Arizona bill would speed HOAs’ ability to foreclose for unpaid dues
Jan 12, 2018, 4:38 PM
(Public Domain Photo)
(Public Domain Photo)
PHOENIX — A bill in the Arizona Senate would reduce the amount of time a homeowners association must wait before foreclosing on a member who has fallen behind on their payments.
Senate Bill 1080 was introduced by state Sen. John Kavanagh (R-Fountain Hills). Under it, HOAs would be able to foreclose on homeowners who are six months behind with no minimum debt standard.
Current law requires HOAs to wait to foreclose until the homeowner is one year behind on payments or if their debt owed exceeds $1,200.
It was unclear how many homeowners the bill could affect. The Arizona Republic reported that HOAs have started foreclosure actions on more than 3,000 homes in the past three years.
Attorney Robert W. Norman Jr. told DSNews.com, a mortgage and default servicing news website, that the law would likely lead to more HOA-initiated foreclosures in Arizona.
But Kavanagh told the Republic that the bill would help protect HOAs from people who don’t pay their dues.
“Tell a landlord that not paying him for six months isn’t a big deal. It is a big deal,” he said.
After several groups raised concerns, Kavanagh said he would amend the bill so it only applied to “smaller” HOAs, but he did not define what threshold the organizations would have to meet to be considered small.
The bill was in its infancy in the Senate. It had yet to be voted on by a committee as of Friday.
