The board will not respond

If the board or manager is ignoring emails and calls, do not withhold dues. Pay regular assessments on time. Build a paper trail, then climb the options below.

Start here

1. Write once, in a dated letter or email, with one clear ask (records, a hearing, a decision in writing). Keep a copy.
2. Send it the way your documents require (often certified mail to the official address).
3. Go to the next open board meeting and speak during open forum if the state and the bylaws allow it.
4. If they still will not answer, a written records request is often the next statutory lever.
5. If a deadline is on a letter in your hand, treat that date as real. Do not wait for a perfect reply.

If they already held a hearing, denied an architectural request, or sent collections, skip down to the ladder.

When the hearing is over and you still disagree, you have a ladder of options. Not every rung exists in every state. Not every rung is the right next move. This page is about when each option is typical, not "you should sue." California DRE's CID booklet is blunt: after the public-report stage, there is presently no California state or local agency that directly regulates associations. Florida DBPR's HOA FAQ is equally blunt: the Division does not have authority to investigate general HOA complaints. Those two official pages are why "call the state" is not a universal answer.

1. Internal appeal / second look

Typical when: the documents give you a written appeal to the board after a committee decision, or the state gives you a "meet and confer" right.

California Civil Code § 5855(d): if you and the board are not in agreement after the disciplinary meeting, you may request internal dispute resolution under § 5910. Section 5915 is the default meet-and-confer if the association has not adopted its own fair procedure: you request in writing, the association may not refuse, a director meets with you promptly, you may bring an attorney at your own cost, and you are not charged a fee. A signed writing that is consistent with law and the documents can bind the association if the board authorized or later ratifies it.

Architectural denials often have their own internal appeal. Texas Property Code § 209.00505: a written denial must describe the basis in reasonable detail and tell you that you may request a board hearing on or before the 30th day after the notice was mailed. The board hearing is within 30 days of the request.

Use this rung while the file is still at the volunteer level. It is cheap, it creates a paper trail, and it sometimes ends the matter.

2. ADR / mediation (and Florida presuit mediation)

Typical when: the statute says you must try a neutral before court, or both sides want a structured conversation without a lawsuit caption.

California. Civil Code § 5930: an association or a member may not file an enforcement action in superior court for declaratory, injunctive, or writ relief (or that relief plus money within small-claims limits) unless the parties have endeavored to submit the dispute to ADR. It does not apply to small claims. It does not apply to an assessment dispute except as otherwise provided by law. Before foreclosure, § 5705 / § 5660 already pointed you at IDR or ADR.

Florida. Statute § 720.311: disputes about use of or changes to a parcel or common areas, covenant enforcement, document amendments, board and committee meetings (not elections), membership meetings (not elections), and official-records access shall be the subject of a demand for presuit mediation before a court filing. Collection of assessments, fines, or other financial obligations is not in that bucket. Election and recall disputes are not for presuit mediation; they go to Division arbitration or court. The responding party has 20 days from mailing of the statutory demand to respond; mediation is to be held within 90 days unless extended. Parties share mediator fees equally. Florida DBPR's FAQ: the Division no longer runs HOA mediation; parties use private Florida Supreme Court–certified mediators.

Texas. Section 209.007(e) says an owner or association may use alternative dispute resolution services. It is permissive, not a universal pre-suit lock.

Mediation is typical when you want a deal (cure plan, fine reduction, records produced) and both sides will sit. It is not typical as a weapon to "make them pay."

3. State ombudsman / regulator / administrative hearing

Typical when: your state actually staffed an office, and your issue is a statute or regulation the office can hear — not a pure CC&R interpretation.

Virginia DPOR — Office of the Common Interest Community Ombudsman. You first use the association's state-mandated complaint procedure (Va. Code § 54.1-2354.4). If the association issues a final adverse decision, you may file a Notice of Final Adverse Decision with a $25 fee. Determinations are legally non-binding and limited to CIC laws and regulations (Property Owners' Association Act, Condominium Act, Cooperative Act) — not a rewrite of your declaration. If the association has no complaint procedure, or never responds, DPOR has a CIC Complaint Form for those process failures.

Nevada — Ombudsman for Owners in Common-Interest Communities (NRS 116.625), inside the Real Estate Division. The Ombudsman assists with rights-and-responsibilities education, can investigate disputes involving NRS 116 or governing documents, and helps with mediation/arbitration processing. The affidavit path (NRS 116.760 / 116.765): file with the Division; it is referred to the Ombudsman; if unresolved, the Ombudsman reports to the Division, which may investigate and file a Commission complaint. NRED's fast-reference instructions: send a certified return-receipt letter to the respondent first, wait 14 calendar days, then file Intervention Affidavit Form 530.

Arizona — Department of Real Estate administrative hearings (A.R.S. § 32-2199.01). An owner or association may petition for a hearing concerning violations of condominium or planned-community documents or of the statutes that regulate them, with a filing fee. The department does not hear owner-vs-owner disputes or construction/sale disputes with the developer. The respondent has 20 days after mailing to answer. Arizona's planned-community statute (§ 33-1803(E)) requires the association to tell you about this petition option when it answers a certified-mail violation response.

Florida DBPR. FAQ 5: the Division does not have statutory authority to investigate complaints against homeowners' associations. Arbitration is available for election and recall disputes (petition within 60 days of the announced election results, $200 filing fee plus later costs). That is a narrow door.

California DRE. The RE 39 booklet: DRE does not intervene in association disputes after sales under the public report. No state or local agency directly regulates associations. The Attorney General has some oversight of incorporated associations. That is not an ombudsman.

If your state is not on this list, there may still be an attorney general consumer line or a licensing board for community managers. There may also be nothing. Do not assume Nevada's Ombudsman exists in Ohio.

4. Small claims

Typical when: the dollars fit the local limit, you want a judge without a full civil action, and the statute does not force mediation first (California § 5930(c) expressly carves out small claims). California Civil Code § 5235 lets a member sue to enforce records-inspection rights and allows a civil penalty up to $500 per denied request, and the cause of action may be brought in small claims if the demand is within that court's limit. Texas records denials can go to a justice of the peace (§ 209.005(n)). Small claims is typical for a posted fine, a records penalty, or a narrow money fight. It is not typical for rewriting the CC&Rs or stopping a foreclosure.

5. A licensed lawyer

Typical when: a lien is recorded, a foreclosure packet is in the mail, the association's lawyer is already writing you, disability/fair-housing issues are in the mix, or the deadline is shorter than you can research. A lawyer can appear, write, and calculate the real exposure. This site does not. "Talk to a lawyer" is not the same as "you should sue." Sometimes the lawyer's job is a payment plan and a release of lien.

Typical timeline (typical / check your docs and state)

| Option | Typical when you use it | Typical range | |---|---|---| | Internal appeal / IDR | Right after an adverse hearing or denial | Days to a few weeks (CA meet-and-confer is "promptly"; TX architectural appeal request within 30 days) | | Presuit mediation / ADR | Before a court filing on a covenant or records dispute | FL: 20 days to respond to the demand; mediation within 90 days | | Ombudsman / admin hearing | After the association's complaint process, or after a statutory affidavit | VA NFAD after final adverse decision; NV: certified letter plus 14 days, then Form 530; AZ: petition, 20 days to answer | | Small claims / justice court | Money or records access within the local limit | Filing to hearing often 30–90 days locally | | Lawyer / superior court | Lien, foreclosure, injunction, or mixed statutory and document claims | Months; some statutes toll limitations during mediation (FL § 720.311) |

What to check in your documents

• Internal appeal or "reconsideration" section after a hearing or ARC denial.
• Any ADR clause, and whether it is mediation, arbitration, or both.
• The association's written complaint procedure (Virginia: it is required by statute).
• Election/recall dispute path (Florida: Division arbitration or court).
• Attorney-fee shifting in the declaration — it cuts both ways.
• Deadlines that run while you "think about it."

Climb the ladder in order unless a foreclosure clock is already running. Then skip to a lawyer.

This is general information from an AI helper, not legal advice. Confirm it against your documents and your state's law. If a deadline or hearing is coming up, talk to a licensed lawyer.