Florida Lawmaker Wants To Abolish HOAs—Could the ‘Failed Experiment’ Really End?

Across the country, frustration with homeowners associations is bubbling over; but in Florida, it’s reached a boiling point. Steep fees, strict rules, and heavy-handed enforcement have left many residents feeling trapped in neighborhoods they no longer control.

The consequences can be extreme. Earlier this year, Irena Green, a homeowner in Hillsborough County, FL, spent a week in jail after failing to bring her lawn up to par. And Shonia Cruz Munoz, who lives in the same neighborhood as Green, faced foreclosure after a lawsuit over the exterior color of her home.

Stories like these have become symbols of what critics call HOA overreach, and now, a South Florida lawmaker says it’s time to end the system entirely. State Rep. Juan Carlos Porras (R-Miami) has proposed abolishing HOAs in Florida outright, calling them a “failed experiment.”

If successful, his plan would fundamentally reshape daily life for the nearly 9.5 million Floridians who currently live under HOA governance.

Why Florida became the land of HOAs

Homeowners associations are popular not just in the Sunshine State; they’re also booming nationwide. In 2024, more than 40% of listings came with an HOA fee, up over 39% from the year before, according to a recent report from Realtor.com®. And across the country, about 374,000 community associations govern everything from suburban subdivisions to high-rise condos—a 3,600% jump from just 10,000 associations in 1970, data from the Foundation for Community Association Research shows.

Florida stands near the top of that list, second only to California in total HOAs, largely because of the boom of new construction in the state. New homes are far more likely than older properties to be built within HOA-governed communities, and in recent decades, developers have leaned heavily on the model. HOAs help them market neighborhoods as well-kept and amenity-rich, while also shifting the costs of services like landscaping and road maintenance away from local governments.

Because Florida has been one of the fastest-growing states for new housing, the trend has only accelerated. In 2024 alone, Florida accounted for nearly 12% of all new-construction permits nationwide, according to the Realtor.com Affordability Report Cards. And with those new subdivisions has come an ever-expanding network of associations: Today, the state is home to more than 50,000 HOAs.

From promise to problem: The backlash grows

But what began as a way to keep neighborhoods tidy and hold property values steady has, for many, turned into a financial or even legal headache.

The national median HOA fee is $143 per month, according to research from Realtor.com, but costs can run much higher. In Edwards, CO, for example, the median monthly HOA due comes in at a whopping $525.

In Florida, condo owners have been hit especially hard with rising HOA fees, in large part because of assessments triggered by reforms in response to the 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo. Those rising bills prompted Gov. Ron DeSantis to sign legislation this year that increases transparency in fees and provides some relief for condo owners, but it didn’t address single-family HOAs.

High fees are also just part of the problem. Stories like Green’s and Cruz Munoz’s underline the other thorn in the side of homeowners in these communities: extreme or over-enforcement of community bylaws. In response to their stories, one viewer went so far as to tell Tampa Bay 28, “I’d rather live under a bridge than under an HOA.”

And while many HOA residents say they love landscaping, maintenance, and community amenity perks, more than half (57%) say they don’t like living under one, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

Inside the push to ban HOAs in Florida

That growing backlash has caught the attention of lawmakers, including Porras, who has become the loudest voice in Florida calling for a radical reset. In a recent interview with Tampa Bay 28, he described HOAs as a “failed experiment,” arguing that they’ve morphed from neighborhood caretakers into overreaching authorities.

That’s why he’s proposing to abolish them altogether. 

But the details of how that would work remain fuzzy. Porras has yet to introduce a bill, and he’s working through some of the logistical challenges of crafting a law that could speak to the wide array of HOA-governed properties.

Condominiums, for example, share walls, roofs, and common spaces, which would almost certainly require a separate framework. But Porras has suggested that single-family HOAs—where boards often oversee rules about lawns, paint colors, and parking—may be less essential and easier to unwind.

The political and legal wall ahead

Even if public anger is surging, dismantling Florida’s vast network of HOAs would be a herculean task. The more than 50,000 HOA contracts don’t simply vanish with the passage of a law. Instead, they would almost certainly invite a flood of legal challenges from boards, developers, and homeowners who rely on the system.

The HOA industry itself wields significant influence in Tallahassee. Management companies, law firms, and trade associations form a lobbying bloc that has long defended HOAs as critical to preserving property values and providing services local governments can’t or won’t cover.

Yet, reform at the state level could be the most effective route for rewriting the rules of HOAs. Dissolving an HOA often requires a supermajority of residents, the consent of financial institutions, and the willingness of local governments to take back services like pool maintenance, road repairs, or trash collection.

This may be Porras’ biggest challenge as well as his most important opportunity: If he’s able to write a law that can pave the way for a smooth transition, abolition could be possible.

What ending HOAs could mean for homeowners

If HOAs were abolished, the changes for homeowners would be immediate and dramatic. Monthly dues could disappear, freeing up hundreds of dollars each month for many households. But those savings may come at a cost. Without centralized management, services like landscaping, pool maintenance, or neighborhood security could fall by the wayside—leaving residents to organize replacements themselves or watch amenities decline.

The impact on property values is harder to predict. Studies suggest homes in HOA communities typically sell for 5% to 6% more than comparable homes without them, a premium tied to uniform upkeep and amenities. Ending HOAs could erode that advantage—or it could liberate neighborhoods from overregulation, allowing homeowners greater autonomy in how they maintain and personalize their properties.

If abolition proves politically or legally unworkable, reform could be a more manageable next step. Lawmakers could push for stricter limits on fees, stronger state oversight of boards, and new protections for homeowners facing aggressive enforcement, as DeSantis has already done in the state.

But the debate isn’t confined to Florida. From Texas to California to Arizona, HOAs have faced mounting scrutiny amid fee hikes, lawsuits, and highly publicized clashes between residents and boards. Whether they’re seen as a safeguard for property values or a vehicle for abuse, HOAs have become an increasingly polarizing feature of modern American housing—making Florida’s fight a test case the rest of the country will be watching closely.