Florida HOA Meeting Rules (Chapter 720): Notice, Minutes & Records Requirements

This guide is general information for volunteer board members, not legal advice. It covers homeowners associations under Florida Statutes Chapter 720 — condominium associations follow different rules (Chapter 718). Always read the current statute and your governing documents, and consult an attorney for specific situations.

Florida gives homeowners associations one of the most specific meeting rulebooks in the country, and it enforces the records side with real teeth — including statutory damages when boards blow a records request. Here's what Chapter 720 (mainly § 720.303) actually requires of your board meetings and minutes.

When is it a "board meeting"?

Any gathering of a quorum of directors where association business is conducted is a board meeting, and board meetings must be open to all members. Directors may communicate by email between meetings, but a director may not cast a vote by email. Decisions belong in the noticed meeting — and in the minutes.

Notice requirements

• Regular board meetings: notice must be posted conspicuously in the community at least 48 hours in advance (or as your governing documents require — they may demand more).
• Meetings about assessments: if the board will consider increasing assessments or levying a special assessment, members are entitled to 14 days' written notice that states the purpose, mailed, delivered, or electronically transmitted.
• Agenda: notice for assessment meetings must include a statement of purpose, and as a practical matter every meeting should go out with an agenda — copy ours from the free HOA agenda template.

Owner rights at the meeting

Members have the right to attend board meetings and to speak on any matter placed on the agenda. The association may adopt reasonable written rules on speaker time and frequency. Closed sessions are the narrow exception — chiefly meetings with the association's attorney about proposed or pending litigation, and certain personnel matters.

Minutes: required, and kept for 7 years

Minutes of all meetings of the board and the members must be kept, and they are official records of the association that must be retained for at least 7 years. Minutes should record each director's vote on every action taken — "the motion passed" is weaker evidence than "motion passed 4–1, Smith opposed." If your minutes are thin, start with what to include in HOA minutes or the free minutes template, and see how long to keep HOA minutes for the full retention picture.

The 10-business-day records rule (the one with penalties)

When a member makes a written records request, the association must make the records — minutes included — available within 10 business days. Fail, and the statute creates a presumption of willful failure with minimum damages of $50 per day (up to 10 days), plus the member's enforcement costs. A board that can't find last year's minutes isn't just disorganized in Florida — it's writing checks.

Larger communities: records go online

Under recent legislation effective January 1, 2025, homeowners associations with 100 or more parcels must maintain a website (or app) and post specified official records to it. Florida has also added criminal penalties for certain records violations, like knowingly destroying records to evade a request. The era of the shoebox archive is over.

Quick compliance checklist for Florida boards

1. Post notice in the community at least 48 hours before board meetings.
2. 14 days' written notice for any meeting considering assessments.
3. Let members attend and speak on agenda items.
4. No director votes by email.
5. Take minutes at every board and member meeting; record each vote.
6. Retain minutes at least 7 years; answer written records requests within 10 business days.
7. 100+ parcels? Get the records posted on your association website.

Stay inside the deadlines without trying

HOA Board Minutes is a completely free tool that keeps every meeting's agenda, motions, votes, and approved minutes in one organized archive — so a records request is a download, not a scavenger hunt. Create a free account and have your next meeting's minutes filed before the parking lot empties.

Primary source: Florida Statutes § 720.303, available at leg.state.fl.us.