Reserve funding

Reserve funding rules, state by state

How reserve funding rules compare across United States states — each explainer translates the governing statute into plain language with the source cited. Not legal advice.

12 states covered
Arizona

Arizona HOA reserve disclosure rules, in plain language

How Arizona's planned-community and condominium statutes handle reserves through resale disclosure, not a statewide reserve-funding formula, and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer checking a real community.

Arizona Legislature, A.R.S. § 33-1806 and § 33-1260 — resale disclosure reserve items
California

California HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How California Civil Code § 5550 treats reserves under the Davis–Stirling Act, why the reserve study is mandatory on a fixed cycle, and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer actually reading the numbers.

Cal. Civ. Code § 5550 — Reserve study requirements
Colorado

Colorado HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act actually handles reserves — through budget process, owner veto, and governance policies rather than a universal reserve-study mandate — and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer.

C.R.S. § 38-33.3-303 and § 38-33.3-209.5 — CCIOA budget and governance provisions
Delaware

Delaware HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How Delaware's Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act and legacy Unit Property Act actually handle reserves — with an explicit repair-and-replacement reserve definition, a five-year reserve-study concept, and minimum-percentage allocations for some condos — and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer.

25 Del. C. ch. 81 — Delaware Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act (subchapter III: management, including §§ 81-315 and 81-324); 25 Del. C. ch. 22 — Unit Property Act (subchapter VIII)
Florida

Florida HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How Florida Statutes Chapter 720 actually handles HOA reserves, why they are elective rather than mandatory, and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer making a real decision.

Florida Statutes § 720.303(6) — Budgets; reserves
Maryland

Maryland HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How Maryland's Homeowners Association Act actually handles reserves — through a mandatory reserve study for HOAs that meet a specific scope test, funding at the study-recommended level with a five-year ramp-up, county phase-in dates, and a narrow hardship exception — and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer.

Md. Code, Real Property § 11B-112.2 (annual budget and reserve funding) and § 11B-112.3 (reserve study definitions, cycle, preparer qualifications, funding plan) — Maryland Homeowners Association Act
New Jersey

New Jersey HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How New Jersey's Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act and the 2024 Structural Integrity Law actually handle reserves — through a mandatory capital reserve study on a five-year cadence, a 30-year funding plan, credentialed preparer requirements, structural inspections for covered buildings, and a time-limited 85 percent reduced-funding option — and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer.

N.J.S.A. 45:22A-44.2 and 45:22A-44.3 (capital reserve study and reserve funding, as added by P.L. 2023, c. 214 and amended by P.L. 2025, c. 132) — Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act, plus C.52:27D-132.2 through 132.5 (structural inspections for covered buildings)
North Carolina

North Carolina HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How North Carolina's Planned Community Act actually handles reserves — through board budget authority plus a majority-of-all-owners budget rejection mechanism, without a statutory reserve-study or funding mandate, plus a significant applicability cutoff for communities created before January 1, 1999 — and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer.

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 47F-3-103 (budget ratification) with § 47F-3-102 (budget powers for reserves) and § 47F-1-102 (applicability, size, nonresidential exceptions, and pre-1999 opt-in) — North Carolina Planned Community Act
Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania planned community reserve funding rules, in plain language

How Pennsylvania's Uniform Planned Community Act actually handles reserves — through mandatory disclosure of the reserve amount or its absence in offering statements and resale certificates, with statutory protection against pledging reserve funds, but no reserve-study mandate or minimum funding rule — and what that disclosure-driven posture means for a board, owner, or buyer.

68 Pa.C.S. § 5402(a)(7) (public offering statement reserve disclosure), § 5407(a)(5) (resale certificate reserve disclosure), and § 5302(a)(2) and (17) (association budget authority and reserve fund protection) — Pennsylvania Uniform Planned Community Act
Texas

Texas HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

Why Texas Property Code Chapter 209 is silent on HOA reserves — meaning the operative reserve obligation lives entirely in the dedicatory instruments, not in state statute — and what that document-driven regime means for a board, owner, or buyer.

Tex. Prop. Code ch. 209 — Texas Residential Property Owners Protection Act
Virginia

Virginia HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

How Virginia's Property Owners' Association Act actually handles reserves — through a mandatory five-year reserve study, annual review, and required budget fields — and what that means for a board, owner, or buyer who needs the numbers to mean something.

Va. Code § 55.1-1826 — Property Owners' Association Act, annual budget and reserves for capital components
Washington

Washington HOA reserve funding rules, in plain language

Why Washington HOA reserves sit inside an active statutory transition — legacy RCW 64.38 is repealed effective January 1, 2028 and the successor WUCIOA framework (RCW 64.90) is already in force for many communities — and what the dual-framework reality means for a board, owner, or buyer.

RCW 64.38 (legacy Homeowners' Associations chapter, repealed effective January 1, 2028) and RCW 64.90 (Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act), including RCW 64.90.545 on reserve studies

Next step

Apply reserve funding rules to a specific HOA

This page explains the rules state by state. The next step is putting them against a real budget or association — pick the option that fits.