Oregon HOA Budget Approval

Key Findings

Oregon governs condominium budgets under the Oregon Condominium Act (ORS chapter 100) and planned-community budgets under the Oregon Planned Community Act (ORS chapter 94). Neither statute requires owner ratification of the operating budget — that sets Oregon apart from the negative-option model used in many UCIOA states. The board adopts the budget, and the only owner-facing obligation is delivery of a budget summary within 30 days after adoption.^1,2 Oregon's statutory checks on budgeting are the reserve mandate and the board's fiduciary duties — not an owner ratification vote, and not a percentage cap on assessment increases.

Details

Section 1: Overview

Oregon builds its HOA law around two separate statutes, not an adoption of the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act. Condominium budgets fall under ORS chapter 100; planned-community budgets fall under ORS chapter 94. Both statutes impose a reserve regime that constrains the budget, but the core budget mechanic is the same in each: the board of directors adopts the annual budget, and within 30 days after adoption the board delivers a summary to all owners.^1,2 Neither statute includes a negative-option ratification meeting or an owner vote to reject the budget. The reserve mandate is current law: each statute requires a reserve account, an initial reserve study, a maintenance plan, and an annual board determination of reserve requirements, all funded by assessments.^3,4 Because the two-statute structure runs parallel tracks — chapter 100 does not govern planned communities, and chapter 94 does not govern condominiums — practitioners must cite the correct chapter for every proposition. Oregon is prescriptive on process (reserves, financial review, recordkeeping) but leaves budget adoption to the board. The table and per-statute sequence below set out the verified mechanics for each statute in parallel.

Section 2: The budget approval mechanism

2A. Quick-Reference Budget Mechanics Table

This table covers the Oregon Condominium Act (ORS chapter 100) and the Oregon Planned Community Act (ORS chapter 94). Each value carries a footnote to its primary source in the correct chapter.

2B. The budget approval sequence under each statute

For condominiums, ORS 100.483 sets a short, board-centered sequence. The board of directors at least annually adopts a budget for the association of unit owners. That budget must include the amounts required for the reserve account under ORS 100.175. Within 30 days after adopting the budget, the board delivers a summary to all owners. If the board fails to adopt an annual budget, the last adopted budget continues in effect.¹ The mechanism is not negative-option: the statute contains no ratification meeting, no notice window before a ratification vote, and no owner rejection threshold. The verified parameters are the 30-day post-adoption summary deadline and the default that the prior budget continues if no budget is adopted. Adopting the budget is distinct from levying assessments; the board assesses common expenses against the units under ORS 100.530 according to the allocations in the declaration.⁸

For planned communities, ORS 94.645 mirrors this structure. The board of directors at least annually adopts a budget for the planned community. The budget must include amounts allocated to the reserve account under ORS 94.595. Within 30 days after adopting the annual budget, the board delivers a summary to all owners. If the board fails to adopt a budget, the last adopted annual budget continues in effect.² Again, the mechanism is board adoption, not negative-option ratification: no notice window, no ratification meeting, and no owner rejection threshold appear in the statute. The board's authority to adopt and amend budgets is confirmed in the association powers provision, ORS 94.630.¹² Levying assessments is a separate step governed by ORS 94.704, under which the board assesses common expenses against the lots according to the declaration.⁹ For multi-state operators, the practical consequence is that an Oregon budget takes effect on board action; the owner-protection layer is the reserve mandate and financial-review regime, not a ratification vote.

2C. The reserve regime and variation

Both statutes impose a reserve regime with real weight. For condominiums, ORS 100.175 requires a reserve account in the name of the association, an initial reserve study, and a maintenance plan. The board must annually determine reserve account requirements by conducting a reserve study or reviewing and updating an existing one. Assessments against the individual units fund the reserve account. The reserve study and maintenance plan requirements do not apply to condominiums of one or two units (excluding parking, storage, or ancillary units), and condominiums recorded before October 23, 1999 become subject to the requirements by board resolution or owner petition.³ For planned communities, ORS 94.595 runs a parallel track: the declarant conducts the initial reserve study, prepares the maintenance plan, and establishes the reserve account, and the board annually determines reserve requirements by conducting or updating a study. The board may adjust reserve payments without any owner action. The board may not vote to eliminate reserve funding unless it determines the account will be adequately funded, and after the turnover meeting the board may elect not to fund reserves for the following year only with the approval of all owners.⁴ The reserve cadence in both statutes is annual; neither statute sets a fixed multi-year professional inspection interval.

On variation by declaration, both statutes treat the reserve account, reserve study, and board budget adoption as core mandates, while special-assessment thresholds, quorum, and voting procedures are largely left to the recorded declaration and bylaws. A corporate-law overlay applies because many Oregon associations organize as nonprofit corporations under ORS chapter 65, which supplies director duties and corporate formalities but no budget-approval threshold. Where chapter 65 conflicts with chapter 100, the Condominium Act controls (ORS 100.100); the Planned Community Act similarly prevails over conflicting corporate provisions.¹³

Section 3: Budget-adjacent obligations

A. Reserves in the budget

The budget must fund reserves in both regimes. The condominium budget must include the amounts required for the reserve account under ORS 100.175, and the planned-community budget must include the reserve allocation under ORS 94.595.^1,2 These requirements apply to communities within scope, with the one- or two-unit condominium exemption and the pre-1999 opt-in for planned communities.^3,4 Reserve contributions are a required line item in the budget, not a discretionary one.

B. Special assessments

Treatment differs by chapter. For planned communities, ORS 94.704 states that during any period of declarant control, a special assessment for capital improvements or additions requires approval by at least 50 percent of the voting rights, or a greater percentage stated in the declaration.⁹ For condominiums, ORS chapter 100 contains no general owner-vote threshold for special assessments in owner-controlled associations; the declaration governs, subject to the rule in ORS 100.530 that the association may not assess declarant-owned units for additional capital improvements without the declarant's written consent during declarant control.⁸

C. Assessment increase limits

Neither statute imposes a percentage cap on assessment increases. Oregon does not follow a Davis-Stirling-style increase cap. The statutory check is the reserve-funding mandate and the board's fiduciary duty, not a ceiling on increases.^1,2

D. Financial review, audit, and disclosure tied to the budget cycle

Both statutes require an annual financial statement within 90 days after fiscal year end and an independent CPA review within 300 days after fiscal year end for associations whose annual assessments exceed $75,000 (ORS 100.480 for condominiums; ORS 94.670 for planned communities). Planned communities allow a 60 percent owner vote to opt out of the review annually.^10,11 Condominium associations also file an annual report with the Oregon Real Estate Agency under ORS 100.250, which is a recording and registration requirement, not a budget-approval function.¹⁴

Section 4: Recent legislative and judicial activity

A. Recent bills

The Oregon legislature's most significant HOA-related action in the 2025 session was House Bill 3746, signed into law and effective January 1, 2026. The bill amends the Oregon Condominium Act, shortens the construction-defect repose period, and adds mandatory reserve-funded moisture-intrusion inspections for new condominium construction.

B. Recent appellate rulings

No Oregon Court of Appeals or Oregon Supreme Court decision issued in the past 36 months interprets the budget, reserve, or assessment provisions of either the Oregon Condominium Act or the Oregon Planned Community Act. Two earlier decisions establish the controlling framework for assessment-lien enforcement under ORS 100.450.

C. Active legislative debates

No pending Oregon bill as of June 16, 2026 is known to amend the budget-adoption, reserve, or assessment-approval provisions of either chapter. Recent legislative attention has centered on construction-defect reform under HB 3746, not on budget ratification.

Section 5: National positioning and related coverage

Oregon is a prescriptive, non-UCIOA, two-statute state. Its reserve regime — with an initial study, a maintenance plan, an annual board determination, and mandatory funding — resembles the more demanding UCIOA states, but its budget mechanic is distinct from both the UCIOA negative-option model and California's increase-cap model. Oregon does not require owner ratification of the budget and does not cap assessment increases; the board adopts the budget, funds reserves, and distributes a summary. That places Oregon in a board-primary budgeting structure while still imposing strong reserve and financial-review duties. For a multi-state operator, the practical implication is that an Oregon budget takes effect on board adoption, must reflect the statutory reserve requirements, and is administered under separate chapters for condominiums (ORS chapter 100) and planned communities (ORS chapter 94).

Recommendations

• Treat the budget as effective on board adoption and calendar the 30-day owner-summary deadline. Do not build an owner ratification step that Oregon law does not require. Reassess if a future amendment introduces an owner vote.
• Fund reserves as a mandatory line item and complete the annual reserve determination. The trigger to escalate is any year the board cannot determine the reserve account will be adequately funded, which constrains any vote to reduce or skip reserve funding.
• For condominiums created on or after January 1, 2026, budget for HB 3746 moisture-intrusion inspections at the two- and six-year marks under ORS 100.417(8) and fund them from reserves.
• For special assessments, apply the chapter-specific rule: the 50-percent declarant-control threshold and the declaration for planned communities (ORS 94.704), and the declaration plus the declarant-consent limit for condominiums (ORS 100.530).

Caveats

• The CPA-review deadline is shown as 300 days, the current figure in the official ORS text; older statutory editions used 180 days, so verify against the live ORS text each cycle.
• "Not specified by statute" entries reflect that the recorded declaration governs; always check the community's declaration and bylaws, which may add owner-approval steps the statute does not require.
• The two appellate decisions cited interpret assessment liens (ORS 100.450), not budget adoption. No appellate decision issued between June 2023 and June 2026 interprets the budget, reserve, or assessment provisions of either chapter.

1. Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.483 (Annual budget; distribution of budget summary to owners), Oregon Condominium Act ↩
2. Or. Rev. Stat. § 94.645 (Adoption of annual budget), Oregon Planned Community Act ↩
3. Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.175 (Reserve account for maintaining, repairing and replacing common elements; reserve study; maintenance plan), Oregon Condominium Act ↩
4. Or. Rev. Stat. § 94.595 (Reserve account for maintaining, repairing and replacing common property; reserve study; maintenance plan), Oregon Planned Community Act ↩
5. Oregon Legislative Information System (OLIS), HB 3746 (2025 Regular Session), ch. 578, 2025 Or. Laws (effective Jan. 1, 2026) ↩
6. Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.020 (Condominium provisions) and § 100.010 (Short title — Oregon Condominium Act) ↩
7. Or. Rev. Stat. § 94.550 (Definitions for ORS 94.550 to 94.783) and § 94.565 (Planned community to be created under ORS 94.550 to 94.783) ↩
8. Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.530 (Allocation of common profits and expenses; limitation on assessments against declarant) ↩
9. Or. Rev. Stat. § 94.704 (Assessment and payment of common expenses) ↩
10. Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.480 (Maintaining documents and records; annual financial statement; review of financial statement by certified public accountant) ↩
11. Or. Rev. Stat. § 94.670 (Association duty to keep documents and records; review of financial statement by certified public accountant) ↩
12. Or. Rev. Stat. § 94.630 (Powers of association) ↩
13. Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.100 (Conflict between this chapter and ORS chapter 65); see also ORS chapter 65 (Oregon Nonprofit Corporation Act) ↩
14. Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.250 (Documents required to be filed with Real Estate Agency) and § 100.260 (Condominium Information and Annual Reports) ↩
15. Enrolled House Bill 3746, 83d Or. Legislative Assembly, 2025 Regular Session (amending Or. Rev. Stat. § 12.135 and adding § 100.417(8); section 6 exemption for units under full owner responsibility) ↩
16. Unit Owners of Cornell Meadows Condo. v. Jensen, 321 Or. App. 623, 518 P.3d 609 (2022), review denied (interpreting Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.450); reflected in official ORS 100.450 annotations ↩
17. Bank of N.Y. Mellon Tr. Co. v. Sulejmanagic, 367 Or. 537, 481 P.3d 293 (2021) (interpreting Or. Rev. Stat. § 100.450(7)(a)), Or. S. Ct. ↩