Frederick County, VA HOA Rules: Board Governance (2026)

Frederick County's Subdivision Ordinance, Chapter 144, folds homeowners' association governance into the plat-approval process rather than a stand-alone HOA statute. 14 applies only inside the county's RP (Residential Performance), R4 (Residential Planned Community), R5 (Residential Recreational Community) and MH1 (Mobile Home Community) zoning districts; it does not reach Winchester, Stephens City or Middletown, which govern their own subdivisions. Before the Subdivision Administrator will approve a Final Plat, the subdivider must file legal documents creating a nonprofit POA, and those documents go to both the Subdivision Administrator and the County Attorney for review.

The required package includes provisions for dedicating common properties, declarations of covenants, conditions and restrictions, articles of incorporation, bylaws and deed clauses covering common areas. Every contract of sale between the subdivider and a lot purchaser must attach a consumer disclosure statement listing the POA's annual assessments along with a copy of the approved bylaws, so buyers see the association's finances before closing. Membership is not optional: the ordinance makes it mandatory for the original purchaser of every lot and for each successive purchaser, meaning a resale buyer inherits POA membership automatically.

The deed of dedication that creates the POA must include an article of bylaws guaranteeing equal voting rights to every property owner. Until the developer formally transfers control, the subdivider itself exercises every power and duty of the POA, including levying and collecting assessments, and that transfer must occur once 50% of the approved buildable lots have sold.