Lawmakers in Florida are pushing for big changes in how the state handles disputes and oversight within homeowners associations. A new bill, HB 657, just cleared a key hurdle in the House, getting unanimous support from the Budget Committee. Miami Republican Juan Carlos Porras, who’s leading the charge, says this bill results from years of pent-up frustration among the millions of Floridians living under HOA rules.
Porras told the committee he represents some of the largest, and most troubled, HOAs in Florida. “This is just a first step,” he said. And he’s not exaggerating. Florida’s seen several headline-grabbing HOA scandals in the last few years. The Hammocks HOA fraud case, for example, involved $13 million in stolen funds.
There was also the arrest of the Turnberry on the Green condo president on multiple charges, and more recently, the Ro Mont South president accused of taking $15,000 from association accounts for personal use. In Tarpon Springs, another case involved over $750,000.
These scandals keep happening in part because, as Spencer Henning, Florida’s former condo ombudsman, put it, the current laws have “toothless” enforcement. There are so many loopholes that board members who act in bad faith can dodge consequences.
How do Floridians Feel about HOAs?
In 2026, most Florida homeowners still back the idea of Homeowners Associations (HOAs). They like the clean neighborhoods, the amenities, and the sense of order. But when you dig a little deeper, you find frustration bubbling up everywhere. People want genuine change. Over three-quarters of voters back new laws like HB 657, which makes it easier to dissolve HOAs and sets up state-funded courts to handle disputes.
The numbers tell the story. Sure, about 80% say HOAs serve a purpose, but a vast majority, 73%, would rather see the system reformed than scrapped. They’re fed up with ridiculous fines, steep penalties, and HOA boards that seem to run wild. A January 2026 poll showed 78% want a serious overhaul of how HOAs operate.
Fees keep climbing. Lawsuits are everywhere. Residents talk openly about “unprecedented” overreach from some HOA boards. No wonder there’s a growing “No-HOA” movement. Some lawmakers now call single-family HOAs a failed experiment, pushing to make them optional or easier to break up, especially in places where rules feel suffocating.
Still, there’s a catch. If HOAs disappear, someone has to pick up the tab for roads, drainage, all the things associations handle now. That’s got plenty of people worried about shifting the cost to taxpayers. The debate isn’t going away soon.
HB 657 aims to fix that.
The bill does three main things. First, it creates a state-funded court process focused on HOA and condo disputes, replacing the current mediation system that often stalls or frustrates homeowners. Second, it gives residents a logical process to dissolve their HOA, but it’s difficult, as owners need to gather petitions, hold an election, and get a judge’s final sign-off. Third, it requires that every HOA’s bylaws automatically update whenever state law changes, a move meant to hold boards accountable.
Not everyone is on board with these changes. A condo association member from Coral Springs pushed back against the automatic bylaw updates, arguing that it gives lawmakers too much power and puts homeowners at risk. He also warned that dissolving HOAs could leave communities unmanaged, lowering property values and opening the door for investors looking to snap up properties in distress.
Still, those objections didn’t come up at Monday’s hearing. Porras made tweaks to the bill, clarifying that the new court process will start with specialized judges in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Hillsborough counties.
There’s a matching Senate bill, SB 1498, which has also cruised through committees without a single “no” vote. The momentum keeps building, and if these reforms pass, Florida’s HOA landscape could look very different in the coming years.
Only one question broke through the chatter on the Budget Committee dais. House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell wanted details about new judge positions. She pointed out that judges are constitutional officers, so the Legislature can create new judgeships in those circuits, but it cannot limit their authority to just HOA and condo association cases.
Porras agreed with Driskell’s read on the law. The Legislature can set up new courts, like they did with Veterans Court back in 2012, but these new judges won’t be handling only HOA and condo disputes.
Groups like the HOA Reform League and the Latino Hispanic Republican Executive Club backed HB 657. The bill now heads to the House Commerce Committee; one more stop before a full House vote.
Over in the Senate, Fleming Island Republican Senator Jennifer Bradley’s similar bill (SB 1498) cleared its first committee on February 3, and it drew unanimous support. Two more committees to go.
