Property Owners Association Law Board Certification by the TBLS

The purpose of the certification exam is to require an applicant to demonstrate substantial knowledge of significant legal concepts and corresponding skills in the overall area of real estate law, and specifically, the sub-categories of commercial real estate law, farm and ranch real estate law, residential real estate law, and property owners association law as applicable.

The questions on the Property Owners Association Law examination generally deal with the real property law specific to condominiums, subdivisions, and property owners associations, nonprofit entity law, fair housing law, and debt collection and foreclosure laws including:

1. Assessment Collection/Foreclosure
   1. Collection Procedures
      (1) Source and scope of authority to impose assessments and related charges
      (2) Creation, scope and priority of assessment liens
      (3) Alternative payment schedules
      (4) Priority of payments received
      (5) Required notices
      (6) Statutory limitations on foreclosure
   2. Judicial Foreclosure
      (1) Elements of proof for suit
      (2) Conducting of judicial foreclosure sale
      (3) Post-foreclosure considerations
      (a) required notices
      (b) redemption period
      (4) Expedited foreclosure procedures
   3. Nonjudicial foreclosure for condominiums
      (1) required notices
      (2) Conducting of nonjudicial foreclosure sale
      (3) Post-foreclosure considerations
      (a) required notices (b) redemption period
2. Condominiums
   1. Texas Uniform Condominium Act application
   2. Insurance / Casualty Loss Issues
   3. Termination
3.  Enforcement of Restrictive Covenants
   1. Required Notices
   2. Available Remedies
4. POA Governance (Non-Profit Corporations)
   1. Voting/proxies
   2. General standards for directors
   3. Directors not trustees
   4. Indemnification
   5. Records retention and inspection
5. Amendment of Dedicatory Instruments
   1. Sources and scope of authority to amend
      • Common law
      • Statutory requirements and limitations
        1. residential
        2. condominium
   2. Amendment vs. termination
   3. Development/declarant control periods

To become board certified in property owner association law, the Standards for Attorney Certification require theattorney to demonstrate a substantial breadth of experience in the practice area by:

1. serving as counsel to property owners associations, their officers and directors, their members, and their managers on matters pertaining to the common-interest development and its governing association;
2. drafting, amending, and interpreting documents that create and govern the development and its association;
3. representing parties in assessment collection actions, enforcement of statutes and governing documents, and other litigation and dispute resolution relating to the common-interest development and its association; and
4. serving as counsel to real estate developers in the creation of common-interest developments and property owners associations.

To demonstrate a substantial breadth of experience, the attorney must provide a written description of at least 20 substantive tasks or services performed by the attorney in at least three of the categories listed below during each year of the 3 years immediately preceding application.

The written description for each of the 60 or more substantive tasks or services must identify the following: 

1. the task category from the list below;
2. when performed; and
3. the type of client represented by the attorney such as owners, developers, lenders, property owners associations, association officers and directors, association managers, or political subdivisions.