Condo & HOA Contract Review Attorneys

Reviewed by Jason Hamilton Mikes, JD, MBA · September 23, 2026 · Florida Statutes as of July 1, 2026

Florida Community Association Contract Management Attorneys

A community association's budget is a list of contracts: management, landscaping, pool, elevator, security, insurance, cable, and, every few years, a roof, a paving project, or a seawall. Florida law regulates how those contracts are procured, requires that they be in writing, treats them as official records that owners may inspect and larger associations must post online, and makes certain provisions and relationships unlawful. The contract itself then allocates every risk the statutes do not. Hamilton Mikes reviews, drafts, and negotiates contracts for condominiums, homeowners associations, clubs, marinas, and resort communities throughout Southwest Florida, and represents them when a contract goes wrong.

What Florida Law Requires Before Signing

A written contract. Chapter 718 and Chapter 720 require that contracts for the purchase, lease, or rental of materials or equipment, and all contracts for services, be in writing. An oral arrangement with a vendor is a compliance problem as well as a proof problem.
Competitive bids above a threshold. A condominium association must obtain competitive bids for any contract that requires payments exceeding five percent of its total annual budget, including reserves; a homeowners association's threshold is ten percent. The statutes except emergencies, contracts with the only source of supply in the county, and contracts for attorneys, accountants, architects, engineers, landscape architects, and community association managers. Nothing requires the board to accept the lowest bid, and a contract awarded after bidding may be renewed without rebidding if it allows the board to cancel on 30 days' notice. Condominium associations of ten or fewer units may opt out by a two-thirds owner vote.
Conflict-of-interest procedures. A contract with a director, officer, a relative, or a business in which any of them has a financial interest must be disclosed in writing, listed on the agenda, attached to the minutes, and approved by the required vote of disinterested directors, and the members may cancel it at their next meeting. For a condominium the interested director must leave the meeting during the discussion and vote and approval requires two-thirds of all other directors present; for a homeowners association the conflict must be disclosed at least 14 days before the vote. A condominium association may not hire an attorney who represents its management company (section 718.111(3)(f)). An officer, director, or manager of a condominium or homeowners association who solicits or accepts a kickback from a vendor commits a third-degree felony.
Statutory content for management contracts. A condominium management contract is unenforceable unless it specifies the services to be provided, the costs to be reimbursed, how often each service will be performed, the minimum personnel to be employed, and any financial interest a director or the developer holds in the management company. Chapter 468 adds obligations on the manager's side, including attending at least one board or membership meeting in person each year and returning the association's official records within 20 business days after the contract ends.
Developer-era contracts. Contracts for management, maintenance, or operation entered into while the developer controlled the board may be canceled after turnover by the vote Chapter 718 prescribes, and long-term developer-era agreements are reviewed for fairness. A newly turned-over board should have every inherited contract reviewed before renewing any of them.
Licensing and liens. Contractors must hold the license the work requires under Chapter 489, and an unlicensed contractor generally cannot enforce its contract or lien the property. For construction, the association records a notice of commencement, obtains partial and final lien releases with each payment, and obtains a contractor's final payment affidavit before final payment under Chapter 713.

The Terms We Negotiate in Every Contract

Vendor forms are drafted to allocate risk to the customer. We rewrite them. The clauses that matter most in association contracts are:

Scope and specifications, stated in enough detail that a missed service can be identified and documented: the mowing schedule, the pool chemistry standards, the elevator response time, the security post orders.
Term, renewal, and termination. Automatic renewal clauses are enforceable in Florida and are the most common reason associations pay for services they intended to replace. We negotiate terms the board can manage, a right to terminate for convenience on 30 to 60 days' notice without penalty, and termination for cause on notice with a short cure period.
Price, escalation, and extras. Fixed prices for the term, defined escalators, unit pricing for additional work, and a written change-order requirement so that extras are authorized before they are performed.
Insurance. General liability, automobile, workers' compensation, and, where relevant, professional and pollution coverage, in stated amounts, with the association named as additional insured, certificates delivered before work begins, and notice of cancellation.
Indemnification, running to the association for the vendor's negligence and statutory violations, drafted to satisfy the limits Florida places on indemnity clauses in construction contracts so that the clause is enforceable.
Performance standards and remedies, including the right to withhold payment for nonconforming work, cure periods, and liquidated damages where delay has a measurable cost.
Compliance with law and licensing, with a representation that the vendor holds and will maintain every required license and will comply with wage, immigration, and safety laws for its personnel on the property.
Records and data. Vendors that hold association records, from management companies to software providers and access-control vendors, must maintain them as official records, return them on termination in usable form, and protect owner information.
Dispute resolution, venue, and fees. Venue in the county where the property is located, a reciprocal prevailing-party fee clause (Florida law makes one-sided fee clauses reciprocal in any event), and an arbitration clause only when arbitration actually serves the association.
Assignment and subcontracting, prohibited without the association's consent so that the board knows who is on the property and who is responsible.

Contract Categories and Their Common Problems

Management agreements frequently combine a long term, automatic renewal, a termination penalty, broad indemnity running to the manager, and vague service descriptions. The statutory content requirements are the association's leverage.
Landscaping, pool, janitorial, and pest control contracts are low-value individually and rarely reviewed, but they carry the most frequent liability exposure through workers on the property, chemicals, and equipment. Insurance and indemnity terms matter more than price.
Security, gate, and access-control contracts should define post orders and response obligations, address the vendor's liability for negligent guards, and specify who owns the access data.
Elevator, fire alarm, and life-safety service contracts must align with the inspection and testing schedules the codes require, and the association, not the vendor, is cited when they are missed.
Bulk cable and internet agreements bind every owner for terms that often run seven to ten years. Chapter 718 makes the cost a common expense and gives owners a statutory right to cancel certain board-approved bulk contracts at the next membership meeting; the agreement should address service levels, technology refresh, and what happens when owners cannot use the service.
Construction and restoration contracts are addressed on our Construction and Disaster Recovery pages; the same payment, lien-release, and termination principles apply to every project from a roof to a paving job.
Insurance placement is a contract too: the broker's engagement, the appraisal every 36 months, and the coverage specifications the board approves determine what the association recovers after a loss.
Loans and lines of credit for reserves, milestone repairs, and hurricane recovery require authority under the documents, an assignment of assessment rights the lender will demand, and covenants the board must be able to keep.

Records, Posting, and the Renewal Calendar

Contracts and bids are official records. Bids must be retained for at least a year and contracts for the statutory retention period, and condominium associations with 25 or more units and homeowners associations with 100 or more parcels must post current contracts and summaries of bids on their websites. We recommend a contract register maintained by the manager listing every agreement, its term, its renewal and notice deadlines, its insurance certificate expiration, and the board's decision date for renewal, reviewed at a board meeting each quarter. Most association contract problems are missed deadlines, and the register eliminates them.

When a Contract Fails

When a vendor does not perform, the sequence is documentation, written notice of default with the contractual cure period, withholding of payment for nonconforming work as the contract allows, and termination for cause if the default is not cured. Terminating without following the contract's notice provisions converts the vendor's breach into the association's. When a vendor claims the association owes it money, or records a construction lien, we evaluate the claim against the contract and the lien law, which imposes strict deadlines and content requirements on the claimant, and we resolve most vendor disputes by negotiation or mediation. The ones that do not settle are litigated as described on our Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution page.

Communities We Serve

Condominium Associations

We review and negotiate management, maintenance, construction, telecommunications, insurance, and lending agreements for Condominium Associations in compliance with Chapter 718's bidding, conflict-of-interest, management-contract, and records requirements.

Homeowner Associations

We advise Homeowner Associations (HOAs) on vendor, landscaping, stormwater and lake maintenance, gate and security, and amenity management contracts under Chapter 720's ten-percent bidding rule and conflict provisions.

Country Clubs and Golf Communities

We handle club management agreements, golf course maintenance and agronomy contracts, food and beverage arrangements, pro shop and tennis concessions, and membership-related agreements for Country Clubs and Golf Communities.

Marinas and Waterfront Communities

For Marinas and Waterfront Communities, we draft and review slip licenses and leases, dockmaster and fuel agreements, dredging and seawall contracts, and submerged land lease compliance provisions.

Timeshare and Hotel Condominiums

Rental-program, hospitality-management, and shared-facility agreements for Timeshare Condominiums and Hotel Condominiums involve the association, the operator, and individual owners, and must comply with Chapter 721 as well as Chapter 718.

Mixed-Use Developments

We prepare shared-facility, easement, and cost-sharing agreements for Mixed-Use Developments, where residential and commercial owners contract with one another as much as with vendors.

Frequently Asked Questions About Association Contracts

Should legal counsel review every contract?

Every contract above the competitive-bidding threshold, every contract with a term longer than a year or an automatic renewal, every management agreement, every construction contract, and every contract that involves a director's or officer's interest should be reviewed before signing. Routine, short-term, terminable service agreements below those lines can be handled by the manager using forms counsel has approved.

What is the biggest contract mistake boards make?

Signing the vendor's form. Vendor forms are written to shift risk to the customer, and the terms that matter most, renewal, termination, indemnity, and insurance, are the ones boards read least. The second most common mistake is missing a renewal notice deadline and being bound for another term.

Can a contract be modified after execution?

Yes, by a written amendment signed by both parties. Most contracts also prohibit oral modifications, and a board that relies on a vendor's verbal assurance about scope or price will find the contract controls. Change orders and amendments should be documented before the changed work is performed.

Do we have to take the lowest bid?

No. The statutes require competitive bids above the threshold, not acceptance of the lowest one. The board may weigh qualifications, references, insurance, licensing, and proposed terms, and should document its reasons for the selection in the minutes.

Can the board sign a contract with a company owned by a director?

Only after the statutory disclosure and approval procedure: disclosure of the interest (at least 14 days before the vote in a homeowners association), the contract listed on the agenda and attached to the minutes, the interested director's departure from the room and recusal in a condominium, approval by two-thirds of the other directors present, and disclosure to the members, who may cancel the contract at their next meeting. Accepting anything of value from a vendor is a felony.

What happens if we terminate a contract early?

That depends entirely on the termination clause. A contract with a termination-for-convenience right can be ended on the notice it specifies without penalty; one without it may obligate the association for the remaining term or a liquidated amount. Terminating for cause requires following the contract's notice and cure provisions exactly. We review the clause before the board votes.

Contact Hamilton Mikes

Contact Hamilton Mikes, P.A. at 239-594-7227 before your association signs or renews a significant contract. Related services: Construction, Insurance, Corporate Governance, and Regulatory Compliance.

About this page. This page is published by Hamilton Mikes, P.A. for general educational purposes. It is not legal advice, it is not a legal opinion, and it is not a substitute for advice from a lawyer who has reviewed your association's governing documents and the facts of your situation. Reading it, downloading it, or corresponding with the firm about it does not create an attorney-client relationship. No such relationship arises until the firm and the client have signed a written engagement agreement. Please do not send confidential or time-sensitive information to the firm until a conflicts check has been completed and an engagement is confirmed in writing; information sent before that point may not be treated as privileged.

Scope and currency. This article addresses Florida law as applied to Florida community associations, and the firm is licensed to practice in Florida only. Nothing here should be taken as a statement of the law of any other jurisdiction. Florida's community association statutes have been amended in every regular session since 2021, and subsection numbering has moved more than once in that period. Each page states the edition of the Florida Statutes it was written against. The law may have changed after that date, an appellate court may have construed a provision differently, and an administrative rule or a local ordinance may impose requirements this page does not address.

Your governing documents control. Much of what governs a Florida association is not in the statutes at all. Declarations, articles of incorporation, bylaws, rules, plats and recorded amendments differ from community to community, and on many questions they set the rule while the statute sets only a floor or a default. A procedure that is correct in one association may be a breach of the documents in the association next door. No general page can tell you which is which for your community.

Why general information is not advice. Legal questions are resolved by applying the law to particular facts as a judge, jury, arbitrator or hearing officer finds them. An outcome that appears clear in the abstract frequently turns on the documents, the chronology, the board's own prior conduct, and the procedural posture, none of which a general page can anticipate. A lawyer supplies what information cannot: the judgment to identify which facts matter, the experience to know how a court or the Division is likely to treat them, the ability to choose among the courses of action actually available, and the advocacy to carry the association's position through negotiation, hearing or trial.

The standard of care, and the protection the statute attaches to counsel. A director of a Florida community association is held to the standard in section 617.0830, Florida Statutes: to act in good faith, in a manner the director reasonably believes to be in the best interests of the corporation, and to discharge the duties of the office with the care an ordinary prudent person in a like position would reasonably believe appropriate under similar circumstances. That standard is measured against the decision the board actually faced, on the record actually before it. The same statute supplies the protection that goes with the duty. Under section 617.0830(4) and (5)(b), a director who has no knowledge making reliance unwarranted is entitled to rely on information, opinions, reports and statements prepared or presented by legal counsel retained by the association as to matters the director reasonably believes are within counsel's professional competence. The Legislature has written the prudent course into the statute. A board that obtains advice on its own documents and its own facts, and acts on that advice, is standing on ground the statute expressly protects. Nothing on this website confers that protection. General information, however carefully prepared, is not advice on your declaration, your amendments, your board's history or your dispute, and a director who relies on it in place of counsel forgoes a statutory protection that was available for the asking.

Personal exposure is real. Service on an association board is usually uncompensated, but volunteer status is not itself immunity. Under section 617.0834, Florida Statutes, a director or an officer is not personally liable in monetary damages for a statement, vote, decision, or failure to act in that role unless two things are both true: the director or officer breached or failed to perform the duties of the office, and that breach was a violation of the criminal law, a transaction from which the director or officer derived an improper personal benefit, conscious disregard or willful misconduct in a proceeding brought by or in the right of the corporation, or recklessness or bad faith in a proceeding brought by anyone else. That protection turns on how the director acted, not on whether the director was paid. Chapters 718, 719 and 720 add consequences of their own, including removal from office, civil penalties assessed against the individual for certain willful and knowing violations, and in defined circumstances criminal liability. Whether any of that reaches a particular director depends entirely on the facts and on the director's conduct. The practical point is narrower and more useful: the decisions that generate this exposure — levying an assessment, enforcing a covenant, denying a transfer, withholding a record, entering a unit, terminating a contract, signing for construction work — are precisely the decisions on which general information is least adequate, and on which counsel costs least relative to what is at stake.

No guarantee; prior results. The firm makes no representation or warranty that the information on this page is complete, current or applicable to any particular matter, and disclaims liability to any person for any action taken or not taken in reliance on it. Any description of prior results does not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any other matter; every case turns on its own facts, documents and record.

Do not act on this page alone. If your association faces a decision of consequence, obtain advice from a Florida-licensed attorney who has read your governing documents and the relevant record before the board votes, signs, sends or forecloses. Hamilton Mikes, P.A. represents community associations throughout Southwest Florida and can be reached at 239-594-7227.

Contract Management