For volunteer board members
Arizona HOA Rules for Board Members (2026)
Serving on a Arizona HOA board means making calls that affect your neighbors, usually with no training. This page sums up what Arizona law says about the parts boards ask about most, in plain English, with the statute section and an official link beside every rule.
Arizona planned communities (HOAs) under the Planned Communities Act, A.R.S. Title 33, Chapter 16. It does not cover condominiums, which follow the Condominium Act and its own violation-notice section, §33-1242.
- Owner's response window after the courtesy reminder ends: arizona treats any written notice of a violation as a notice of violation, even a friendly one, so the owner may respond by certified mail within 21 calendar days after its date.
- Owner's last day to send a certified-mail response: the owner may send a written response by certified mail within 21 calendar days after the date of the notice, to the address the notice names.
- Send the association's written reply by: reply in writing within 10 business days after you receive the owner's certified-mail response, with the provision, the date, the observer's first and last name, and the process to contest.
Updated October 2026. Not legal advice.
Key Arizona deadlines at a glance
| Deadline | What the law says |
|---|---|
| Owner's response window after the courtesy reminder ends | Arizona treats any written notice of a violation as a notice of violation, even a friendly one, so the owner may respond by certified mail within 21 calendar days after its date. A.R.S. §33-1803(C) |
| Owner's last day to send a certified-mail response | The owner may send a written response by certified mail within 21 calendar days after the date of the notice, to the address the notice names. A.R.S. §33-1803(C) |
| Send the association's written reply by | Reply in writing within 10 business days after you receive the owner's certified-mail response, with the provision, the date, the observer's first and last name, and the process to contest. A.R.S. §33-1803(D) |
Which Arizona law applies
The Planned Communities Act applies to all planned communities.
A planned community under this chapter does not include a condominium governed by Chapter 9 (the Condominium Act).
How Arizona counts days
The time in which an act is required to be done is computed by excluding the first day and including the last day, unless the last day is a holiday, and then it is also excluded.
Arizona's holidays include every Sunday, New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr./Civil Rights Day (third Monday in January), Lincoln/Washington Presidents' Day (third Monday in February), Memorial Day (last Monday in May), Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day (second Monday in October), Veterans' Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Most holidays falling on a Sunday are observed the following Monday; New Year's Day, Independence Day, Veterans' Day and Christmas falling on a Saturday are observed the preceding Friday.
Violation notices and the chance to fix in Arizona
An owner who receives a written notice that the property's condition violates the community documents, whether or not it imposes a penalty, may send a written response by certified mail within 21 calendar days after the date of the notice, to the address identified in the notice.
Within 10 business days after receiving the owner's certified-mail response, the association responds in writing with at least: the provision allegedly violated, the date of the violation or the date it was observed, the first and last name of each person who observed it, and the process to contest the notice, unless the notice already gave them.
Arizona law sets no cure period in days. Your documents control. 10 to 30 days is common practice, not a legal rule.
Arizona law sets no delivery method for the association's notice; follow your documents. Only the owner's response must go by certified mail.
Hearings in Arizona
Arizona law doesn't sort violations into types. Every violation follows the same path: notice, the owner's 21-day response right, and an opportunity to be heard before any fine.
The same Arizona path applies to a one-time violation: notice and an opportunity to be heard before any fine. There is just nothing to fix by a date.
Unless the notice of violation gave the process to contest, the association may not take any action to enforce the community documents, including collecting attorney fees, before or during the exchange of information, and gives the owner written notice of the option to petition the Department of Real Estate for a hearing. The owner may petition at any time before or after the exchange.
The board may discuss a member's appeal of a violation or penalty in a closed portion of a meeting unless the member asks that it be held in open session. A closed portion is limited to consideration without action.
An owner or the association may petition the Department of Real Estate for a hearing on violations of the planned community documents.
Fines in Arizona
The association may not charge a fee or fine, or impose a requirement, on a member's rental property any differently than on an owner-occupied property (apart from the fees the section allows).
After notice and an opportunity to be heard, the board may impose reasonable monetary penalties for violations of the declaration, bylaws and rules. The notice includes information on how the penalty will be enforced.
Penalties are member expenses. Member expenses are not enforceable as common expense liens; the association has a judgment lien for them only after a civil judgment.
Assessments, late fees and liens in Arizona
A late charge on an unpaid penalty may not exceed the greater of $15 or 10% of the unpaid amount. A payment is late if unpaid 15 or more days after its due date, unless your documents allow longer. Payments go first to the unpaid principal, then to interest.
Meetings and votes in Arizona
Before closing any portion of a board meeting, the board identifies the paragraph of subsection A that authorizes closing it.
After declarant control ends, notice of board meetings and the agenda is given to members at least 48 hours in advance.
Other rules boards should know
For a planned community whose declaration was recorded after December 31, 2014, the association has no authority over publicly owned roadways after declarant control ends. Older communities are covered by the section's own rules.
The association has a duty to act reasonably in the exercise of its discretionary powers: neutrally, fairly, without favoritism and in a nonarbitrary fashion.
Step by step: a Arizona violation case
The order Kindly Board walks a Arizona board through, from the first look to the last letter.
- Check before you start Every case
Make sure the Arizona rules fit and the rule is one you can enforce. - Courtesy reminder Optional
A friendly first note. In Arizona it still starts the owner's 21-day response right. - Notice of violation Before any fine
The provision, the date, who saw it, how to contest, and the 21-day response right. - Reply and hearing (if the owner responds or asks) If requested
Reply within 10 business days of a certified-mail response. Hear the owner before any fine. - Board vote on the fine Before a fine
In an open session, after notice and an opportunity to be heard. - Notice of fine After the vote
Amount, due date, how to pay, and how it will be enforced. - Close the case Every case
Record how it ended and keep the file.
Arizona HOA rules: FAQ
What HOA law applies in Arizona?
Arizona planned communities (HOAs) under the Planned Communities Act, A.R.S. Title 33, Chapter 16. It does not cover condominiums, which follow the Condominium Act and its own violation-notice section, §33-1242. The main sources: Planned Communities Act, A.R.S. §33-1803.
How are days counted for Arizona HOA deadlines?
Days are counted the way Arizona law counts them: the first day doesn't count, the last day does. An owner's deadline that lands on a Sunday or Arizona holiday moves to the next day; a Saturday doesn't. The 10-day reply is in business days.
What are the key deadlines in a Arizona HOA violation case?
Owner's response window after the courtesy reminder ends: arizona treats any written notice of a violation as a notice of violation, even a friendly one, so the owner may respond by certified mail within 21 calendar days after its date. (A.R.S. §33-1803(C)) Owner's last day to send a certified-mail response: the owner may send a written response by certified mail within 21 calendar days after the date of the notice, to the address the notice names. (A.R.S. §33-1803(C)) Send the association's written reply by: reply in writing within 10 business days after you receive the owner's certified-mail response, with the provision, the date, the observer's first and last name, and the process to contest. (A.R.S. §33-1803(D))
What does Arizona law say about HOA fines?
The association may not charge a fee or fine, or impose a requirement, on a member's rental property any differently than on an owner-occupied property (apart from the fees the section allows). (A.R.S. §33-1806.01(D))
What does Arizona law say about violation hearings?
Arizona law doesn't sort violations into types. Every violation follows the same path: notice, the owner's 21-day response right, and an opportunity to be heard before any fine. (A.R.S. §33-1803(B), (C))
Official text
- Arizona Revised Statutes §33-1803 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1801 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1802 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1804 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1806.01 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1807 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1818 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1821 (official text)
- A.R.S. §32-2199.01 (official text)
- A.R.S. §1-243 (official text)
- A.R.S. §1-301 (official text)
- A.R.S. §33-1242, Condominium Act (official text)