Virginia HOA Fines: $50 per Offense, $10 a Day, 90-Day Ceiling and a Mandatory Hearing (Va. Code § 55.1-1819)

Virginia's fine ceiling is one of the lowest in the country and it has not moved in decades. Section 55.1-1819 D says the amount of any charges assessed "shall not be limited to the expense or damage to the association caused by the violation, but shall not exceed $50 for a single offense or $10 per day for any offense of a continuing nature," and it closes with the sentence that does the real work: "the total charges for any offense of a continuing nature shall not be assessed for a period exceeding 90 days." Ninety days at $10 is $900, and that is the arithmetic ceiling for one continuing violation. The first clause matters too. Because the charge is expressly not limited to the association's actual expense or damage, a board does not have to show it lost money, and equally it cannot inflate the charge by pointing to what the violation cost.

The power to fine is conditional, not automatic. Subsection B gives the board the power to assess charges only "to the extent the declaration or rules and regulations duly adopted pursuant to such declaration expressly so provide." An association whose recorded documents are silent on charges has no power to levy them, no matter how clear the underlying rule is. The same subsection carries the other coercive tool: the board may suspend a member's right to use facilities or services provided directly through the association, including utility services, for assessments more than 60 days past due, but only if access to the lot through the common areas is not precluded and only if the suspension does not endanger the health, safety or property of any owner, tenant or occupant.

Subsection C sets the procedure, and it is a two-stage sequence rather than a single hearing. First the member must get written notice of the alleged violation, sent to the address required for meeting notices under § 55.1-1815, and a reasonable opportunity to correct it. Virginia does not fix that cure period in days; it is measured by reasonableness against the violation. Only if the violation remains uncorrected does the second stage arrive: the member is entitled to be heard and to be represented by counsel before the board of directors or another tribunal named in the documents. Notice of that hearing must state the actions the association may take, and it must be hand delivered or mailed by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, at least 14 days before the hearing. Within seven days of the hearing the result must go back to the member the same way. Ordinary first-class mail and email do not satisfy the statute for either the hearing notice or the result.

Unpaid charges do not stay in a ledger. Subsection D provides they "shall be treated as an assessment against the member's lot for the purposes of § 55.1-1833," the assessment-lien section, so a $900 accumulation of daily charges can end up secured against the property alongside regular dues. In a condominium, § 55.1-1959 D routes the same charges to § 55.1-1966 for the same purpose.

The litigation rules in subsections E through G are where a Virginia fine dispute usually ends. The board may file or defend an action in general district or circuit court seeking relief including an injunction. Subsection F then freezes the meter: after the association files to collect the charges or obtain injunctive relief, or after the lot owner files challenging the charges, no additional charges accrue. That gives an owner facing a running $10 a day a way to stop the accrual by filing first. If the association wins, it collects from the filing date plus everything properly assessed before the action, and if the court finds the violation still uncorrected it may order the owner to abate or remedy it. Subsection G lets a general district court enter default judgment against a lot owner on the association's sworn affidavit, so ignoring a warrant in debt is expensive.

Attorney fees run both ways and they dwarf the fine. Subsection A provides that rules may be enforced by any method normally available to a private property owner in Virginia, including injunctive relief or actual damages, "during which the court shall award to the prevailing party court costs and reasonable attorney fees." The word is shall, and the prevailing party can be the homeowner.

One more check on the board sits in subsection A: a rule adopted by resolution must be reasonably published or distributed throughout the development, and at a special meeting called under the bylaws a majority of the votes cast may repeal or amend any rule the board adopted. Members can vote a rule out from under the fine.

The section descends from 1989, c. 679, codified as § 55-513, and reached its current number in the 2019 recodification of Title 55 into Title 55.1 (2019, c. 712). It was last amended by 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 131. Citations to Va. Code § 55-513 are dead numbering and will not resolve.

Enforcement runs through the board first and the courts second. 1-1815 and allow a reasonable chance to cure. If the violation continues, it must hold a hearing at which the owner may appear with counsel, noticed at least 14 days ahead by hand delivery or registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, with the outcome delivered the same way within seven days. Only then may a charge issue, and only if the declaration or duly adopted rules expressly authorize charges. The charge is capped at $50 for a single offense or $10 per day for a continuing one, with no continuing offense charged beyond 90 days.

1-1833 and can be secured by the association's lien. Beyond charges, the board may sue in general district or circuit court for an injunction or actual damages, and a general district court may enter default judgment on the association's sworn affidavit if the owner does not appear. An owner who disputes the charges can file suit as well, and doing so stops further charges from accruing under subsection F. Whoever prevails is entitled to court costs and reasonable attorney fees under subsection A. Separately, the board may suspend use of association-provided facilities and services, including utilities, when assessments are more than 60 days past due, so long as access to the lot is not cut off and the suspension does not endanger anyone's health, safety or property.