In Arizona, the rules your association must follow depend on how your community is legally organized. Three bodies of law can apply — sometimes at the same time — and a protection that exists in one may not exist, or may read differently, in another.
1. Planned communities — Title 33, Chapter 16
This is the Planned Communities Act (beginning at A.R.S. § 33-1801), and it governs most single-family-home HOAs. Among its protections:
- Open meetings. Meetings of the members and the board are open, with notice and an agenda (§ 33-1804).
- Records access. The association must make records available within ten business days, and may charge no more than 15¢ per page for copies (§ 33-1805).
- The violation-notice exchange. A homeowner may respond to a violation notice by certified mail within 21 calendar days, and the association must then reply within ten business days with specific information (§ 33-1803).
2. Condominiums — Title 33, Chapter 9
Condominiums are governed by a separate act (beginning at A.R.S. § 33-1201). Many protections parallel the planned-community rules but live in different sections — for example open meetings under § 33-1248 and records access, on the same ten-business-day / 15¢-per-page terms, under § 33-1258. Penalties and notice to a unit owner are handled in § 33-1242, so condominium owners should confirm what their chapter provides rather than assuming the planned-community sections apply.
3. Nonprofit corporation law — Title 10
Most Arizona HOAs are also incorporated as nonprofit corporations, which means Title 10 governs their internal machinery on top of Title 33 — members’ meetings and voting (§ 10-3701 and following), directors and officers (§ 10-3801 and following), and inspection of corporate records (§ 10-11602).
One remedy for all three
Whichever chapter governs, a dispute over the statutes or the governing documents can be taken to the Arizona Department of Real Estate for a hearing before an administrative law judge — without filing a lawsuit (§ 32-2199.01). See our ADRE petition walkthrough.
The takeaway
Before you rely on a specific right, confirm which chapter governs your community. The HOA Laws library lets you read each section in full, and every statute page notes whether it applies to planned communities, condominiums, or both.