Bills passed in the Maryland House of Delegates and Senate would limit lien foreclosures to claims for delinquent assessments only, and would preclude foreclosure actions based fines and related fees imposed by an association. The House passed HB 286 by a unanimous vote of 138 – 0, and the Senate passed SB 161 by a vote of 37 – 7. The primary difference in the two bills is that the House version applies to condominiums and homeowners associations, while the Senate version would also apply to cooperative housing corporations.
Cooperatives were originally included in the House bill, but were deleted in the final version. Both versions add new provisions to Section 14-204 of the Maryland Contract Lien Act that would prevent lien foreclosures based on amounts due for fines imposed by the association, along with any attorney’s fees related to recovering the fines. The House version also expressly provides that foreclosures based on delinquent assessments may include related costs and attorney’s fees. The two bills will now have to be reconciled in conference committee.
