HOA Documents for Buyers — California Civil Code §§ 4525–4545

When an owner in a California condominium, planned development or other common interest development sells, Civil Code § 4525 requires the owner to give the prospective purchaser a list of documents about the association, as soon as practicable before the transfer of title or the execution of a real property sales contract (§ 4525(a)). The list covers the governing documents, a written statement of assessments and fees, notices of unresolved violations, and more.

The owner usually does not hold all of those papers, so § 4530 gives the owner a right to request them from the association — which must respond within 10 days — and limits what the association may charge. § 4528 supplies the billing-disclosure form that shows the buyer, document by document, what each one cost. This page walks through those three sections and the short provisions that follow them.

The owner of a separate interest must provide the documents in § 4525(a) to a prospective purchaser, as soon as practicable before the transfer of title or the execution of a real property sales contract, as defined in Section 2985 (§ 4525(a)). The first five items are:

(1) a copy of all governing documents — and if the association is not incorporated, a written statement from an authorized representative of the association saying so (§ 4525(a)(1)); (2) if a governing-document restriction limits occupancy, residency or use on the basis of age differently from Section 51.3, a statement that the restriction is enforceable only to the extent Section 51.3 permits, and a statement specifying the applicable provisions of Section 51.3 (§ 4525(a)(2)); (3) a copy of the most recent documents distributed under Article 7 (commencing with Section 5300) of Chapter 6 (§ 4525(a)(3)); (4) a true written statement, obtained from an authorized representative of the association, of the current regular and special assessments and fees, any assessments levied on the owner's interest that are unpaid on the date of the statement, and any monetary fines or penalties levied on the owner's interest and unpaid on that date — including true information on late charges, interest and costs of collection that are or may be made a lien under Article 2 (commencing with Section 5650) of Chapter 8 (§ 4525(a)(4)); and (5) a copy or summary of any notice previously sent to the owner under § 5855 that sets out an alleged violation of the governing documents that remains unresolved at the time of the request (§ 4525(a)(5)).

Item (5) comes with two limits. The notice is not a waiver of the association's right to enforce the governing documents against the owner or the prospective purchaser for any violation, and the paragraph does not require an association to inspect an owner's separate interest (§ 4525(a)(5)).

The remaining items are: (6) a copy of the initial list of defects provided to each member under Section 6000, unless the association and the builder later settle or otherwise resolve the matter and the association complies with Section 6100; the list must carry a statement that no final determination has been made as to whether it is accurate and complete, and disclosing it does not waive any privilege attached to it (§ 4525(a)(6)); (7) a copy of the latest information provided for in Section 6100 (§ 4525(a)(7)); (8) any change in the association's current regular and special assessments and fees that the board has approved but that have not become due and payable as of the date of disclosure (§ 4525(a)(8)); (9) if the governing documents prohibit renting or leasing any of the separate interests, a statement describing the prohibition (§ 4525(a)(9)); (10) if the purchaser requests it, a copy of the minutes of board meetings held over the previous 12 months that the board has approved, excluding meetings held in executive session (§ 4525(a)(10)); and (11) a copy of the report issued under the most recent inspection conducted under Section 5551 (§ 4525(a)(11)).

Section 4525 does not apply to an owner that is subject to Section 11018.6 of the Business and Professions Code (§ 4525(b)). The section as it now reads was amended by SB 410 (Stats. 2025, Ch. 516), effective January 1, 2026 (§ 4525, history note).

Section 4528 sets out the form for the billing disclosures that § 4530 requires. It must be in at least 10-point type and substantially in the statutory form (§ 4528). The form is headed "Charges for documents provided as required by Section 4525" and says the seller may provide the buyer, at no cost, current copies of any § 4525 documents the seller has, and that a seller may request to purchase some or all of the documents but is not required to purchase all of the documents listed on the form (§ 4528).

The form then lists the documents line by line, each with the Civil Code section that covers it and a column for its fee — for example governing documents (articles or a statement that the association is not incorporated, CC&Rs, bylaws, operating rules), age and rental restrictions, the annual budget report or summary including the reserve study, the financial statement review, the assessment enforcement policy, the insurance summary, regular, special and emergency assessments, notices of violation, board minutes if requested, and the report on the most recent inspection of exterior elevated elements (§ 4528). A footnote warns that the form may not include every fee that could be imposed before the close of escrow, and that additional fees not related to § 4525 are charged separately (§ 4528). Like § 4525, § 4528 was amended by SB 410, effective January 1, 2026 (§ 4528, history note).

On written request, the association must, within 10 days of the mailing or delivery of the request, provide the owner of a separate interest — or any other recipient the owner authorizes — with a copy of all of the requested § 4525 documents (§ 4530(a)(1)). The documents may be kept in electronic form and posted on the association's website, and the requester has the option of receiving them electronically if the association keeps them in electronic form (§ 4530(a)(2)). Delivery "shall not be withheld for any reason nor subject to any condition except the payment of the fee authorized" by § 4530(b) (§ 4530(a)(3)).

When it delivers the documents, the association must also give the recipient a copy of the completed § 4528 form (§ 4530(d)). Before processing the request, it must provide a written or electronic estimate of the fees on the § 4528 form (§ 4530(b)(2)). The association may contract with another person or entity to handle this on its behalf (§ 4530(c)).

The association may collect a reasonable fee from the seller based on its actual cost for procuring, preparing, reproducing and delivering the requested documents, and may not charge an additional fee for electronic delivery in place of a hard copy (§ 4530(b)(1)). It is the seller's responsibility to pay whoever provides the documents (§ 4530(b)(8)). The seller must give the prospective purchaser, at no cost, current copies of any § 4525 documents in the seller's own possession (§ 4530(b)(6)).

Billing rules: fees for these documents must be distinguished from, separately stated, and separately billed from all other fees, fines or assessments billed as part of the transfer or sale (§ 4530(b)(4)); the fee for each document must be individually itemized in the statement the seller gives the buyer (§ 4530(b)(7)); documents not expressly required by § 4525 may not be included in the disclosure, and bundling the required documents with other transaction documents is prohibited (§ 4530(b)(5)). A cancellation fee may not be collected if the same party who placed the order canceled it in writing before work was performed, or canceled in writing and any work performed was paid for; fees collected must be refunded if the request was canceled in writing before any work was done, and the share for work not performed must be refunded if it was canceled part-way (§ 4530(b)(3)). A seller may ask to buy some or all of the documents but is not required to buy all of those listed on the form (§ 4530(d)).

In addition to this article, an owner transferring title to a separate interest must comply with the applicable requirements of Sections 1133 and 1134 (§ 4535).

A person who willfully violates the article is liable to the purchaser for actual damages caused by the violation and must also pay a civil penalty not exceeding $500; in an action to enforce this liability, the prevailing party is awarded reasonable attorney's fees (§ 4540). A violation does not undo the sale: nothing in the article affects the validity of title to real property transferred in violation of it (§ 4545).

This page is general information, not legal advice. Read the enacted text linked below, and talk to a lawyer about a specific sale.