HB 1035: Georgia Homeownership Protection Act of 2026; enact

Under current Georgia law, unpaid water, sewer, or trash bills can sometimes be added to a home's property tax bill and collected through a tax sale, and condominium or homeowners' associations can foreclose on a home over unpaid dues. This bill, called the Georgia Homeownership Protection Act of 2026, would end those practices for owner occupied dwellings, meaning a home where the owner actually lives. The bill blocks counties and cities from moving unpaid utility charges onto the tax digest for tax sale purposes, turns condo and HOA assessment liens into unsecured debts that can only be collected through a money judgment rather than foreclosure, and bars utilities and tax officials from foreclosing or holding tax sales based on nontax charges. It creates civil penalties, including damages up to $5,000 per violation for homeowners and up to $10,000 per violation the Attorney General can pursue, and voids any deed transferred in violation. It would take effect July 1, 2026 and apply to foreclosure actions filed on or after that date.

• Bars counties, municipalities, and local authorities from adding unpaid water, sewer, storm-water, or solid waste charges to a home's property tax bill for tax execution or tax sale purposes (new O.C.G.A. § 36-80-32).
• Converts condominium and property owners' association assessment liens on owner occupied homes into unsecured debts that cannot be foreclosed or sold under a power of sale (amending O.C.G.A. §§ 44-3-109 and 44-3-232).
• Prohibits any foreclosure, tax sale, or forced sale of an owner occupied home based on unpaid nontax service charges, while still allowing sales for unpaid property taxes or mortgage default (new O.C.G.A. § 44-14-166).
• Voids contract or recorded provisions that authorize foreclosure over nontax charges, while still letting associations suspend amenity access, charge late fees, or record delinquency notices (new O.C.G.A. § 44-14-167).
• Creates civil remedies letting homeowners sue for damages up to $5,000 per violation plus attorney's fees, and lets the Attorney General seek penalties up to $10,000 per violation (new O.C.G.A. § 44-14-168).
• Stops tax commissioners and utilities from issuing tax executions or foreclosing liens against owner occupied homes over nontax service charges (new O.C.G.A. §§ 46-1-7 and 48-3-29).

Homeowners living in their primary residence, condominium and homeowners' associations that collect assessments and fines, county and municipal governments and tax officials, water, sewer, and other utility providers, and the Attorney General's office, which gains enforcement authority under the new civil penalty provisions.

Georgians who fall behind on utility bills or HOA dues would no longer risk losing their home through foreclosure or tax sale; associations and local governments would instead have to sue for a money judgment, changing how they collect unpaid charges and removing foreclosure as leverage over homeowners.

• Section 2 adds O.C.G.A. § 36-80-32, barring local governments from moving unpaid utility service charges onto the property tax roll for tax sale of an owner occupied home.
• Sections 3 through 9 rewrite Georgia's condominium and property owners' association lien laws (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-3-80, 44-3-109, 44-3-117, 44-3-206, 44-3-207, 44-3-225, 44-3-232) to eliminate foreclosure and power-of-sale rights against owner occupied homes and make assessments unsecured debts.
• Section 11 adds new Code sections 44-14-166 through 44-14-168, generally banning forced sales of owner occupied homes for nontax charges, voiding foreclosure clauses for such charges, and creating civil damages and Attorney General penalties for violations.
• Section 12 adds O.C.G.A. § 46-1-7, letting utilities sue to collect unpaid bills but barring liens that lead to foreclosure or tax sale of an owner occupied home, and requiring due process protections before disconnecting water or sewer service.
• Section 13 adds O.C.G.A. § 48-3-29, prohibiting tax officials from issuing a tax execution or holding a sale of an owner occupied home based even partly on nontax service charges.
• Section 14 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026, applying to foreclosure actions filed on or after that date.

1. 2026-02-26House Committee Favorably Reported (Cámara de Representantes)
2. 2026-01-29House Second Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
3. 2026-01-28House First Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
4. 2026-01-27House Hopper (Cámara de Representantes)

• Sandra Scott (D, HD-076)Patrocinador principal
• Viola Davis (D, HD-087)
• Kim Schofield (D, HD-063)
• Gerald Greene (R, HD-154)
• Rhonda Taylor (D, HD-092)
• David Huddleston (R, HD-072)

• homeowner foreclosure protection
• HOA and condo assessments
• property tax sales
• utility service charges
• housing law