Request the community’s actual documents.
Start with the governing documents, current budget, assessment schedule and available financial reports. California’s DRE highlights these as important buyer information. Its guidance is California-specific; ask which disclosures and protections apply in your state and to this development.
- Request CC&Rs, bylaws, rules and architectural guidelines.
- Ask which documents are current, approved or still proposed.
- For a new association, ask which records do not yet exist and what planning documents are available instead.
Find every recurring charge.
List the main association dues, any additional association charges, special assessments and separately billed services. The California subdivision guide explains that regular and special assessments fund association obligations. Keep community charges separate from property taxes, then ask your lender which costs are included in its monthly-payment estimate.
- Record each amount, billing frequency, effective date and payee.
- Ask about approved increases and known upcoming assessments.
- Confirm which bills you must pay outside the mortgage escrow account.
Ask how future repairs are funded.
Reserve planning connects major common-area repairs with money set aside over time. The DRE’s reserve-study guidance explains how components, useful lives and replacement costs inform that planning. A small monthly due does not by itself show whether future obligations are adequately funded.
- Request the latest reserve study or available initial reserve plan and funding schedule.
- Ask which major components the association must maintain and replace.
- Have the manager explain funding gaps, planned projects and any proposed special assessment.
Check the rules against how you want to live.
The DRE identifies restrictions and maintenance responsibilities as facts a physical tour cannot establish. Use your own plans to read the rules: parking a particular vehicle, changing the yard, adding equipment or renting the home. Ask for clarification of the exact provision rather than relying on a general verbal assurance.
- Check parking, pets, rentals and approval requirements for improvements.
- Identify which maintenance and insurance responsibilities belong to you.
- Ask a local professional about an unclear or consequential restriction.
Separate what is built from what is planned.
Ask how future phases, amenities and the transition from builder to homeowner control are documented. KB’s published terms, for example, say community plans and amenities can change. Evaluate the commitments in your own purchase and community documents, including who pays to maintain added facilities.
- Ask which amenities exist now and where any completion commitment is recorded.
- Request the rules for board control and the planned transition to homeowners.
- Ask how later phases could change the budget, maintenance duties or your assessments.
Review your documents in Settle.
Hazel can total supported ownership expenses you provide, and Scout can help question supplied community documents. Settle does not audit HOA finances, look up public records, predict assessments or decide whether the home is affordable for you.
- CC&Rs, bylaws, community rules and architectural guidelines
- Current budget, dues and special-assessment notices
- Available reserve study, funding plan and financial reports
- Public report where applicable, phasing plans and maintenance agreements
Use these community documents to list my recurring charges, maintenance responsibilities, restrictions and unresolved funding questions. Cite each obligation, label proposed changes, and tell me what records are missing before totaling the supplied costs.Get started
Sources checked September 6, 2026. Your contract, location and circumstances determine what applies. Builder examples are illustrations, not terms of your purchase. About these guides