West Virginia adopted the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act, W. Va. Code Chapter 36B, and it's one of the more genuinely complex applicability schemes in this series. Coverage runs in three tiers depending on when your community was created and how large it is: full coverage for most communities created after 1986, a partial-exemption tier for small communities, and a limited, specific set of provisions extended retroactively to older communities. Which tier you're in changes what statutory protections actually apply.

Fines: what your HOA can and can't charge

For communities under the Act's fuller coverage, fine authority comes with a statutory notice-and-hearing requirement before a fine can be imposed. Communities in the retroactive-coverage tier for pre-1986 communities also get this protection, since it's among the specific provisions extended backward. Amounts aren't capped by the Act — those come from your declaration.

See our guide on how to fight an HOA fine for the general playbook.

Unpaid assessments, liens, and foreclosure

Section 36B-3-116 gives the association a lien for unpaid assessments, and — for communities under the Act's coverage — that lien carries a real six-month super-priority over a first mortgage for a limited slice of common-expense assessments. This is a meaningful protection West Virginia associations have that many other states' HOAs don't. A 2023 case, Justice Holdings LLC v. Glade Springs Village POA, reinforced how this priority interacts with foreclosure sales. Foreclosure of an HOA lien is generally pursued judicially.

More on this in our guide to what happens if you don't pay HOA dues.

Meetings and quorum

The Act sets meeting-notice and quorum requirements for communities under its fuller coverage; communities in the small-community exemption tier or relying only on the limited retroactive provisions should check their bylaws directly, since the Act's meeting-and-quorum defaults are not among the provisions extended to every tier.

Board elections

Board-election mechanics and developer-to-owner transition-of-control rules apply under the Act for fully covered communities; smaller or older communities outside full coverage rely on their bylaws and general nonprofit corporation law for these details.

For the general mechanics, see how HOA board elections work.

Buying a home in a West Virginia HOA

Communities under the Act's fuller coverage are subject to statutory resale-certificate requirements, giving buyers access to dues, delinquency, and reserve information before closing; this is also one of the specific protections extended to some older communities under the Act's retroactive tier.

Know before you buy: ask which of the Act's three coverage tiers your community falls into before you assume a resale certificate is coming automatically — small and older communities may not owe you one under the statute.

See our full buying checklist for homes in an HOA before you make an offer.

This guide covers general West Virginia law affecting homeowners associations as of 2026, including the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act, W. Va. Code Chapter 36B, which applies in different tiers depending on a community's age and size, and is for general education only — it isn't legal advice. For anything binding, talk to a West Virginia HOA attorney.

Need help with a West Virginia HOA issue? Find an HOA attorney in West Virginia, or find a management company in West Virginia.