HOA Disputes in Nevada: Your Rights as a Homeowner (NRS Chapter 116)

By John Quigley · NevadaAttorneyFinder.com · Updated May 26, 2026

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

More than half of all homes in the Las Vegas metro sit inside a common-interest community governed by an HOA, which means more than half of Nevada homeowners have to deal — sooner or later — with a fine, an architectural review denial, a special assessment, a records request that goes ignored, or worst of all, an HOA foreclosure threat. Nevada has one of the most detailed HOA statutes in the country, codified at NRS Chapter 116 (the Common-Interest Communities Act), and that statute gives homeowners far more rights than most board members or property managers will ever tell them about. This guide explains those rights in plain English: what the HOA can and cannot do, how due process for fines actually works, your right to inspect records, the super-priority lien that can wipe out your mortgage, the Nevada Real Estate Division complaint process, and when to bring in an attorney.

What NRS Chapter 116 actually is

NRS Chapter 116 is Nevada's adoption of the Uniform Common-Interest Ownership Act, heavily modified by the Legislature over the last three decades. It applies to almost every condominium association, planned community, master-planned development, and cooperative in Nevada. The chapter sets minimum standards for how associations must be governed, how budgets are adopted, how reserves are funded, how meetings are run, how directors are elected, how votes are counted, how records must be kept, how violations are handled, and how unpaid assessments can be collected — including by foreclosure.

Three points are crucial up front. First, NRS Chapter 116 is a floor, not a ceiling: the CC&Rs and bylaws can grant homeowners more protection than the statute requires, but they cannot take statutory rights away. Any CC&R provision that conflicts with NRS 116 is unenforceable. Second, the statute is enforceable in court — and the prevailing party in many cases recovers attorney's fees under NRS 116.4117, which dramatically changes settlement leverage. Third, Nevada has a free state-run complaint and mediation program through the Office of the Ombudsman for Common-Interest Communities that exists specifically to give individual homeowners a way to push back without immediately hiring a lawyer.

Your right to inspect HOA records (NRS 116.31175)

This is the single most important right most homeowners do not know they have. Under NRS 116.31175, every unit owner can inspect and copy substantially all of the HOA's books and records on 21 days' written notice. The list of accessible records includes:

• Minutes of every board meeting and every meeting of the unit owners.
• Financial statements, budgets, and the annual audited or reviewed financial report.
• The current reserve study, capital plan, and reserve account balances.
• Contracts the HOA has with vendors, including the management agreement.
• The books of account showing every receipt and disbursement.
• Insurance policies covering the association.
• Election ballots and the records of the most recent elections (subject to statutory privacy limits).
• Architectural review committee files and decisions.

The HOA may withhold only narrow categories: attorney-client privileged communications, personnel files of association employees, the individual ledger entries of other unit owners, records of pending litigation strategy, and a few other specifically enumerated categories. A blanket refusal to produce records — or a refusal to produce them within 21 days at a reasonable per-page copy fee — is itself a violation that the homeowner can take to NRED or to court. NRS 116.31175 also caps photocopy charges so the HOA cannot weaponize the fee schedule.

A records request is also the first move in almost any serious HOA dispute, because it puts the relevant documents in your hands before anything else escalates.

Due process for fines (NRS 116.31031)

NRS 116.31031 is the statute every fined homeowner should read first. Before an HOA can impose a fine, it must:

• Send a written notice of the alleged violation that identifies the alleged conduct, cites the specific provision of the CC&Rs, bylaws, or rules that was violated, and tells the owner the date, time, and place of the hearing.
• Give at least 30 days' notice of the hearing — unless the violation poses an imminent threat of harm, in which case a shorter notice period is allowed under the statute.
• Hold an actual hearing at which the unit owner has the opportunity to appear, present evidence, call witnesses, and respond to the allegations.
• Vote in open or executive session (depending on whether confidential information is involved) and document the decision in the minutes.
• Send the written decision to the unit owner within 30 days, identifying any fine imposed.

Fines in Nevada are also capped. For most violations, the maximum fine is $100 per violation, and total fines for a continuing violation are limited under NRS 116.31031(1)(b) unless the violation poses a threat of bodily harm or significant property damage, in which case the cap rises substantially. A fine of $300 a month "until corrected" without a finding of imminent threat is unlawful on its face.

Cure period requirements also bite. For a curable violation, the HOA generally has to give the owner a reasonable opportunity to cure before the fine is imposed. If the HOA never gave a cure period, the fine is procedurally void no matter how clearly the underlying rule was broken.

Open meeting requirements (NRS 116.31083)

Nevada's open meeting rules for HOAs are surprisingly strict. NRS 116.31083 requires the board to meet at least once each quarter, give written notice to unit owners at least 10 days in advance, and allow homeowners to attend and to speak on every agenda item before the board votes. Closed executive sessions are permitted only for narrowly defined purposes: pending or threatened litigation, personnel matters, fines hearings involving a specific owner, contract negotiations, and a few other categories. Anything else discussed in executive session — including general business that should be in open session — can be challenged.

If your board has been quietly making decisions in executive session that should be open (raising assessments, hiring the management company, approving major capital projects), the open meeting law gives you a basis to demand corrective action and, if necessary, to file with NRED.

The super-priority lien: why HOA fees are different in Nevada

This is the area of Nevada HOA law that has changed the most over the last decade and the area where homeowners get into the most serious trouble. NRS 116.3116 gives the HOA a statutory lien on every unit for unpaid assessments. Critically, a defined portion of that lien is "super-priority" — it sits ahead of a first mortgage. The super-priority portion generally consists of the last nine months of regular assessments plus certain charges for maintenance and nuisance abatement, capped under the statute.

In SFR Investments Pool 1 v. U.S. Bank, 130 Nev. 742 (2014), the Nevada Supreme Court confirmed that a properly conducted non-judicial foreclosure by the HOA on the super-priority portion can extinguish the first deed of trust. That is one of the most important real-estate rulings in Nevada history. In practical terms it means three things for homeowners:

• HOA delinquencies are dangerous. A few months of unpaid dues can become a foreclosure proceeding faster than most owners expect.
• Lenders pay attention. Most mortgage servicers now monitor HOA accounts and will advance the super-priority portion to protect their lien — but only if they know about the delinquency.
• The notice requirements matter. NRS 116.31162 and related sections require detailed notices of delinquency, lien, and sale, with statutory cure rights at each stage. A foreclosure conducted without proper notice can be set aside.

If you have received an HOA collection notice or any document referencing a "Notice of Default and Election to Sell" under NRS Chapter 116, treat it as an emergency and contact a Nevada HOA or real estate attorney immediately.

Architectural review committee disputes

The single most common HOA complaint is an architectural review committee (ARC) denial — paint color, landscaping, solar panels, sheds, fences, basketball hoops. Nevada law gives homeowners more leverage in these disputes than most boards admit.

First, the ARC has to follow its own written rules. If the published guidelines say "earth tones," they cannot deny a tan paint sample without saying which earth tone was insufficient. Second, NRS 116.330 protects certain installations: a homeowner generally has the right to install a solar energy system, subject only to reasonable restrictions, and the HOA cannot prohibit them outright. Similar protections apply to electric vehicle charging stations and certain xeriscape landscaping installations (NRS 116.330 and NRS 116.340). Third, the ARC has to act within the time limits in the CC&Rs — many CC&Rs provide that a request not acted on within 30 to 60 days is deemed approved.

If you have been denied, request the written reason, request the meeting minutes where the denial was discussed, and check whether the rule the ARC cited was properly adopted in the first place. ARC denials based on unwritten "norms" are the easiest to overturn.

Special assessments and budget challenges

NRS 116.3115 requires the board to adopt an annual budget and to send it to every unit owner. The budget can be ratified unless 75 percent of unit owners (a high threshold deliberately set by the Legislature) vote to reject it within a specified period. Special assessments — extraordinary one-time charges for capital repairs or emergencies — are also regulated; the board cannot impose them without compliance with the procedures in the CC&Rs and the statute.

Homeowners challenging a budget or special assessment should look at three things: (1) was the proper notice given; (2) is the assessment for a purpose actually authorized by the CC&Rs; and (3) is the reserve study being used as required by NRS 116.31152 to inform the funding plan. A board that levies a $5,000 special assessment without a current reserve study supporting the need is exposed.

The NRED Office of the Ombudsman: your free first step

Nevada is unusual in operating a state ombudsman specifically for HOA disputes. The Office of the Ombudsman for Common-Interest Communities is part of the Nevada Real Estate Division (NRED) within the Department of Business and Industry. Under NRS 116.760 and NAC 116.405 et seq., the Ombudsman:

• Accepts complaints called "Intervention Affidavits" from any unit owner.
• Investigates whether the HOA or its agents have violated NRS Chapter 116, the regulations, or the governing documents.
• Refers matters for enforcement to the Real Estate Commission, which can impose fines on the HOA or its management company.
• Operates the mandatory alternative dispute resolution program under NRS 38.310.

Filing is free. The Intervention Affidavit form is available on the NRED website. Common bases for a complaint include refusal to produce records, improper fines, open meeting violations, election irregularities, and failure to maintain common areas.

The Ombudsman is not a substitute for a lawyer in a high-stakes case, but it is a powerful pressure point — particularly because management companies in Nevada are licensed by NRED and care deeply about complaints showing up in their file.

Mandatory alternative dispute resolution (NRS 38.310)

Before most homeowners can sue their HOA in court, they must complete non-binding alternative dispute resolution. NRS 38.310 requires mediation or arbitration for any "civil action" involving the interpretation, application, or enforcement of the CC&Rs, bylaws, or NRS Chapter 116. The statute carves out specific exceptions: actions to enforce a security interest, foreclosure actions, criminal actions, and actions primarily for money damages above the small claims limit.

If you file a civil action without first going through ADR, the court must dismiss it. The ADR process is coordinated through NRED, the cost is modest, and the parties pick from a panel of approved mediators or arbitrators. Even when ADR does not resolve the dispute, going through it generally clarifies the issues and creates the record for later litigation.

Litigation and attorney's fees (NRS 116.4117)

If ADR fails, the homeowner can file in the Eighth Judicial District Court (Clark County) or the relevant local district court. The cause of action is typically declaratory and injunctive relief, breach of fiduciary duty against directors, breach of the CC&Rs as a contract, and violation of NRS Chapter 116. NRS 116.4117 authorizes the prevailing party in actions to enforce the statute or governing documents to recover reasonable attorney's fees and costs. That fee-shifting provision is what allows individual homeowners to take on HOAs that would otherwise outspend them ten to one.

Statutes of limitations

Different HOA claims have different limitation periods. Breach of the CC&Rs is generally subject to the four-year contract limitation in NRS 11.190(2)(c). Statutory violations of NRS Chapter 116 are generally three years under NRS 11.190(3). Claims involving real property foreclosure must be brought within strict windows that can be as short as 90 days from a foreclosure sale for certain quiet-title actions. If you suspect a foreclosure or lien claim, do not wait — speak with counsel immediately.

Director and officer duties

Board members owe fiduciary duties to the association and its members under NRS 116.3103 and at common law. Self-dealing contracts, undisclosed conflicts of interest, retaliation against owners who file complaints, and decisions made without the deliberation the business-judgment rule requires can all expose individual directors to liability. Most HOAs carry directors-and-officers (D&O) insurance, but coverage typically excludes intentional misconduct.

When to hire a Nevada HOA attorney

Not every dispute needs a lawyer. A simple records request, a fine hearing for a minor violation, or a polite letter to the management company can often be handled by the homeowner alone. Hire a Nevada HOA or real estate attorney when:

• You have received a notice of lien, notice of default, or notice of sale from the HOA or its collection agent.
• The HOA has imposed fines exceeding $1,000 or has begun accruing daily fines.
• You suspect the board is making decisions in violation of NRS Chapter 116 and your records requests are being ignored.
• A board election was conducted with apparent irregularities.
• You are facing an architectural enforcement action that could require removing or rebuilding a significant improvement.
• The HOA's actions threaten your title or your mortgage.

Nevada HOA attorneys typically charge by the hour for individual disputes ($300 to $600 per hour for experienced counsel in Clark County) or take certain matters on a contingent or hybrid basis when fee-shifting under NRS 116.4117 is likely. Many offer a free or low-cost initial consultation to evaluate whether the case is worth pursuing.

Practical checklist before you escalate

• Pull a copy of your CC&Rs, bylaws, and current rules — usually available on the management company portal or via a records request.
• Send a written records request under NRS 116.31175 for the minutes, financials, and any documents relevant to your dispute.
• Document everything: dates, copies of every letter, photographs of any property condition at issue.
• Attend the next board meeting and speak on the relevant agenda item.
• If you receive a fine, demand the formal notice and hearing required by NRS 116.31031.
• If the issue is not resolved, file an Intervention Affidavit with the Office of the Ombudsman.
• Complete NRS 38.310 ADR if required.
• Consult a Nevada HOA attorney before filing in district court.

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