Carteret County, NC HOA Rules: Assessment & Dues (2026)

Section 6-1.2(C) of the Carteret County Subdivision Regulations requires every owners' association declaration to state that the association is responsible for paying liability insurance premiums, local taxes, and assessments for public and private improvements benefiting the common areas, along with maintaining recreational and other common facilities. Subsection (C)(3) gives the association express power to levy assessments against the owners of lots or units in the development for these expenditures, and any assessment an owner fails to pay becomes a lien on that owner's lot. Subsection (C)(2) adds a county-level backstop: if the owners' association itself defaults on paying county assessments for public improvements or ad valorem taxes on the common areas, and that default continues for six months, each individual lot owner becomes personally obligated to pay the county a pro-rata share, calculated by dividing the total amount due by the number of lots in the development.

If an owner does not pay within thirty days of receiving notice of the amount due, the debt becomes a continuing lien against that owner's property. The county attorney reviews all proposed owners' association bylaws and declarations for sufficiency before the Planning Commission approves the final plat, and the county may sue the delinquent owner personally or foreclose the lien to collect.