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Article
Courtesy of Channel 4 FOX Southwest Florida
By
Mahmoud Bennett
Published January 2, 2026
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WATCH VIDEO |
NAPLES — A new Florida House bill could give people living in homeowners
associations significantly more power, including the ability to dissolve
their HOAs under certain conditions.
The proposed legislation would establish a community association court,
providing homeowners with a legal venue to bring certain HOA disputes before
a judge. More significantly, the bill would allow an HOA to be dissolved if
two-thirds of homeowners agree and a judge or community association court
program validates the plan.
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State data shows about
half of all Floridians live in some form of an HOA.
"We are talking about homeowners' associations, not
condominium associations – two completely separate things,"
said Yasmin Saad, a local real estate professional.
Saad, a longtime realtor, said there are about 350 HOAs
across Collier County. If the bill passes, she doesn't
expect it to change most neighborhoods but believes it would
give homeowners a backup option.
"The majority of people are not going to want to dissolve
their HOAs – again this is really a minority thing that we
are looking at," Saad said. "But for the most part I do
think this is background cleanup, just to have it – it's
there, its not necessarily something that's going to be
utilized."
Saad said one downside of the proposal is that it could lead
to higher legal costs for homeowners involved in disputes. |
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WATCH AS PEOPLE IN NAPLES WEIGH IN ON THE NEWLY
PROPOSED HOA REFORMS
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Some people in Naples who live in HOA communities opened
up about the proposed changes. Pamela Thomas said she wouldn't get rid of
her HOA but supports people having the option.
"I personally would not go for it because if you take the HOA away, people
will do whatever they want and the place will get run down," Thomas said.
Others like Maria Sanchez have mixed feelings. Since
moving to Naples, she said her HOA fees have more than doubled to over
$2,000 every quarter.
"HOAs are good to a certain degree," Sanchez said. "It's good but sometimes
they go a little bit above certain rules and regulations," she added.
If approved, the HOA reform rules would take effect July 1, 2026. The House
bill is currently in subcommittees.
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