Hi ya’ll, I’m new here. I purchased a small vacant lot in Nocona, Texas in a run-down neighborhood for $500. The seller’s husband passed away in 2022. They had seen the property a decade ago and were appalled by the lack of upkeep and the dilapidated amenities. They refused to pay the $150 annual HOA fees.
The president emailed me directly after receiving a copy of my neighbor letter. He claims that the property owes HOA dues going back to 2012 at $150 per year, plus a $25 fee per year, plus a 6% interest of $702! This is crazy.
The seller says she was never sent a notice of a lien. I confirmed that a lien was filed by the HOA in 2023 in Montague County.
I told him that what I’ve seen online is that there is a statute of limitation of 4 years in Texas for HOA dues. So if he filed the lien in 2023, the property would be on the hook for dues from 2020-2023. I told him I’d be willing to pay that.
He claims that the HOA took Montague County to court over liens for tax delinquent properties “and won”. I think he’s trying to scare me.
Does anyone know if there is, in fact, a statute of limitation of past due HOA dues?
How can I reasonably fight this? He says he will waive the lien if I “donate” the property back to the HOA. Either way, this seems like a suspicious money grab to me.
Cyrious how the questionable HOA matter came out for you?
I find the HOA HOA president’s comment "… the HOA took Montague County to court over liens for tax delinquent properties “and won” " quite suspicious. I don’t understand how the HOQ would have any course of action against the county as it relates to delinquent tax properties. HOA dues and county property taxes are two sperate items and the HOA has no standing as it relates to property taxes (unless it is taxes on HOA owned proerty such as green spaces). I can rationalize (maybe) the HOA trying to assert they have a first lien psotion for their deliquent HOA dues versus the county having a first lien postion for its property taxes. But, that would have nothing to do with the statute of limitation of 4 years in TX.
I wish you well in the matter. I’ve had some epxerince with a once defunct HOAs trying to come to life and collect back dues/interest/penalties when they never gave notice. For I sent them a certifed letter along with a check for my calculated amount owed for the four years prior to their first notice and a clear statement I reserved the right to pursue legal action, inlcuding recovery of attoroney fees, if they filed an improper lien for any period covered by the statute of imitations. For both properties, they cashed the check and went quiet. I then sold both properties to the Texas High Speed Rail project, disclosing the “settled to the best of my knowledge” HOA assertion. Their land rep laughed and said “it won;t be a problem.”