North Carolina HOA Collections & Liens
North Carolina HOA Collections & Liens
Overview — How assessment collection and liens work in North Carolina
North Carolina built its HOA lien framework on two separate statutes rather than one unified code. The North Carolina Condominium Act (Chapter 47C) governs condominiums created on or after October 1, 1986, and the North Carolina Planned Community Act (Chapter 47F) governs planned communities created on or after January 1, 1999.1 Condominiums created before October 1, 1986 fall under the older Unit Ownership Act (Chapter 47A), although several Chapter 47C sections — including the lien section — apply to those older condominiums unless their declarations expressly say otherwise.2 The two modern lien statutes, § 47C-3-116 and § 47F-3-116, use nearly identical language and operate the same way.3
The association lien does not arise automatically on the date an assessment becomes due. An assessment that remains unpaid for 30 days or longer becomes a lien only when the association files a claim of lien of record with the clerk of superior court in the county where the unit or lot is located.1 North Carolina does not grant any portion of the association lien priority ahead of a first mortgage. The lien is prior to all liens and encumbrances except those recorded before the claim of lien is filed — specifically including a mortgage or deed of trust — and liens for real-estate taxes and other governmental charges.1 An association may foreclose either by power of sale (nonjudicial) or by judicial action.1 No statute sets a minimum dollar amount before foreclosure; the only durational triggers are 30 days unpaid to file the lien and 90 days unpaid to start a power-of-sale foreclosure.1
That places North Carolina apart from super-priority-lien states such as Nevada, where NRS 116.3116(2)(b) gives the association lien priority over a first deed of trust to the extent of assessments due during the nine months immediately preceding the notice of default, and Connecticut, where Conn. Gen. Stat. § 47-258(b) likewise grants a nine-month priority portion.4
It also differs from threshold-restricted states such as California, where Cal. Civ. Code § 5720 bars foreclosure unless delinquent assessments reach $1,800 or are more than 12 months delinquent, and Arizona, where A.R.S. § 33-1807 bars foreclosure on planned-community lots unless the owner is delinquent 18 months or owes $10,000 or more.5
North Carolina protects owners through procedure instead: mailed pre-lien statements, a recorded board vote, a clerk hearing, and an upset-bid window. The sections below cover the lien, its priority, the collection and foreclosure sequence, and recent legislative and judicial activity.
North Carolina HOA Collections & Liens at a glance
| Field | North Carolina |
|---|---|
| Governing collections statute(s) | N.C.G.S. § 47C-3-116 (condominiums); § 47F-3-116 (planned communities); § 47A-22 (condominiums created before Oct. 1, 1986)1,2,3 |
| Lien arises | Only upon recording: the assessment must be unpaid 30 days or longer, and the lien attaches when the claim of lien is filed with the clerk of superior court1 |
| Super-priority over first mortgage | No1 |
| Lien priority (general rule) | Prior to all liens except those (including mortgages and deeds of trust) recorded before the claim of lien is filed and real-estate-tax/governmental liens; does not affect mechanics' or materialmen's liens1 |
| Minimum debt before foreclosure | None set by statute1 |
| Minimum delinquency duration before foreclosure | Condos: 90 days. Planned communities: 90 days (assessment unpaid 90 days or more for power-of-sale foreclosure)1 |
| Foreclosure type | Either, by election (power-of-sale nonjudicial or judicial)1 |
| Pre-lien notice required | Yes, 15 days (statement of amount due mailed first-class no fewer than 15 days before filing the lien)1 |
| Pre-foreclosure notice required | Yes (notice of intent to commence nonjudicial foreclosure containing the information in § 45-21.16(c)(5a), plus the clerk's hearing notice under § 45-21.16)1,6 |
| Mandatory payment-plan offer | No (the board may agree to installments in its sole discretion; neither party is obligated, though the attorney-fee notice must tell the owner a payment schedule may be discussed)1 |
| Board vote required to foreclose | Yes (the executive board must vote to commence the proceeding against the specific unit or lot)1 |
| Redemption period after sale | None (no post-sale statutory redemption; the owner may satisfy the debt before the 10-day upset-bid period expires)7 |
| Recoverable in the lien | Unpaid assessments; late charges (greater of $20/month or 10% of the unpaid installment); interest (up to 18%/year); fines (enforceable as assessments unless the declaration provides otherwise); collection costs; reasonable attorney fees after notice (capped at $1,200 in uncontested matters)1,8,9 |
| Fines foreclosable | Yes, but only by judicial foreclosure if the lien consists solely of fines, interest on fines, or fine-related attorney fees1 |
| Applies to | Both (condominiums under Chapter 47C, and Chapter 47A for older condominiums; planned communities under Chapter 47F)1,2 |
Source: N.C.G.S. § 47C-3-116, § 47F-3-116, § 47A-22, § 45-21.27, § 47C/47F-3-102, § 47C/47F-3-115. Last verified: June 9, 2026.
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Related North Carolina HOA Topics
- N.C.G.S. § 47F-3-116, Lien for sums due the association; enforcement (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- N.C.G.S. § 47A-22, Liens for unpaid common expenses; recordation; priorities; foreclosure (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- N.C.G.S. § 47C-3-116, Lien for sums due the association; enforcement (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- Nev. Rev. Stat. § 116.3116, Liens against units for assessments (nine-month priority); see SFR Investments Pool 1 v. U.S. Bank, 334 P.3d 408 (Nev. 2014) ↩
- Cal. Civ. Code § 5720 ($1,800/12-month foreclosure threshold); Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-1807 (planned-community 18-month/$10,000 threshold); Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-33.3-316 (six-month threshold and board vote) ↩
- N.C.G.S. § 45-21.16, Notice and hearing (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- N.C.G.S. § 45-21.27, Upset bid on real property; compliance bonds (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- N.C.G.S. § 47F-3-102(11), Powers of owners' association — late charge cap (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- N.C.G.S. § 47F-3-115(b), Assessments for common expenses — 18% interest cap (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- 15 U.S.C. § 1692g (validation notice must issue within five days of a covered debt collector's first communication; consumer has 30 days to dispute); an association collecting its own assessments in its own name is generally a creditor outside the FDCPA's "debt collector" definition ↩
- 11 U.S.C. § 362(b)(3) and § 546(b): the automatic stay does not bar an act to perfect an interest in property to the extent state law permits perfection to relate back and take priority over an intervening interest ↩
- N.C.G.S. § 7A-38.3F, Prelitigation mediation of condominium and homeowners association disputes (North Carolina General Assembly) ↩
- House Bill 444 (2025-2026 Session), Homeowners Association Reform Bill — bill history (North Carolina General Assembly) (last action: re-referred to House Judiciary 1, May 6, 2025; died at the May 8, 2025 crossover deadline) ↩
- Forest Ridge Townhomes Corporation of Greensboro v. HEAG Pain Management Center, No. COA25-600 (N.C. Ct. App. Mar. 18, 2026) (unpublished) ↩
- S.B. 1047, 2025 Gen. Assemb. (N.C.), Regulatory Reform Act of 2026, bill history, N.C. General Assembly (§ 20.2 fine-only foreclosure; passed Senate 27-14, June 24, 2026; referred to House Rules, June 29, 2026) ↩
- S.J.R. 1091 / Resolution 2026-6, N.C. General Assembly (adjournment resolution limiting reconvened-session business; sine die Dec. 18, 2026) ↩
- Senate Bill 378 (2025-2026 Session), HOA Revisions — bill history (North Carolina General Assembly) (House committee substitute of Oct. 22, 2025 replaced the HOA text) ↩
- Myers v. Smoky Mountain Country Club Property Owners' Ass'n, No. COA25-701 (N.C. Ct. App. May 6, 2026) (published), slip opinion, N.C. Court of Appeals (third-party amenity dues a real covenant running with the land) ↩
- In re Foreclosure of a Claim of Lien by Irish Creek Section 2 Owners' Association (Rogers), No. COA24-788 (N.C. Ct. App. Oct. 1, 2025) (published) ↩
- In re Foreclosure of a Lien by Executive Office Park of Durham Association v. Rock, 382 N.C. 360, 879 S.E.2d 169 (N.C. 2022) ↩
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