Start with what the statute actually says, because Arkansas boards often claim more. Section 18-13-116 makes every condo co-owner liable pro rata for common expenses, forbids escaping that liability by abandoning the unit or waiving use of the common elements, and — at the moment a unit is sold — requires unpaid assessments to be paid out of the sale price or by the buyer, with preference over every other charge except tax liens and payments due under recorded mortgages. Since the 2025 rewrite (for regimes organized on or after September 1, 2025), past-due assessments may also bear interest at a lawful rate set by the association. What the chapter never does, in either version, is grant the association a statutory lien on your unit or any power of sale. If an Arkansas association records a 'lien' or threatens foreclosure, that power must come from its own recorded master deed, bylaws, or bill of assurance — and enforcing it means a lawsuit, because association foreclosures in Arkansas are judicial.
That structure hands you a checklist. First, demand the source: which recorded provision creates the lien being claimed? A bill of assurance or master deed without lien language leaves the association with an ordinary collection claim — real, but unsecured, and nowhere near your title. Second, demand the itemized ledger: the statutory preference covers common-expense assessments, not fines and inflated fees, and a court will care about the difference. Third, remember the forum: a judicial foreclosure means you're served, you answer, and defenses — invalid charges, misapplied payments, no recorded lien authority — get heard before anything is sold.
The buyer trap, and the declarant rules
The sharpest statutory edge in § 18-13-116 cuts at closing: the purchaser of a unit is jointly and severally liable with the seller for the seller's unpaid assessments up to the conveyance, with a right to recover from the seller afterward — cold comfort if the seller is gone. Any Arkansas condo buyer should demand a written statement of the unit's assessment status from the association before closing and escrow accordingly; unlike many states, Arkansas's statute doesn't cap the buyer's exposure at a disclosed figure, so the contract and title work have to do that job. On the other side of the ledger, the 2025 act makes declarants carry real weight during build-out: until declarant control ends or five years pass from the first conveyance, the declarant must cover the association's operational shortfall or pay the common expenses allocated to its unsold units — a rule worth auditing in any newer community where the developer still holds the board.
The authority
The statutes behind this
Cited by name as authority, for your own reading. Informational only, not legal advice.
Ark. Code § 18-13-116
Pro-rata liability for common expenses, no escape by abandonment, a sale-time payment preference behind only taxes and recorded mortgages, buyer joint-and-several liability for the seller's arrears — and no statutory lien or power of sale anywhere in it.
SB 323 (2025), applicability clause
The 2025 modernization — interest on arrears, declarant funding duties, amendment rules — applies only to regimes organized on or after September 1, 2025, unless an older regime opts in by amending its master deed.
Ark. Code § 18-13-110
The examination right to the book of receipts and expenditures — how you audit the ledger behind any lien claim or payoff demand before negotiating.
Step by step
How to respond to an Arkansas assessment lien or foreclosure threat
Steps to take when an Arkansas association claims a lien, demands arrears at closing, or threatens foreclosure.
- 01
Demand the lien's source in writing
Ask which recorded provision — master deed, bylaws, or bill of assurance — creates the lien being claimed. The statute doesn't create one, so a recorded document must. No lien language means an unsecured collection claim, not a threat to your title.
- 02
Get the itemized ledger
Use § 18-13-110 (condos) or a written demand (HOAs) for an account separating common-expense assessments from fines, late charges, and fees. The statutory sale-time preference covers assessments; everything else needs its own authority.
- 03
Confirm which version of the act governs
Check when the regime was organized. Interest-on-arrears and the other 2025 provisions only apply to regimes organized on or after September 1, 2025, or older ones that formally opted in by amending the master deed.
- 04
Buying a unit? Demand a payoff statement before closing
Because § 18-13-116 makes the buyer jointly and severally liable for the seller's unpaid assessments, get the association's written arrears figure into the closing and escrow for it. Your purchase contract is the cap the statute doesn't provide.
- 05
If suit is filed, answer with counsel
Arkansas association foreclosures run through the courts, so you'll be served and have a deadline. Bring the ledger, the recorded documents, and the lien-authority question to a licensed Arkansas attorney — defenses die by default, not on the merits.
Straight answers
Common questions
Can an Arkansas HOA or condo association foreclose on my home?
Only if its own recorded documents grant lien rights, and only through a judicial action — the Horizontal Property Act creates no statutory lien or power of sale, and no HOA statute exists. Demand the recorded source of any claimed lien before treating the threat as real.
So what does the statute's 'preference' actually mean?
When a unit sells, § 18-13-116 requires unpaid common-expense assessments to be paid out of the sale price (or by the buyer) ahead of everything except tax charges and recorded mortgage payments. It's a priority rule at closing, not a lien the association can foreclose on its own.
I'm buying an Arkansas condo. Can I inherit the seller's debt?
Yes — the buyer is jointly and severally liable for the seller's unpaid assessments up to the conveyance, with only a right to chase the seller afterward. Demand the association's written arrears statement before closing and handle it in escrow; the statute won't cap your exposure for you.
Does the 2025 law change any of this for my building?
Only if your regime was organized on or after September 1, 2025, or your owners amended the master deed to opt in. Older regimes stay under the original text — which is why dating your regime is the first step in any Arkansas condo money dispute.