HB 190: Property; prohibit condominium and property owners' associations from retaliating against property owners for taking certain actions

Georgia condo and homeowners' association law currently has no specific ban on associations punishing owners for speaking up. This bill adds new Code sections covering both condominium associations and property owners' associations that define 'permissible actions' owners can take, such as exercising legal rights, filing complaints, giving feedback, or organizing with other owners, and 'retaliatory actions' associations might take in response, such as filing enforcement suits, cutting off use of the unit or lot, reducing services, raising fees, or interfering with owners' rights. An owner can show a likely case of retaliation by proving they took a permissible action tied to a life, health, safety, or habitability concern and the association acted against them within three months. Associations have defenses for lawful, across-the-board fee increases or service changes and for enforcement actions that were already justified. Owners who prove retaliation can use it as a defense against foreclosure for unpaid assessments and can recover a civil penalty of one month's assessment fees plus $500, court costs, and attorney's fees.

• Creates new Code sections (44-3-118 for condos, 44-3-232.2 for property owners' associations) banning retaliation against owners who exercise legal rights, file complaints, give feedback, or organize.
• Defines specific retaliatory actions, including filing certain enforcement suits, depriving owners of use of their property, cutting services, raising fees, or interfering with owners' rights, when done in response to a permissible action.
• Sets up a legal presumption of retaliation when an association acts against an owner within three months of the owner's protected activity tied to life, health, safety, or habitability.
• Gives associations a defense for lawful, pattern-wide fee increases or service reductions and for enforcement actions that were already justified independent of retaliation.
• Allows an owner to use proven retaliation as a defense to a foreclosure action for unpaid assessments and to recover a civil penalty of one month's fees plus $500, court costs, and attorney's fees.

Owners of condominium units and lots in property owners' association communities, along with the condominium associations and property owners' associations, their boards, and anyone acting on their behalf who manages assessments, enforcement actions, or services for those communities.

Owners who raise safety or habitability concerns or organize with neighbors would gain a specific legal tool to challenge fee hikes, service cuts, or foreclosure actions they believe were retaliatory, while associations would need to document legitimate reasons for enforcement or fee changes made soon after an owner's complaint.

• Section 1 adds Code Section 44-3-118 to the condominium article, defining 'permissible action' and 'retaliatory action' for unit owners and associations.
• Section 1 sets a three-month window: if an association takes a retaliatory action within three months of an owner's permissible action tied to life, health, safety, or habitability, the owner establishes a prima-facie case.
• Section 1 lets a unit owner use retaliation as a defense against an association's foreclosure action and recover one month's assessment fees plus $500, court costs, and attorney's fees.
• Section 2 adds a nearly identical Code Section 44-3-232.2 to the property owners' association article, applying the same rules to lot owners.
• Both sections exempt associations from liability for lawful, community-wide fee increases or service changes and for enforcement actions that were independently justified.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-02-03House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-01-30House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-01-29House Hopper (House)

• Marvin Lim (D, HD-098)Primary sponsor
• Viola Davis (D, HD-087)
• Karen Lupton (D, HD-083)

• condominium law
• homeowners associations
• property owners rights
• landlord-tenant style retaliation
• foreclosure defense