Senate · Introduced · 2025-2026 Regular Session

SB 580: Property; the minimum amount required for a foreclosure on a lien on a property under the "Georgia Condominium Act" and the "Georgia Property Owners' Association Act"; increase

Last action February 26, 2026 · Senate Read and Referred

A Georgia Senate bill would raise the minimum unpaid debt required before a condominium or homeowners' association can foreclose on a lien from $2,000 to $20,000.

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In plain language

Under current Georgia law, condominium associations and property owners' associations can foreclose on a homeowner's unit or lot to collect unpaid assessments once the overdue amount reaches at least $2,000. This bill raises that threshold to $20,000 for both types of associations. The bill amends two sections of Georgia's property code: O.C.G.A. § 44-3-109 under the Georgia Condominium Act and O.C.G.A. § 44-3-232 under the Georgia Property Owners' Association Act. Both sections otherwise keep the same foreclosure process, including the 30-day notice requirement sent by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery, the four-year lapse period for liens, and the association's ability to bid on the property at a foreclosure sale. Only the dollar threshold for triggering a foreclosure changes.

What the bill does

Raises the minimum lien amount required before a condominium association can foreclose on a unit from $2,000 to $20,000 under O.C.G.A. § 44-3-109.
Raises the same minimum lien threshold from $2,000 to $20,000 for property owners' associations foreclosing on a lot under O.C.G.A. § 44-3-232.
Leaves unchanged the existing 30-day notice-by-mail requirement before a foreclosure can proceed.
Leaves unchanged the four-year lapse period after which an unpaid assessment lien becomes unenforceable.

Who it affects

Homeowners who live in condominiums or in communities governed by property owners' associations, as well as the associations themselves that place liens for unpaid dues, and holders of mortgages or other liens on those properties whose rights remain unaffected by these foreclosures.

Why it matters

Owners who fall behind on association dues would need to owe a much larger amount, $20,000 instead of $2,000, before the association could foreclose on their home or lot. This makes it harder for associations to use foreclosure to collect smaller unpaid debts.

Key provisions

Section 1 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 44-3-109(c) to change the minimum foreclosure threshold for condominium liens from $2,000 to $20,000.
Section 2 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 44-3-232(c) to make the identical change for property owners' association liens.
Both sections keep intact the requirement that the association send notice by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery at least 30 days before foreclosing.
Both sections keep the four-year lapse rule for assessment liens unchanged.
Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

Discussed in meetings (2)

The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.

Senate Urban Affairs Committee, February 26, 2026
From 0:25:32 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 580 would raise the amount required for an association foreclosure from $2,000 to $20,000 while leaving the procedures unchanged. The sponsor said complaints about foreclosure threats prompted the proposal and expressed willingness to adjust the amount. An association president opposed the $20,000 threshold, saying unpaid dues threaten essential services and shift costs to paying owners. The witness cited a $360,000 association budget and $600 dues, and said a four-year deadline for obtaining judgments could require debts to be written off before reaching the proposed threshold. The witness suggested having mortgage lenders pay overdue dues and collect repayment through escrow. The chair emphasized protecting homeowners from accumulating fines. A condominium resident said accelerating a full year of $250 monthly dues could quickly put an owner above the existing threshold. A later witness supported raising the threshold but retaining foreclosure, describing payment plans, fee reductions and community service as other collection approaches. No change or vote occurred. Near the end, the chair said the bill had been assigned to a committee and proposed writing to that committee’s chair to seek action.

Read aloud: Senate floor session, February 26, 2026 (legislative day 25), 0:22:01

Status timeline

2026-02-26Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2026-02-25Senate Hopper (Senate)

Topics

homeowners associations
condominium law
property liens
foreclosure rules
property law

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Machine-readable https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb580.md · https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md · MCP https://mcp.georgiacommons.org/mcp