Does Ohio have one condo and HOA law or two?

Two. Condominiums are governed by the Ohio Condominium Property Act (ORC Chapter 5311) and HOAs and planned communities by the Ohio Planned Community Law (ORC Chapter 5312). Senate Bill 61 (effective September 13, 2022) aligned the two on reserves, records access, fidelity insurance, and fine procedure, but lien and disclosure mechanics still differ. Confirm which statute governs your property first.

Does Ohio require condo associations to fund reserves?

Yes, with a loophole. ORC §5311.081 (condos) and §5312.06 (planned communities) require the board to budget reserves adequate to repair and replace major capital items without special assessments. But the requirement does not apply if the declaration limits board assessment authority, or if owners waive it in writing by majority vote each year. Ohio does not require a formal reserve study and does not define adequate, so ask whether reserves have been waived and for how many consecutive years.

Is Ohio a super-lien state?

No. Under ORC §5311.18 and §5312.12, a first mortgage recorded before the association files its lien certificate has priority over the association's lien, and Ohio has no six-month super-priority. Repeated bills to add one (HB 226, HB 371, HB 572) have failed for over a decade. When an owner defaults, unpaid assessments often go uncollected and are spread to paying owners, so high delinquency is a whole-association risk.

What resale disclosure must an Ohio seller provide?

For an existing-unit resale, the state-prescribed Residential Property Disclosure Form under ORC §5302.30 — a property-condition disclosure, not an association-financials package. Ohio has no condo-specific statutory resale certificate, and caveat emptor governs resales. If the seller fails to deliver the form before the buyer signs, the buyer may rescind within three business days after it is provided or within 30 days of the contract, whichever is earlier. Developer and new-construction sales instead use the ORC §5311.26 disclosure statement.

How far back can I review an Ohio association's records?

Generally five years. Under ORC §5311.091 (condos) and §5312.07 (planned communities), owners may inspect books, records, and minutes under reasonable board standards, but unless the board approves, may not access records older than five years or certain protected categories such as personnel, attorney and litigation matters, and contracts under negotiation. This five-year cap limits how far back a long-running problem can be traced.

Do Ohio condos face local façade-inspection requirements?

In the three largest cities, yes. Cleveland (Codified Ordinance §3143.02), Columbus (Critical Observation program), and Cincinnati (Ordinance 329-2016 / Municipal Code Ch. 1127) each require periodic exterior-wall or façade inspections of tall, older buildings, generally every five years. For a high-rise condo in those cities, request the most recent inspection report and any unsafe or repair-program classification, which can signal a large upcoming assessment.

Ohio document review

Ohio condo & HOA document review

Ohio is a two-statute state. Condominiums are governed by the Ohio Condominium Property Act (Ohio Revised Code Chapter 5311), and HOAs and planned communities by the Ohio Planned Community Law (ORC Chapter 5312).

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Why Ohio is different

The two regimes were closely aligned by Senate Bill 61, effective September 13, 2022, which modernized reserves, records access, fidelity insurance, and the enforcement-fine procedure. The first diligence question in any Ohio transaction is which statute applies: multi-unit horizontal-property buildings with shared structure are almost always Chapter 5311 condominiums, while detached single-family communities are typically Chapter 5312 planned communities. Lien, disclosure, and governance mechanics differ in detail even after SB 61 harmonized much of the language. There is no state condo or HOA regulator, no ombudsman, and no registration — disputes are resolved by civil action in the county court of common pleas. Ohio's signature feature is its statutory reserve mandate. Under ORC §5311.081 for condominiums and §5312.06 for planned communities, the board must adopt an annual budget that includes reserves adequate to repair and replace major capital items in the normal course of operations without the necessity of special assessments. The mandate has two exceptions, however: it does not apply where the declaration or bylaws limit the board's authority to raise assessments without an owner vote, or where owners waive the requirement in writing by at least a majority of voting power annually. SB 61 made the waiver an annual event that lapses and must be re-voted each year, removing the older fixed formula. The practical result is that Ohio mandates funding on paper but leaves an easy annual escape hatch, so many associations remain underfunded. Ohio does not require a formal reserve study by an engineer or reserve specialist, and the statute does not define what adequate means, so the standard is effectively self-assessed by the board. The defining buyer story is the special-assessment trap born of decades of underfunded reserves in aging mid-century condo stock across Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, Akron, and Toledo, combined with a sharply hardening insurance market driven by record severe-storm losses. Ohio set a record 74 tornadoes in 2024, and homeowner premiums rose roughly 36 percent from 2019 through 2024, with master condo policies tracking the same hardening and carriers pushing higher wind and hail deductibles. Ohio is not a super-lien state: under ORC §5311.18 and §5312.12 the association lien is subordinate to a first mortgage recorded before the association files its lien certificate, and repeated legislative attempts to add a six-month super-priority (HB 226, HB 371, HB 572) have failed to pass for more than a decade. Unpaid assessments therefore often go uncollected in foreclosure and are effectively spread to paying owners. Resale disclosure is a weak point. Ohio has no condo-specific statutory resale certificate compelling the seller or association to deliver a standardized package of assessments, reserves, insurance, and litigation. Resales of an existing unit run on the state-prescribed Residential Property Disclosure Form under ORC §5302.30 — a property-condition disclosure, not an association-financials disclosure — and the common-law doctrine of caveat emptor still governs. Developer and new-construction sales are different: ORC §5311.26 requires a developer disclosure statement with a two-year budget projection and rescission rights. Because the statute will not hand a resale buyer the association's finances, proactive document review is the buyer's main protection. Records access is itself limited: under ORC §5311.091 and §5312.07, owners may not reach records older than five years or certain protected categories without board approval, which caps how far back a long-running problem can be traced. For high-rise condos, Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati each run periodic exterior-wall or façade inspection programs that create a recurring local compliance obligation and a paper trail a buyer should request.

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Based on CondoSignal's review of Ohio condo-document risk patterns. This page reflects our analysis of Ohio's disclosure requirements and the issues we most often flag in Ohio document packages — not generic HOA advice.

Reserve mandate with an annual waiver loophole

ORC §5311.081 (condos) and §5312.06 (planned communities) require the board to budget reserves adequate to repair and replace major capital items without special assessments. But the mandate does not apply if the declaration limits the board's assessment authority, or if owners waive it in writing by majority vote each year. Senate Bill 61 (2022) made the waiver an annual event. Ohio also does not require a formal reserve study and does not define adequate, so funding is effectively self-assessed. Ask whether reserves have been waived and for how many consecutive years — a multi-year waiver is a strong special-assessment warning.

The special-assessment trap in aging stock

Ohio's mid-century condo boom left Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, Akron, and Toledo with 1960s–1990s buildings whose roofs, parking decks, elevators, plumbing, and masonry are reaching end-of-life. Decades of thin budgets produced a history of surprise five-figure special assessments — what Ohio practitioners call condominium roulette. The reserve mandate was designed to reduce specials, but the annual-waiver loophole means they remain common. A heavy special-assessment history or pending assessment is a core diligence finding.

Not a super-lien state

Under ORC §5311.18 and §5312.12, the association's lien for unpaid assessments is subordinate to real-estate-tax liens and to a first mortgage recorded before the association files its certificate of lien. Ohio has no six-month super-priority over first mortgages, and bills to create one (HB 226, HB 371, HB 572) have repeatedly failed. When an owner defaults, a foreclosing first mortgagee can wipe out the association's claim for back dues, so unpaid assessments often go uncollected and are spread to paying owners. A high count of recorded liens or delinquent units is a whole-association financial-distress signal.

Hardening severe-storm insurance market

Ohio condominium associations must carry property coverage of at least 90 percent of replacement cost and fidelity coverage under ORC §5311.16. The market is hardening fast: Ohio set a record 74 tornadoes in 2024, and homeowner premiums rose roughly 36 percent from 2019 through 2024, with master policies tracking the trend and carriers imposing higher, often separate, wind and hail deductibles and roof-age or actual-cash-value limits. A master-policy deductible above roughly 5 percent of coverage can exceed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac limits and jeopardize financing. Review the master declarations page for the 90 percent floor, fidelity coverage, and deductible structure.

Weak resale disclosure and caveat emptor

Ohio has no condo-specific statutory resale certificate. Resales run on the Residential Property Disclosure Form (ORC §5302.30), a property-condition form rather than an association-financials disclosure, and the common-law doctrine of caveat emptor still governs existing-unit resales. Records access is capped at five years under ORC §5311.091 and §5312.07. The law will not compel delivery of budgets, reserves, minutes, insurance, or special-assessment history on a resale — the buyer must request them. Developer and new-construction sales differ: ORC §5311.26 requires a developer disclosure statement with rescission rights.

What we flag in Ohio documents

The annual reserve requirement waived multiple years in a row
A Cleveland/Columbus/Cincinnati façade classified 'unsafe' or repair-required
A master deductible over 5% of coverage
No fidelity coverage for those handling funds (§ 5311.16)
High delinquency (no super-lien — weaker collection)

The CondoSignal framework8 categories · every report

Reserve funding Special assessments Insurance Governance Financials Litigation Restrictions Buyer fit

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Ohio cities

Where in Ohio?

Columbus

Franklin County

Columbus is Ohio's fastest-growing condo market, mixing downtown and Short North high-rise and mid-rise condominiums under ORC Chapter 5311 with extensive suburban planned-community HOAs under Chapter 5312.

Cleveland

Cuyahoga County

Cleveland holds Ohio's oldest condo stock — converted warehouses and lofts, mid-century lakefront and Lakewood/Shaker high-rises, and aging garden condos, many of them 50 or more years old.

Ohio topic guides

Ohio-specific guidance

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. Done well, it tells you exactly what you are buying. Done in a hurry — or as a chat session against a single PDF — it misses the cross-references where real risk lives. This guide covers condominium document sets specifically, where shared building finances, the master insurance policy, and reserves drive the risk; if your property is a detached home in a planned community, the document set and the risks differ — see HOA document review.

Ohio guide →

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. HOA reviews have a different shape than condominium reviews, and treating them as the same process produces incomplete findings. This guide focuses on HOA and planned-community document sets — deed restrictions, use rights, and architectural control; for attached condominium ownership, where master insurance and shared building reserves dominate the risk, see Condo document review.

Ohio guide →

Reserve studies

A reserve study tells you what the association expects to spend on long-term capital repairs and replacements, and whether it is funding those obligations adequately. Reading the study without also reading the actual reserve balance, the current budget's contribution line, and recent meeting minutes is the single most common mistake in condo due diligence — and the one most likely to produce an expensive surprise after closing.

Ohio guide →

Special assessments

Special assessments are the single largest source of financial surprise in condo and HOA ownership. They can arrive formally, as a voted board action with a disclosed amount. They can arrive indirectly, as a dues increase that follows a reserve shortfall or insurance spike. Or they can arrive silently, implied by the gap between what an association has saved and what it needs — visible in documents years before any official announcement. A thorough document review identifies all three types.

Ohio guide →

Insurance risk

The association's master insurance policy determines what your personal HO-6 policy needs to cover — and what it does not. Deductibles, named-storm provisions, water and flood exclusions, policy form (bare-walls versus all-in), carrier quality, and loss assessment exposure all change the real cost of ownership in ways that never appear in the listing price. Reading the insurance summary alone is not enough; reading the master policy declarations page against the declaration's loss assessment provisions is where the real exposure lives. This page takes the risk-and-exposure view — how a building's insurance position could cost you, and what its insurability signals about the association; for the practical checklist of what coverage you and your lender actually need in place before closing, see Condo insurance requirements.

Ohio guide →

Governance risk

An association's governance health is a leading indicator of every other risk. Boards make decisions about reserve funding, repair scope, insurance coverage, and vendor relationships. Functional boards make those decisions transparently and on time. Dysfunctional boards defer them, obscure them, or make them for the wrong reasons — and the deferred decisions show up later as assessments, deteriorated infrastructure, and insurance problems. A governance review reads meeting minutes, election and recall records, financial controls, and dispute history across multiple years to surface the patterns that precede financial problems. This page takes the analytical view — governance as a multi-year leading indicator of financial risk; for the buyer's quick spotting guide to the specific warning signs in the documents, see Condo board red flags.

Ohio guide →

Buying in Ohio? See the complete Ohio condo due-diligence checklist → — every document to request, the local red flags, and the statute behind each.

Ohio reading

Plain-English guides for Ohio buyers and owners.

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Ohio's Condo Reserve Law: The Annual Waiver Loophole and the Special-Assessment Trap

Ohio mandates reserve funding under ORC §5311.081 and §5312.06 — but lets owners waive it by majority vote every year and requires no reserve study. Here is why that loophole drives surprise special assessments, and what to check before you buy.

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Why Ohio Is Not a Super-Lien State — and What That Means for Condo Buyers

Under ORC §5311.18 and §5312.12, a first mortgage recorded before the association files its lien certificate primes the association's lien. Ohio has no six-month super-priority, and bills to add one have failed for over a decade. Here is why that makes association-wide delinquency a buyer's problem.

Read →

Related guides

Owner guides for the notice you just got

Already dealing with a specific Ohio situation? Start here instead of the buyer flow:

Special assessment notice Insurance non-renewal or spike Reserve study / underfunding Board dispute / records Thinking of selling

Ohio in context

How Ohio's condo rules compare

How Ohio compares — CondoSignal's reviewed benchmark of condo/HOA rules across 51 states. Each cell traces to that state's primary statutory sources.

State	Reserve funding	Structural inspection	Super-lien	Resale cancellation
OhioThis page	Funding mandated	Not required	No	3 business days after the state Residential Property Disclosure Form, or 30 days after signing (§ 5302.30)
Alabama	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	Voidable until the resale certificate is delivered and for 5 days after (condos, § 35-8A-409); 7 days on developer sales
Alaska	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	Voidable until the resale certificate is delivered and for 5 days after (AS 34.08.590)
Arizona	Voluntary	Not required	No	No statutory rescission — cancellation rights come from the purchase contract
Arkansas	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory rescission
California	Study only	Required	No	Buyer cancellation remedy if § 4525 documents aren't delivered within 10 days (§ 4530)
Colorado	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	No statutory rescission
Connecticut	Funding mandated	Not required	Yes	5 business days after the resale certificate (7 if mailed); cancel for any reason (§ 47-270)
Delaware	Funding mandated	Required	Yes	5 days after the resale certificate, if not delivered before signing (§ 81-409)
District of Columbia	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	3 business days after the condo documents/certificate (15 days for new-construction/declarant sales)
Florida	Funding mandated	Required	No	7-day rescission on the resale disclosure (HB 913, 2025)
Georgia	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	7-day rescission on developer/initial condo sales only (§ 44-3-111); none for resale between owners
Hawaii	Funding mandated	Not required	Yes	Limited — a 5-day right tied to a developer public report; resale relies on the purchase contract
Idaho	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory rescission
Illinois	Funding mandated	Not required	Yes	No statutory rescission period
Indiana	Voluntary	Not required	No	No general cooling-off period. Two-business-day rescission only when a late/amended sales-disclosure form reveals a defect (IC 32-21-5-11).
Iowa	Voluntary	Not required	No	None tied to association documents — only the Ch. 558A property-condition disclosure (3 days personal / 5 mailed)
Kansas	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory rescission
Kentucky	Voluntary	Not required	No	Condos: voidable until the resale certificate is provided and for 5 days thereafter, or until conveyance (KRS 381.9203). HOAs: none.
Louisiana	Voluntary	Not required	No	15-day cancellation right tied to the condo developer's Public Offering Statement (R.S. 9:1124) — INITIAL DEVELOPER SALES ONLY. No statutory resale cancellation right between owners; no post-sale right of redemption.
Maine	Voluntary	Not required	No	Voidable until the resale certificate is delivered and for 5 days after (§ 1604-108)
Maryland	Funding mandated	Not required	Yes	Condos: 7 days after the resale package (§ 11-135). HOAs: 5 days if info wasn't delivered 5+ days pre-signing, plus a 3-day right if mandatory fees rise over 10% (§ 11B-106)
Massachusetts	Funding mandated	Not required	Yes	None
Michigan	Funding mandated	Not required	No	None — Michigan has no statutory resale rescission (new construction gets a 9-day right)
Minnesota	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	10 days after the § 515B.4-107 resale disclosure certificate (unless delivered 10+ days before signing)
Mississippi	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory resale certificate, estoppel regime, or buyer rescission period
Missouri	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	Voidable until the resale certificate is delivered and for 5 days after (§ 448.4-109)
Montana	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory rescission or cooling-off period
Nebraska	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — resale buyers get documents but no statutory rescission right (§ 76-884)
Nevada	Funding mandated	Not required	Yes	5-day rescission after delivery of the resale package (NRS 116.4109)
New Hampshire	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	No resale rescission. The only statutory cancellation right is 5 days on developer sales after delivery of the public offering statement (RSA 356-B:52).
New Jersey	Funding mandated	Required	Yes	Developer/initial sales carry a PREDFDA rescission window; resale between owners has none (a 3-day attorney-review clause applies)
New Mexico	Voluntary	Not required	No	7 days after the condo resale certificate (§ 47-7D-9) or the HOA disclosure certificate (§ 47-16-11)
New York	Funding mandated	Required	Yes	None — buyer protection comes from purchase-contract contingencies
North Carolina	Voluntary	Not required	No	7 days on new condo purchases (after the public offering statement); none for resale between owners
North Dakota	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory rescission or cooling-off right
Oklahoma	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory resale certificate, status letter, or rescission window
Oregon	Funding mandated	Not required	Yes	5 business days after the Seller's Property Disclosure Statement (ORS 105.464); developer sales may carry a longer right
Pennsylvania	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	5 days after receiving the resale certificate (§ 3407)
Rhode Island	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	Voidable until the resale certificate is delivered and for 5 days after (§ 34-36.1-4.09)
South Carolina	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — South Carolina has no broad condo resale rescission or mandatory disclosure packet
South Dakota	Voluntary	Not required	No	Resale: none. Developer/original sales only: a contract is not binding until the buyer receives the Real Estate Commission public report, voidable until ~10 days after receipt (S.D.C.L. 43-15A-10).
Tennessee	Study only	Not required	Yes	Narrow — generally none, except a 10-business-day right when a declarant-controlled association is late delivering § 66-27-503 information
Texas	Voluntary	Not required	No	6 days after receiving the resale certificate, if it wasn't delivered before signing (§ 82.156)
Utah	Funding mandated	Not required	No	No HOA-specific statutory rescission — buyer protection runs through the purchase-contract due-diligence period
Vermont	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	5 days after the resale certificate (15 days for new construction) (§ 4-109)
Virginia	Study only	Not required	No	3 days from receiving the resale certificate (often extended to 7 by the standard contract); cancel anytime before closing if it's never delivered (§ 55.1-2312)
Washington	Study only	Not required	Yes	5 business days after receiving the resale certificate (condos, RCW 64.34.425)
West Virginia	Voluntary	Not required	Yes	5 days after the resale certificate (15 days for new construction) (§ 36B-4-109)
Wisconsin	Voluntary	Not required	No	5 business days after receiving § 703.33 disclosure materials (or any material modification) — condo buyers only. No automatic statutory rescission for HOA buyers (negotiate contractually).
Wyoming	Voluntary	Not required	No	None — no statutory rescission

How CondoSignal reviews this

We read the reserve study, operating budget, and 24 months of meeting minutes together — the risk that matters 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.

See our 8-category framework →

Reviewed by Kirk Hasley, Founder. Every claim here is checked against current Ohio statute and primary sources, using the same documented review framework we run on every file. Last reviewed June 13, 2026.

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Reserve fund engineer
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Ohio condo & HOA document review

See which condo risks deserve your attention

Reserve mandate with an annual waiver loophole

The special-assessment trap in aging stock

Not a super-lien state

Hardening severe-storm insurance market

Weak resale disclosure and caveat emptor

Review the documents before your contingency ends

Need a real estate lawyer or mortgage specialist?

Where in Ohio?

Columbus

Cleveland

Ohio-specific guidance

Condo document review

HOA document review

Reserve studies

Special assessments

Insurance risk

Governance risk

Plain-English guides for Ohio buyers and owners.

Ohio's Condo Reserve Law: The Annual Waiver Loophole and the Special-Assessment Trap

Why Ohio Is Not a Super-Lien State — and What That Means for Condo Buyers

More reading for Ohio buyers and owners

Special Assessment Red Flags: How to Spot One Before You Buy

How to Read a Reserve Study Before Buying: Is the Funding a Red Flag?

The Complete Condo Buying Checklist (2026)

Owner guides for the notice you just got

How Ohio's condo rules compare

Ohio FAQ

Premium due-diligence software — not a chatbot.

Source citations on every finding

Free with transparent consent — or paid and private

Consistent, documented analysis

Informational, never legal advice

Review the documents before your contingency ends

Need a real estate lawyer or mortgage specialist?