, and the Court of Appeals sits at the top.5 And unlike hard-clock states such as Florida, which sets a fixed production deadline,6 New York leans on availability and written-demand standards, backed by a common-law right of inspection. The table and the sections that follow lay out how each regime works.
Section 2: Quick-Reference: New York HOA Records Inspection
| Governing provision(s) | Condos: RPL Article 9-B, § 339-w.1 Co-ops: BCL § 624.2 HOAs: N-PCL § 621;3 records rights also rest on the recorded declaration and bylaws. |
|---|---|
| Community types covered | Three distinct ownership forms: condominiums under RPL Article 9-B; cooperatives — a primary New York form, especially in New York City — organized as share corporations under the BCL; and incorporated homeowners associations under the N-PCL.1, 2, 3 No comprehensive HOA statute. |
| Who may inspect | Condos: unit owners.1 Co-ops: any shareholder of record, in person or by agent or attorney.2 HOAs: any member of record for at least six months, or a holder of (or someone authorized by holders of) at least five percent of any class of capital certificates, by agent or attorney.3 Mortgagees: not specified by statute. |
| Proper-purpose requirement | Condos (RPL § 339-w): no express statutory proper-purpose requirement for the receipts-and-expenditures records; the common-law right to broader records requires good faith and a proper purpose.1, 7 Co-ops (BCL § 624): a shareholder may examine the minutes and the shareholder list for any purpose reasonably related to shareholder interest, and the corporation may deny inspection unless the requester signs an affidavit disclaiming an improper purpose.2 HOAs (N-PCL § 621): the same affidavit condition applies to minutes and the member list; the financial documents added in 2017 are available "upon request."3, 4 |
| Form of request | Condos: no written demand required; records available at convenient weekday hours.1 Co-ops: at least five days' written demand.2 HOAs: at least five days' written demand for the minutes and member list, plus a request to the governing board for the 2017 financial documents.3, 4 |
| Response or production deadline | A reasonableness/availability standard — no fixed statutory deadline — under all three. RPL § 339-w makes records "available for examination ... at convenient hours of weekdays."1 BCL § 624 and N-PCL § 621 require five days' written demand before examination during usual business hours, and allow a "reasonable time" to prepare the annual balance sheet.2, 3 No provision sets a day-count for producing records to the requester. |
| Inspection method and location | At the corporation's office (or its transfer agent's office) during usual business hours; condominium records at convenient weekday hours.1, 2, 3 Requesters may make extracts, and the common law permits paper and electronic copies at the requester's expense.7 |
| Copying and labor fees | Not specified by statute. BCL § 624 and N-PCL § 621 let examiners "make extracts";2, 3 the common law permits copying at the requester's own expense.7 |
| Records expressly subject to inspection | Condos: receipts-and-expenditures records and the vouchers authorizing payments, plus an annual written summary report.1 Co-ops: minutes of shareholder proceedings, the record of shareholders, books and records of account, and an annual balance sheet and profit-and-loss statement.2 HOAs: minutes of members' proceedings, the list/record of members, books and records of account, an annual balance sheet/profit-and-loss statement, and — since 2017 — invoices, ledgers, bank accounts, reconciliations, contracts, and documents tied to the expenditure of HOA dues.3, 4 |
| Records exempt or withholdable | Largely not specified by statute. List inspection may be denied without the required affidavit. N-PCL § 621 does not require an employee organization to disclose members' home addresses.3 The common law permits appropriately redacted legal invoices and confidentiality conditions for sensitive financial records.7 |
| Membership or owner list | Co-ops and HOAs: the shareholder/member list is inspectable on written demand, but the corporation may deny inspection unless the requester furnishes an affidavit stating that the list is not sought for a business purpose unrelated to the corporation and that the requester has not sold or offered such lists within five years.2, 3 No statutory opt-out. Condos: RPL § 339-w does not address an owner list, but courts recognize a common-law right to owner contact information.7 |
| Records-retention requirement | Not specified by statute. RPL § 339-w requires chronological records but sets no duration; BCL § 624 and N-PCL § 621 require "correct and complete" books and records without naming a retention period.1, 2, 3 |
| Electronic records | Addressed in part. Books, minutes, and records may be kept "in written form or in any other form capable of being converted into written form within a reasonable time." BCL § 624 requires shareholder-list information to be made available in written form and any other format in which it is maintained.2, 3 The common law recognizes electronic copying.7 |
| Remedies for noncompliance | No statutory damages, per-day penalty, or automatic fee-shifting. Co-ops/HOAs: a refused requester may ask the Supreme Court for an order to show cause; the court may compel inspection and award "such further relief as ... may seem just and proper."2, 3 Condos: enforcement by plenary action or Article 78 proceeding.8 |
| Enforcement forum and process | New York Supreme Court (the trial court), through a special proceeding under BCL § 624(d)/N-PCL § 621(d) or, for condominiums, a plenary action or CPLR Article 78 proceeding; appeal to the Appellate Division; discretionary review by the Court of Appeals.2, 3, 8 No agency records-complaint pathway; the Attorney General's Martin Act authority reaches offering plans, not ongoing records.9 |
Section 3: The records-inspection framework in detail
3A. Records subject to inspection
New York ties records rights to the ownership form, and each form draws on a different statute. Take condominiums first. RPL § 339-w directs the board of managers to keep "detailed, accurate records, in chronological order, of the receipts and expenditures arising from the operation of the property," along with the vouchers authorizing payments, and to give every unit owner an annual written summary of receipts and expenditures.1 That list is narrow — it covers financial records, not the full universe of association documents. But the First Department has held that condominium unit owners also hold a common-law right, parallel to a corporate shareholder's, to examine monthly financial reports, building invoices, board meeting minutes, and appropriately redacted legal invoices, and to obtain a list of unit owners and their contact information.7
Cooperatives, a primary New York form and especially common in New York City, route their records rights through the share-corporation structure and BCL § 624.2 Every corporation must keep correct and complete books and records of account, minutes of its shareholders, board, and executive committee, and a record of shareholders. A shareholder of record may examine the minutes of shareholder proceedings and the record of shareholders, and may obtain an annual balance sheet and profit-and-loss statement. The common law reaches further, opening a broader set of corporate books and records when the request is made in good faith and for a proper purpose.10
For incorporated homeowners associations, N-PCL § 621 mirrors the corporate model: the association keeps books and records of account, minutes of members' proceedings, and a list or record of members, all open to qualifying members.3 Since 2017, paragraph (e-1) has entitled HOA members to review invoices, ledgers, bank accounts, reconciliations, contracts, and documents tied to the expenditure of HOA dues.4 Where an association is unincorporated, its records rights rest on the recorded declaration and bylaws rather than on the N-PCL.
3B. The request-and-response sequence
Standing depends on the regime. Under RPL § 339-w, any unit owner may examine the condominium's receipts-and-expenditures records.1 Under BCL § 624, anyone who has been a shareholder of record may inspect, in person or by agent or attorney.2 Under N-PCL § 621, the right runs to a member of record for at least six months, or to a person who holds — or is authorized by holders of — at least five percent of any class of capital certificates.3
The form of the request differs by regime. RPL § 339-w imposes no written-demand requirement; the records are simply to be available for examination at convenient weekday hours.1 BCL § 624 and N-PCL § 621 each require at least five days' written demand before the examination, and the N-PCL financial documents added in 2017 are available on request to the governing board.2, 4 Read that five-day period correctly: it is notice the requester must give, not a clock imposed on the association.
On timing, none of the three provisions sets a fixed production deadline. RPL § 339-w says only that records "shall be available for examination by the unit owners at convenient hours of weekdays."1 BCL § 624 and N-PCL § 621 allow examination during usual business hours after the written demand and give the corporation a "reasonable time" to prepare the annual balance sheet and profit-and-loss statement.2, 3 New York, in short, relies on availability and written-demand standards rather than a numeric day-count.
Inspection happens at the corporation's office or its transfer agent's office during business hours, or at the managing agent's office for condominium records. Requesters may make extracts. On charges, the statutes stay silent, and the common law treats copying as something the requester may do at its own expense; the First Department has confirmed that a condominium unit owner may make paper or electronic copies during the inspection, at the owner's expense.7
3C. Withholding, confidentiality, and the membership/owner list
The statutes say little about what an association may withhold. The main express limit concerns the shareholder or member list. Under BCL § 624(c) and N-PCL § 621(c), an association may deny list inspection if the requester refuses to furnish an affidavit stating that the inspection is not desired for a business purpose unrelated to the corporation and that the requester has not, within five years, sold or offered for sale any list of shareholders or members.2, 3 That affidavit works as a commercial-use restriction on the list, though neither statute provides an individual opt-out. N-PCL § 621 separately provides that nothing in the chapter requires an employee organization to disclose members' home addresses — a provision that matters little to most associations.3
Beyond the list, the statutes name no confidential categories, so the common law fills the gap. Courts have allowed associations to produce appropriately redacted legal invoices to protect attorney-client privileged material, and to condition disclosure of sensitive financial records on a confidentiality agreement.7 RPL § 339-w itself says nothing about privilege, pending litigation, personnel records, or individual-owner files, so in the condominium context, withholding generally turns on the common-law proper-purpose analysis and on whatever the declaration or bylaws provide, rather than on the statute.1
3D. Remedies and enforcement for noncompliance
None of the three provisions creates statutory damages, a per-day penalty, or automatic fee-shifting. The remedy is a court-ordered inspection. Under BCL § 624(d) and N-PCL § 621(d), a requester who is refused may apply to the Supreme Court in the judicial district where the corporation's office sits for an order to show cause; if the applicant is qualified and entitled, the court grants an order compelling inspection and awarding "such further relief as to the court may seem just and proper."2, 3 For condominiums, RPL § 339-w contains no dedicated enforcement clause, so unit owners proceed by plenary action or by a CPLR Article 78 proceeding in the nature of mandamus.8
Enforcement follows New York's inverted court structure. A records action begins in the Supreme Court — the trial court of general jurisdiction — with appeal to the Appellate Division and discretionary review by the Court of Appeals.5 There is no agency records-complaint pathway for inspection disputes. The Attorney General's Real Estate Finance Bureau regulates the offering of condominium and cooperative interests under the Martin Act, requiring offering plans to be filed and accepted, but it does not police ongoing records access.9
Section 4: Recent legislative and judicial activity
A. Recent bills
S7541 / A8337 · 2025–2026 Regular Session
The bill amends RPL §§ 339-e and 339-q and adds a new RPL § 339-mm, requiring condominium and cooperative boards of managers and their property managers to maintain — and to hand over to unit owners and purchasers — the most recent inspection reports, engineering reports, and permits, with copies furnished digitally and physically whenever a report or plan is issued.[11] It would change records practice by adding building-condition documents to the categories an association must keep on file and disclose, a response to the June 24, 2021 partial collapse of Champlain Towers South, a 12-story condominium in Surfside, Florida, where 98 residents died.[11] The bill passed the New York Senate 58-1 but died after its Assembly sponsor withdrew support.[12]
| Property managers | If revived and enacted, you'd need systems to retain and deliver inspection reports, engineering reports, and permits to owners and buyers on a set schedule. |
| HOA board members | Condominium and cooperative boards would face a duty to maintain and disclose building-condition records that current law does not expressly require. |
| Community association attorneys | Track any reintroduction and advise on disclosure protocols and on the enforcement clause, which lets the Attorney General void an offering plan for noncompliance. |
| Homeowners | Owners and prospective buyers would gain a clearer right to building-safety documents, separate from the general records right under existing statutes. |
B. Recent rulings
Matter of DiBella v. Board of Directors of Half Moon Bay Homeowners Assn., Inc.
The Second Department held that a board member of a homeowners association, like a corporate director, has "an absolute, unqualified right, having its roots in the common law, to inspect" the association's books and records to carry out fiduciary duties. The court reinstated the petitioner board member's CPLR Article 78 cause of action to compel production, finding factual disputes about the scope of what she had already received and her entitlement to more.[13] The decision confirms that a New York records-inspection dispute proceeds in the Supreme Court, the trial court, with review in the Appellate Division.
| Property managers | A sitting board member's inspection demand is not an ordinary owner request; produce association books and records promptly. |
| HOA board members | Individual directors hold a broad, fiduciary-based inspection right, and a board majority generally cannot cut off a fellow director's access. |
| Community association attorneys | The ruling supplies current Second Department authority for compelling production by Article 78 mandamus and distinguishes a director's right from an owner's qualified right. |
| Homeowners | Owners who serve on the board gain confirmed leverage to examine records, which can surface information relevant to all members. |
C. Active legislative debates
Other proposals would layer new oversight onto records and governance disputes. One measure would create an Attorney General hearing-officer appeals process for shareholder disputes with residential cooperative boards; another, a proposed condominium owner's bill of rights, centers on transparency. Neither has been enacted.14
Section 5: National positioning and related coverage
New York is a structurally distinctive, three-regime state. Condominiums fall under a real-property statute (RPL Article 9-B and § 339-w). Cooperatives, a primary New York form, fall under corporate law (BCL § 624). Homeowners associations fall under not-for-profit corporate law (N-PCL § 621). There is no comprehensive HOA statute. The records standards are mostly written-demand or availability standards rather than hard clocks, supplemented by a common-law right of inspection. That separates New York from single-statute Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act states and from hard-clock states such as Florida (records within 10 working days under Fla. Stat. § 718.111(12)(c), with minimum damages of $50 per day) and California (many records within 10 business days under Civil Code § 5210).6, 15 For a multi-state operator, the practical lesson is sequencing: in New York you identify the ownership form first — condominium, cooperative, or homeowners association — then apply the correct law (RPL Article 9-B, BCL § 624, or N-PCL § 621), and proceed in a court system where the Supreme Court is the trial court. Recent legislative activity has centered on condominium and cooperative transparency, including a 2025 bill that would add building-condition disclosure requirements, though that measure has not become law.
Federal frameworks apply to New York associations no matter which state regime governs, including the Fair Housing Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, and the FCC's OTARD rule.
Footnotes
- N.Y. Real Property Law § 339-w (Books of receipts and expenditures; availability for examination), New York State Senate ↩
- N.Y. Business Corporation Law § 624 (Books and records; right of inspection, prima facie evidence), New York State Senate ↩
- N.Y. Not-for-Profit Corporation Law § 621 (Books and records; right of inspection; prima facie evidence), New York State Senate ↩
- N.Y. Assembly Bill A3037-B (2017), signed Oct. 23, 2017 (Chapter 343), adding N-PCL § 621(e-1), New York State Assembly ↩
- N.Y. Business Corporation Law § 624(d) (application to "the supreme court in the judicial district where the office of the corporation is located"), New York State Senate ↩
- Fla. Stat. § 720.303(5) (records to be made available within 10 business days of a written request; minimum damages of $50 per calendar day up to 10 days for willful failure), The Florida Senate ↩
- Pomerance v. McGrath, 143 A.D.3d 443 (1st Dep't 2016) (common-law right to examine financial reports, invoices, minutes, and redacted legal invoices, and to make paper or electronic copies), via Justia (cross-verify against the Official Reports) ↩
- Matter of DiBella v. Board of Directors of Half Moon Bay Homeowners Assn., Inc., 2025 NY Slip Op 00444 (2d Dep't Jan. 29, 2025) (hybrid CPLR Article 78 mandamus proceeding to compel production of books and records), via Justia (cross-verify against nycourts.gov) ↩
- New York State Attorney General, Real Estate Syndications / Real Estate Finance Bureau (Martin Act, GBL Article 23-A; offering plans must be filed with and accepted by the Bureau), ag.ny.gov ↩
- Norton Rose Fulbright, "Commercial division update: Shareholder inspections of corporate books and records" (discussing the broader common-law right of inspection under New York law), citing Retirement Plan for Gen. Empls. of City of N. Miami Beach v. McGraw-Hill Cos., 120 A.D.3d 1052 (1st Dep't 2014) ↩
- N.Y. Senate Bill S7541 (2025-2026), amending RPL §§ 339-e and 339-q and adding RPL § 339-mm (transparency guidelines for condominiums and cooperative housing units), New York State Senate ↩
- Habitat Magazine, "Co-op and condo advocates cheer demise of transparency bill" (June 2025) (the Co-op and Condo Transparency Act passed the Senate 58-1 before stalling in the Assembly) ↩
- Matter of DiBella v. Board of Directors of Half Moon Bay Homeowners Assn., Inc., 2025 NY Slip Op 00444 (2d Dep't Jan. 29, 2025), quoting Matter of Cohen v. Cocoline Prods., 309 N.Y. 119, 123, via Justia (cross-verify against nycourts.gov, Decision D76320) ↩
- N.Y. Assembly Bill A2382 (2025-2026) (appeal of disputes between shareholders and residential cooperative boards to a hearing officer appointed by the Attorney General), New York State Senate ↩
- Cal. Civ. Code § 5210 (Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act; production of many association records within 10 business days), California Legislative Information ↩