Texas HOA Laws: Your Rights Under Chapter 209

Texas HOA law is primarily governed by the Texas Property Code, Chapters 201-215, formally titled "Property Owners' Associations." This statute is notably homeowner-protective while allowing significant HOA flexibility, reflecting Texas's property rights philosophy.

Core Statutory Framework

• §209.001 — §209.003 — Definitions and statutory purposes (protect homeowner rights while allowing HOA governance)
• §209.006 — Notice and cure requirements for violations
• §209.007 — Hearing rights and fine procedures before enforcement
• §209.009 — Foreclosure restrictions (only assessment liens, not fine-only liens)
• §209.0051 — Open meeting requirements and agenda posting
• §209.005 — Homeowner record access rights
• §202.010 — Solar panel protection (cannot be prohibited)
• §202.018 — Religious display protections (door/doorframe items)
• §202.007 — Xeriscaping and water-conserving landscaping protections
• §202.009 & §202.012 — Political signs and flag display

Recent amendments — House Bill 886 (2023) (two-notice rule for assessment liens, §209.0094) and House Bill 614 (2023) (required fine policy and schedule, §209.0061) — added procedural protections for homeowners.

Texas law explicitly grants homeowners comprehensive rights that HOAs cannot eliminate or reduce. These rights are foundational protections that override restrictive CC&Rs.

Record Access Rights (§209.005)

You have the absolute right to inspect and copy HOA records:

• Reasonable time period — HOA must provide access within reasonable timeframe (typically interpreted as 10-14 days)
• No "proper purpose" requirement — You don't need to justify why you want records
• Financial records — All books, records, and financial statements must be available
• Meeting minutes — Board meeting minutes must be provided within 30 days
• Enforcement records — Records of violations and enforcement actions must be available
• Reasonable copying costs — HOA can charge actual cost but not research fees

Protected Activities You Cannot Be Fined For

Texas Property Code explicitly prohibits HOA restrictions on:

Flags and Political Expression (§202.012 & §202.009)

• Display of U.S. flag or Texas flag
• Display of military service flags
• Display of political signs (reasonable size and location restrictions allowed, but cannot be prohibited)
• HOA can regulate placement and size but cannot ban entirely. See our detailed guide on political signs and ring doorbells.

Religious Items (§202.018)

• Cannot be prohibited — HOA may not enforce a restrictive covenant that prohibits display of religious items on the owner's property, including the entry door or doorframe
• Covers religious symbols, artifacts, and displays motivated by the owner's religious belief
• HOA can prohibit items that threaten public health or safety, or are installed on common-area property
• This is one of the strongest religious display protections in the country. See our guide on HOA religious display restrictions.

Solar Panels (§202.010)

• Cannot be banned outright — but you MUST get approval first. §202.010(b) voids covenants that prohibit solar devices. But §202.010(d)(8) lets your HOA prohibit a device that "was installed without prior approval" — so always apply before you install, or you forfeit the protection entirely. See our detailed blog post on solar panels.
• The HOA may enforce rules on roofline height, conformity to the roof slope, silver/bronze/black hardware tones, and its designated roof area — unless your alternate location increases estimated annual energy production by more than 10% (§202.010(d)(5)).
• It may not withhold approval if you meet those rules, unless it determines in writing that your placement substantially interferes with the use and enjoyment of land. Written approval from all adjoining owners is prima facie evidence that it doesn't (§202.010(e)).
• Exception: during the development period in a development with fewer than 51 planned residential units, the declarant may restrict or prohibit solar (§202.010(f)).

Xeriscaping and Water-Conserving Landscaping (§202.007)

• Cannot be prohibited — HOA may not enforce a covenant that prohibits water-conserving natural landscaping or xeriscaping
• Includes drought-resistant plants, native grasses, permeable hardscaping, and reduced-irrigation designs
• HOA can still require that xeriscaped yards be maintained (no dead plants, no bare dirt)
• Homeowners who are fined for compliant water-conserving landscaping may recover attorney's fees
• See our spring weed violations guide for more on landscaping protections.

Vehicle and Driveway Parking — No Statutory Protection in Texas

• Texas has no statute protecting driveway parking of personal vehicles. Property Code Chapter 202 contains no pickup-truck or driveway-parking provision — §202.007 is a water-conservation statute. (Arizona has such a law; Texas does not. Don't cite one to your board.)
• Parking restrictions come from your CC&Rs, and under §202.004(a) the HOA's enforcement of them is presumed reasonable — it's your burden to show the enforcement was arbitrary, capricious, or discriminatory. See our guide on driveway parking violations.

Other Vehicle Restrictions

• HOA can restrict commercial vehicles actively engaged in business on the property
• RVs, boats, and inoperable vehicles may still be restricted per CC&Rs
• Personal vehicles (even if used for work) cannot be banned from driveway

Meeting Attendance and Voting Rights

• Right to attend all open meetings — Board meetings must be open to members except for attorney-client privileged sessions
• 48-hour notice requirement — Regular board meetings require at least 48 hours' notice
• Agenda posting — Agenda must be available 72 hours before meeting (under §209.0051)
• Right to speak — Reasonable time to address the board on matters of concern
• Voting rights — Vote on all matters including budget approval, special assessments, board elections
• One lot, one vote — Standard voting (unless governing documents specify otherwise)

Texas law imposes specific obligations on HOA boards. Understanding these obligations gives you leverage when boards fail to comply.

Notice and Cure Requirements (§209.006)

Before imposing any fine, the board must:

• Provide written notice describing the alleged violation
• Allow a reasonable period to cure before fining (§209.006)
• Honor the owner's right to request a §209.007 hearing
• Provide specific, not vague, description of what action is required to cure

Hearing Requirement Before Fining (§209.007)

The board must provide notice of opportunity to be heard before imposing any fine:

• Notice must include opportunity to present evidence and witnesses
• Hearing can be conducted by board, committee, or hearing officer
• Homeowner must have chance to respond to allegation
• Decision must be made by impartial authority (though not required to be independent of board)
• No fine can be imposed without this hearing

Foreclosure Restrictions (§209.009)

The board can only foreclose liens for unpaid ASSESSMENTS, not fines:

• Assessment liens can be foreclosed — Regular HOA fees that fund operations
• Fine-only liens cannot be foreclosed — Under §209.009, fines alone cannot result in home loss; foreclosure is reserved for unpaid assessments
• For unpaid assessments, HB 886 (§209.0094) requires a two-notice process before an assessment lien can be filed
• HOA cannot combine unpaid fines with assessments to reach foreclosure threshold

Payment Priority (§209.0063)

If you make partial payments to the HOA, they must be applied in this order:

• First to assessments (HOA fees)
• Then to assessment-related costs (attorney fees, court costs for assessment collection)
• Last to fines and fine-related costs

The HOA cannot redirect your payment to fines if assessments are owed. This protects homeowners from losing homes over unpaid fines while assessments remain uncollected.

Open Meeting Requirements (§209.0051)

All board meetings must be open and properly noticed:

• 72-hour agenda posting — Agenda must be available 72 hours before meeting (not 48 hours)
• Open meetings — Board cannot hold closed-door meetings except attorney-client privileged sessions
• Minutes recorded — Official minutes must be kept and provided to homeowners
• Reasonable notice — Homeowners must be notified of meeting date, time, location, and agenda in advance

Required Fine Policy & Schedule (HB 614, §209.0061, Effective January 1, 2024)

Since January 1, 2024, any HOA that levies fines must adopt and distribute an enforcement policy under §209.0061 that includes:

• The general categories of restrictive covenants for which the HOA may assess fines
• A schedule of the fine amounts for each category of violation
• Information about your right to a hearing under §209.007
• The policy must be recorded, posted (if the HOA maintains a website), and provided to owners

Ask your HOA for its §209.0061 fine policy and schedule. If it can't produce one — or fined you for something outside its stated categories or schedule — the fine is vulnerable to challenge.

Things Your Board CANNOT Do

• Cannot retaliate for complaints, record requests, or assertion of rights
• Cannot discriminate based on race, religion, disability, family status, or other protected categories
• Cannot restrict protected activities (flags, solar, religious items, political signs)
• Cannot fine without hearing (violates §209.007)
• Cannot circumvent cure period (violates §209.006)
• Cannot foreclose over fine-only debt (barred by §209.009; foreclosure is for unpaid assessments only)
• Cannot fine without first adopting and providing a §209.0061 fine policy and schedule (HB 614)

Texas's 88th Legislature (2023) passed two HOA bills homeowners should know about. Both are narrower than they are sometimes described — here is what they actually do.

HB 886 (Effective September 1, 2023) — Two-Notice Rule for Assessment Liens (§209.0094)

HB 886 added a notice requirement before an HOA can file a lien for unpaid assessments (regular dues). It does not govern fines or violation foreclosure.

• First notice — sent by first-class mail or email
• Second notice — sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, at least 30 days after the first
• 90-day wait — the HOA may not file the assessment lien until the 90th day after the second notice
• This applies to assessment collection, not to disciplinary fines

HB 614 (Effective January 1, 2024) — Required Fine Policy & Schedule (§209.0061)

HB 614 added §209.0061. Any HOA that levies fines must adopt — and record, post, and distribute — an enforcement policy that includes:

• The general categories of restrictive covenants for which the HOA may assess fines
• A schedule of the fine amounts for each category of violation
• Information about the homeowner's right to a hearing under §209.007

If your HOA fined you without having adopted and provided this policy and schedule, the fine is vulnerable to challenge. (HB 614 did not create board-training, mandatory mediation, or age-restriction rules — those are not part of the law.)

Foreclosure for Fine-Only Debt Is Barred (§209.009)

Separately, §209.009 bars an HOA from foreclosing when the debt is solely fines or fine-related attorney's fees. Foreclosure is reserved for unpaid assessments.

Texas law requires that if you make partial payments to your HOA, payments must be applied in a specific priority order. This protects homeowners from having partial payments diverted to fines while assessment liens grow.

Required Payment Priority Order (§209.0063)

1. Regular assessments (HOA fees) — Monthly or annual fees that fund HOA operations, maintenance, and reserves
2. Assessment-related costs — Attorney fees, court costs, and collection costs associated with assessment liens
3. Fines and fine-related costs — Disciplinary fines and any associated late fees, attorney costs, or interest

Why This Matters

• HOA cannot use your payment to reduce fines while assessments remain owed
• Protects you from artificially inflating assessment debt while fines are prioritized
• Ensures that your payment goes toward the debt most likely to result in lien/foreclosure (assessments)
• Prevents HOAs from strategically applying payments to increase fine balances

Example Scenario

You owe:

• $500 in unpaid monthly assessments
• $200 in fines for violation
• Total: $700 owed

You send $400 payment. Under §209.0063 priority rules:

• $400 MUST be applied to unpaid assessments first
• Assessment balance becomes $100; fine balance remains $200
• HOA cannot apply $400 to fines instead, leaving $500 assessment debt unpaid