Plain-English summary
A Florida homeowners' association must keep official records — the recorded declaration/covenants, bylaws, articles, rules, minutes, contracts, budgets, and financial records — and make them available to any parcel owner. Records must be kept within Florida for at least 7 years and made available for inspection or copying within 10 business days of a written request, at a location within 45 miles of the community or within its county. If a copier is on site, the association must provide copies during the inspection (up to 25 pages).
The board meets in the open: members can attend, and the association gives notice of meetings and of the annual budget. Associations may adopt rules for how records inspections work and may charge reasonable copying costs. (Unlike condominiums, Chapter 720 does not impose a general requirement to post all records on a website.)
What § 720.303 says, section by section
| Subsection | Plain-English translation | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| (4) | Defines the official records an HOA must keep (governing documents, minutes, contracts, financial records, membership records, etc.). | § 720.303(4) |
| (4)(b) | ⭐ WEBSITE / APP POSTING — this page previously said HOAs had none. "By January 1, 2025, an association that has 100 or more parcels shall post the following documents on its website or make available such documents through an application that can be downloaded on a mobile device" — 13 items (a–m): articles · recorded bylaws · declaration + amendments · current rules · executory contracts and post-close bid material · the annual budget and any proposed budget · the financial report and any monthly income/expense statement to be considered at a meeting · current insurance policies · each director's § 720.3033(1)(a) certification · director-interested contracts · conflict-of-interest documents · member-meeting notice + agenda at least 14 days ahead, in plain view on the homepage or a clearly labelled "Notices" subpage · board-meeting notice, agenda and documents by the (3) deadline. The site must carry an owner-only protected area, and the association must issue a username and password on written request. | § 720.303(4)(b) |
| (4)(b)4. | Protected (5)(g) material must not be posted, and must be redacted before a required document goes up. The association is not liable for disclosing protected material unless it acted with "knowing or intentional disregard". | § 720.303(4)(b)4. |
| (4)(c) | The association must adopt written rules on how and how long official records are retained, and make that information available through the website. | § 720.303(4)(c) |
| (5)(a)–(c) | Records maintained in Florida ≥ 7 years; available for inspection or copying within 10 BUSINESS days of a written request, within 45 miles of the community or in the county. Failure creates a rebuttable presumption of wilful non-compliance where the request went by certified mail, return receipt requested ((5)(b)). A denied member is entitled to actual damages or minimum damages of $50 per calendar day for up to 10 days, counted from the 11th business day ((5)(c)). | § 720.303(5)(a)–(c) |
| (5)(d) | A director, member or CAM who knowingly, wilfully and repeatedly violates (5)(a) with intent to cause harm commits a second-degree misdemeanor. | § 720.303(5)(d) |
| (5)(g) | Inspection rules + the protected list. The association may set reasonable rules but may not require a proper purpose or any stated reason, and may not limit inspection to less than one 8-hour business day per month. Copy fees: ≤ 25¢ per page on the association's copier, personnel costs ≤ $20/hour and only past the first half-hour, and no personnel charge at all for 25 or fewer pages. Nine categories are not accessible to members — including ⚠ 3. "information an association obtains in a gated community in connection with guests' visits to parcel owners or community residents" (the M18 shield) and 6. owner personal identifiers, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers. | § 720.303(5)(g) |
| (2) | Board meetings open to members with notice + agenda; broadcast/website posting optional procedures; some actions require member meetings. | § 720.303(2) |
| (6) | Budget & reserves: annual budget; reserve accounts if established or required by the declaration; funding and waiver rules governed largely by the governing documents. | § 720.303(6) |
| (7) | Financial reporting obligations (see § 720.3086), scaled by revenue. | § 720.303(7) |