Arkansas guide
Arkansas governance risk
Governance is where Arkansas owner rights are weakest and most document-dependent. The Horizontal Property Act delegates governance to the bylaws, and the Nonprofit Corporation Act of 1993 (Ark.
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Code §§ 4-33-101 et seq.) supplies the corporate defaults, so there is no statutory open-meeting law for associations and the only statutory financial-records right is the receipts-and-expenditures book under § 18-13-110 — far narrower than CCIOA-style access. Condo bylaws must specify the form of administration, meeting and voting procedures (a 51 percent majority adopts decisions), care and upkeep responsibilities, and how common expenses are collected (§ 18-13-108), and changing the form of administration requires a two-thirds-of-value vote (§ 18-13-109). The Nonprofit Act fills in member meetings, proxies, board meetings and quorum, and director removal (§ 4-33-808). Critically, there is no state condo or HOA regulator and no ombudsman, so owner-versus-association disputes go to circuit court, mediation, or arbitration with no quick administrative remedy — which is why pre-purchase document diligence is unusually valuable here.
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No open-meeting law; narrow records access
Arkansas has no statutory open-meeting requirement for associations, so a board can meet privately unless the bylaws say otherwise. The only statutory financial-records right is § 18-13-110, under which the administrator must keep a chronological book of receipts and expenditures detailing common-element maintenance and repair, with that book and supporting vouchers available for examination by all co-owners at announced convenient hours. This is far narrower than CCIOA-style records access — owners may struggle to obtain anything beyond the receipts-and-expenditures book — so test records responsiveness early and read the bylaws for any broader access the documents grant.
Bylaws set the governance machinery
Under § 18-13-108, condo bylaws must specify the form of administration (administrator or board) and removal and compensation, the method of calling meetings, that a 51 percent majority adopts decisions, who presides and keeps the minute book, care and upkeep responsibilities, how common expenses are collected, and personnel hiring and dismissal. Changing the form of administration requires a two-thirds-of-value vote and a recorded instrument (§ 18-13-109). Because the statute defers almost everything to the bylaws, outdated 1960s–1990s condo bylaws that don't match modern practice are a common governance risk — read them closely.
Nonprofit Act defaults fill the gaps
The Nonprofit Corporation Act of 1993 supplies the corporate defaults the Horizontal Property Act omits: member-meeting notice and quorum, proxy voting (proxies allowed, signatures may be electronic), written or electronic ballots, board-meeting call and notice, board quorum and voting, and director removal (§ 4-33-808). Associations incorporated before 1994 fall under the 1963 Act. Electronic and virtual meetings and voting are permitted to the extent the Nonprofit Act and the bylaws allow. Confirm the association is in good standing with the Secretary of State and read the bylaws for voting, proxy, and removal procedures.
Developer transition and the no-regulator backstop
Act 516 of 2025 introduced declarant-control and development-rights concepts with master-deed time limits and tied declarant funding obligations to the end of declarant control or five years from first conveyance — but only for regimes organized on or after September 1, 2025, or those that opt in. Pre-2025 regimes have no statutory transition framework, so turnover terms live entirely in the declaration, which matters for fast-growing Northwest Arkansas projects. And because Arkansas has no HOA regulator or ombudsman, every governance dispute runs through circuit court, mediation, or arbitration — there is no agency to call after closing, which is a reason to do more diligence before it, not less.
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Arkansas legal references
- Ark. Code §§ 18-13-101 to -120 — Horizontal Property Act (§§ 108–110 governance)
- Ark. Code §§ 4-33-101 et seq. — Nonprofit Corporation Act of 1993
- Ark. Code § 4-33-808 — Director removal (Justia)
- Arkansas Secretary of State — business/corporation search
Informational only. Not legal advice. Always confirm against current statute and counsel.
Need help applying these Arkansas statutes to your specific situation? We can connect you with state-licensed counsel and specialists familiar with this exact regulatory environment.
Find a Arkansas specialist →Reviewer's checklist
- Test records responsiveness against the § 18-13-110 receipts-and-expenditures book
- Read the bylaws for any broader records, meeting, or voting rights (no open-meeting law)
- Confirm the bylaws' form of administration and meeting/voting procedures (§ 18-13-108)
- Read the last several years of minutes for closed decisions or records refusals
- Confirm director election/removal and proxy procedures (Nonprofit Act, § 4-33-808)
- Confirm whether the regime is under the pre-2025 Act or Act 516 (declarant control)
- Check developer-transition and turnover terms in the declaration (esp. NWA projects)
- Confirm the association's good standing with the Secretary of State
- Review the management arrangement and fund controls (managers are unlicensed in Arkansas)
- Weigh governance quality against the building's financial and physical needs
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Source documents
- Declaration & bylawsthe rules
- Budget & financialsthe money
- Reserve studythe big repairs
- Meeting minuteswhat the board fears
Cross-reference
The risk lives in the contradiction between documents.
An assessment in the minutes but not the estoppel; a reserve the budget never funds.
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Every finding cites the document, page number, and quoted text.
How CondoSignal reviews this
We read the reserve study, operating budget, and 24 months of meeting minutes together — arkansas governance risk risk usually lives in the contradiction between documents, not in any single one of them. Every finding cites the source document, the page number, and the quoted text behind it.
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Related risk areas
Read these next to round out your due diligence
Condo document review
A condo document review is the structured analysis of every disclosure document your seller or association has provided — declaration, bylaws, rules, reserve study, budgets, financials, meeting minutes, insurance summary, estoppel or resale certificate, and any pending special assessment notices.
HOA document review
An HOA document review reads the full association document set — declaration or deed restrictions, CC&Rs, bylaws, resale or disclosure certificate, current budget, audited financials, meeting minutes, and any enforcement history — and surfaces the items that actually affect your ownership cost, your usage rights, and your exposure to surprise assessments.
Special assessments
Special assessments are the single largest source of financial surprise in condo and HOA ownership.
Related reading
Guides for Arkansas buyers and owners
Reading HOA Meeting Minutes Before You Buy: Red Flags to Look For
Meeting minutes often reveal problems before they appear in the resale package summary — deferred repairs, insurance struggles, assessments in formation. Learn the red flags to look for before you buy.
What to Look for in Condo Documents: A Buyer's Complete Guide
A resale package contains roughly a dozen documents. Learn what each one discloses, what most buyers overlook, and which sections to read closely before you close.
The Complete Condo Buying Checklist (2026)
A four-phase due diligence framework — pre-offer through post-closing — covering documents, fees, reserves, insurance, lender requirements, and governance risk.
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Reviewed by Kirk Hasley, Founder. Every claim here is checked against current Arkansas statute and primary sources, using the same documented review framework we run on every file. Last reviewed June 13, 2026.
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“The board approved a $15,000-per-unit special assessment for façade repairs, payable over 12 months.”
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Most buyers get 7–14 days to review condo documents. Upload the packet — we read the reserve study, budget, minutes, and insurance summary and flag the risks, every finding linked to the exact page. Free.
Expert Matching
Need a real estate lawyer or mortgage specialist?
We can connect you with vetted real estate lawyers, mortgage brokers, and insurance brokers familiar with the specifics of condo and HOA transactions.
- HOA lawyer
- Property manager