New Hampshire HOA and Condo Laws, in Plain English

The Condominium Act governs the creation, governance, and operation of condominiums in New Hampshire, applying to condominium projects submitted under the chapter since 1977, when it superseded the state's earlier unit ownership law. It covers the recording and content of condominium instruments, the unit owners' association and its board, assessments and liens, and disclosures owed to purchasers, including on resale.

• RSA 356-B:58 (Resale by Purchaser)

  On any resale of a condominium unit by someone other than the declarant, the prospective unit owner may obtain from the association, before the contract date, the 356-B:46 statement of unpaid assessments and, where applicable, the 356-B:47 waiver statement; the capital and major maintenance expenditures anticipated within the current or next two fiscal years; the status and amount of the reserve fund and any earmarks; the income statement and balance sheet for the last available fiscal year; pending suits and judgments in which the association is a defendant; the insurance the association provides and what an owner would normally carry; a statement that the prior owner's alterations are not known to violate the condominium instruments; a copy of the declaration, bylaws, and rules; and the monthly and annual fees with any special assessments in the last three years. The principal officer furnishes the statements within 10 days of the prospective owner's written request. No fee for the package and no cancellation right are stated.

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• RSA 356-B:46 (Lien for Assessments)

  Creates the association's lien on a unit for unpaid assessments and sets out how it is perfected, recorded, and enforced. Paragraph VIII entitles a unit owner or a contract purchaser, on written request to the principal officer, to a recordable statement of the unpaid assessments currently levied against the unit, binding on the association, the board, and every owner; failing to furnish or make it available within 10 business days extinguishes the lien on that unit, and a fee of up to $10 may be required only if the condominium instruments so provide.

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• RSA 356-B:47 (Restraints on Alienation)

  Any right of first refusal or other restraint on the free alienability of condominium units is void unless the condominium instruments provide for promptly furnishing a unit owner or purchaser, on request, a recordable statement certifying any waiver of, or failure or refusal to exercise, the right; failing to furnish it promptly makes the restraint inapplicable to the disposition in question. The statement binds the association, the board, and every unit owner, and a fee of up to $25 may be required if the instruments so provide. Resale packages under 356-B:58 include this statement where it applies.

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The Land Sales Full Disclosure Act regulates the marketing and sale of subdivided land, including planned communities and homeowners association developments, but excludes condominiums. It requires developers of covered subdivisions to register with the state and give purchasers a public offering statement, and it gives resale purchasers a right to disclosures from the property owners' association.

• RSA 356-A:9-b (Resale by Purchaser)

  On any resale of a lot, parcel, unit, or interest in subdivided lands by someone other than the subdivider, the prospective purchaser may obtain from the property owners' association, before the contract date, the capital and major maintenance expenditures anticipated within the current or next two fiscal years; the status and amount of the reserve fund and any earmarks; the income statement and balance sheet for the last available fiscal year; pending suits and judgments in which the association is a defendant; the insurance the association provides and what an owner would normally carry; and a statement that the prior owner's alterations are not known to violate the covenants. The principal officer furnishes the statements within 10 days of the prospective purchaser's written request. No fee and no cancellation right are stated.

  Official text