Stafford Township, NJ HOA Rules: Assessment & Dues (2026)

Two provisions in the Land Use and Development chapter cover assessments. Section 130-59C says the assessment levied by the organization upon each member can become a lien on each member's property, and the organization shall be allowed to adjust the assessment to meet changing needs. Section 130-59A requires each member to agree, in the written covenant between the organization and the member, to liability for a pro rata share of the organization's costs.

Section 130-61G applies where open space is owned and maintained by a homeowners' or condominium association. The developer files a declaration of covenants and restrictions with the application for preliminary approval, and the provisions include that homeowners must pay their pro rata share of the cost, that the assessment levied by the association can become a lien on the property if allowed in the master deed establishing the association, and that the association must be able to adjust the assessment to meet changed needs. The sections quoted print no cap on increases, no notice period and no late fee, so those terms come from the master deed and bylaws the Township approves.

The Township's own assessment is a separate matter. If the association fails to maintain common open space after notice, a hearing and the cure period, the Township can maintain it, and under § 130-59F the cost is assessed pro rata against the properties within the development that have a right of enjoyment of the common open space and common property, according to assessed value at the time of imposition of the lien. That cost becomes a lien and tax, added to the taxes on those properties and collected with interest in the same offices and in the same manner as other taxes. Section 130-61H(3) says the same for open space owned by a nonmunicipal organization.