West Virginia guide
West Virginia HOA document review
In West Virginia, condominiums, planned communities (HOAs), and cooperatives created on or after July 1, 1986 are all governed by the same statute — the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act (W. Va.
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Code ch. 36B) — so the document-review discipline is largely shared. For HOA-governed communities, the emphasis shifts toward common-area maintenance responsibilities, amenity reserves, and the association's assessment authority. The resale certificate (§36B-4-109) and any voluntary reserve study remain the core documents, with one important wrinkle: small and limited-expense planned communities can be largely exempt from the Act under §36B-1-203, which strips away much of the statutory protection.
One statute for condos, HOAs, and co-ops
Chapter 36B applies to all three forms of common-interest community created on or after July 1, 1986. That means the resale-certificate obligation (§36B-4-109), the cancellation windows, the insurance duties (§36B-3-113), the lien framework (§36B-3-116), and the governance baselines apply broadly to planned communities, not just condominiums. The practical difference is the scope of common elements: an HOA may be responsible for roads, drainage, perimeter features, and amenities rather than building structure.
The §36B-1-203 small-community exemption
Section 36B-1-203 exempts certain small and limited-expense planned communities from most of the Act. A planned community of no more than 12 units that is not subject to development rights, or one whose declaration caps the annual average common-expense liability at a low threshold, is exempt from most of 36B except for anti-discrimination and a few baseline rules. Many small West Virginia HOAs fall outside the full statutory framework — which means the resale-certificate and cancellation protections may not apply. Confirm whether the community is exempt before relying on UCIOA's buyer protections.
Maintenance responsibility and the declaration
Read the declaration to confirm what the association maintains versus what the owner maintains. In planned communities the line is frequently drawn around lots, structures, and common amenities, and misunderstood maintenance responsibilities are a common source of surprise costs after closing. Because West Virginia mandates no reserves, confirm the budget actually contributes toward the components the association is obligated to maintain.
Reserves and assessment authority
Funding is voluntary under Chapter 36B, so amenity-heavy HOAs can run materially underfunded. Read the resale certificate's reserve and three-year capital-expenditure disclosures, and the budget history. The Act imposes no statutory cap on assessment increases or special-assessment size — only the declaration can cap them — so read the declaration for any owner-vote or quorum requirement on large assessments.
West Virginia legal references
- W. Va. Code §36B-1-203 — Applicability; small/limited-expense exemption
- W. Va. Code §36B-4-109 — Resale certificate
- W. Va. Code §36B-3-115 — Assessments for common expenses
Informational only. Not legal advice. Always confirm against current statute and counsel.
Need help applying these West Virginia statutes to your specific situation? We can connect you with state-licensed counsel and specialists familiar with this exact regulatory environment.
Find a West Virginia specialist →Reviewer's checklist
- Confirm whether the community is exempt under §36B-1-203 (small/limited-expense)
- Read the declaration for maintenance responsibility (association vs owner)
- Confirm the §36B-4-109 resale certificate is complete (if not exempt)
- Review reserves and the three-year capital-expenditure disclosure
- Review the master or common-element insurance for what the HOA maintains
- Read the budget history for default ratification and reserve contributions
- Confirm the declaration's caps, if any, on assessment increases
- Check rental, architectural, and use restrictions in the declaration and rules
- Request a statement of unpaid assessments (§36B-3-116(g))
- Confirm any transfer or move-in fees and the management arrangement
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Related risk areas
Read these next to round out your due diligence
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.
Special assessments
Special assessments are the single largest source of financial surprise in condo and HOA ownership.
Governance risk
An association's governance health is a leading indicator of every other risk.
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We can connect you with vetted real estate lawyers, mortgage brokers, and insurance brokers familiar with the specifics of condo and HOA transactions.
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