California HOA laws 2027: what changes for LA condo owners, buyers and sellers

These are the California HOA laws 2027 brings to LA condos. They come out of the 2026 legislative session, and most take effect January 1, 2027. They set the state's first reserve funding floor (from 2032), stop associations from blocking common upgrades inside a unit, and change insurance rules for owners after a disaster. Here is each one with its chapter number, its start date, and what it means for an LA condo.

Every status below matches the Legislature's bill histories as read on October 27, 2026. The lending rules that start January 4, 2027 aren't state law, so they're covered separately on our condo loan rules for 2027 page.

The 2027 laws at a glance

Unless a bill sets its own date, a 2026 law without an urgency clause takes effect January 1, 2027 under the California Constitution. We've marked dates that come from the bill itself.

Law	What it does	Starts	Matters most to
AB 2050Ch. 796, signed Sept 29, 2026	Minimum reserve contributions; 15% budget transfer if the 30-year projection goes negative; reserve special assessment at most once every 9 years	Jan 1, 2032 (funding rules)	Owners, boards, long-term buyers
AB 1684Ch. 887	Voids HOA rules that prohibit or restrict code-compliant cooling systems, including window and portable units	Jan 1, 2027	Owners, buyers
SB 222Ch. 738	HOAs can't block gas-to-electric swaps or heat pump water heaters and HVAC; cities must offer asynchronous inspections	Jan 1, 2027; inspections by July 1, 2027	Owners, boards
SB 908Ch. 787	New Civil Code 4754: energy-code windows; HOA must decide within 45 days or the request is deemed approved	Jan 1, 2027	Owners, buyers in towers
SB 1267Ch. 350	Liability protection for HOAs on owner-owned EV chargers in common areas; owner bears damage costs	Jan 1, 2027	Owners with EVs, boards
AB 1892Ch. 169	Acclamation notice cut from 90 to 30 days; utility restoration duty clarified; e-ballot notice rules	Jan 1, 2027	Boards, owners
AB 739Ch. 506	Board must review the managing agent's fee statement every year; it becomes an association record	Jan 1, 2027	Boards, sellers paying transfer fees
AB 2692Ch. 124	LA County associations may reinstate expired CC&Rs (Civil Code 4276)	In effect Aug 24, 2026; expires Jan 1, 2028	Older LA County developments
AB 2038Ch. 917	After a disaster total loss, renewal offered for at least 36 months; no fire-zone-only nonrenewals near a fire perimeter for two years	Jan 1, 2027	Owners with HO-6 policies
AB 2061Ch. 918	FAIR Plan posts policy counts and exposure by ZIP code each quarter	Jan 1, 2027	Buyers, boards
AB 1278Ch. 877	Interest on insurance loss draft accounts can go to the borrower	Jan 1, 2027	Owners rebuilding after a loss
SB 1301Ch. 693	90-day nonrenewal notices with a reason and the imagery relied on	Jan 1, 2028 (bill date)	Owners with HO-6 policies

Already in force from earlier sessions, and still new to many owners: SB 410 (SB 326 report in the resale package, January 1, 2026), AB 130 ($100 cap on most HOA fines, June 30, 2025) and SB 770 (no additional-insured requirement for owner EV chargers, January 1, 2026).

AB 2050: California's first reserve funding floor

Today, California law requires reserve studies (a visual inspection at least every three years and a review every year, Civil Code 5550) but sets no minimum amount an association has to save. AB 2050 changes that from January 1, 2032.

Each reserve study will state a minimum reserve contribution: the yearly amount that keeps the projected reserve balance above zero for 30 years. The association must fund at least that. If the projection falls below zero at any point, the association must move at least 15% of its gross annual budget into reserves each year until it doesn't. If the budget can't carry it, the association levies a reserve funding special assessment under the usual assessment rules, no more than once every nine years.

Two different 15% tests are now coming from two directions. The lending rule (15% of assessment income budgeted to reserves) starts January 4, 2027. AB 2050's 15% budget transfer applies only to associations whose projection goes negative, from 2032. Our reserve requirements page compares them. For a buyer closing in 2027, the projection that will drive the 2032 requirement is already in the association's current reserve study.

Cooling, heat pumps, windows and EV chargers

Four of the signed bills follow one pattern: an association can no longer say no to a code-compliant upgrade inside a unit, but it can set reasonable conditions, protect the common area, and make sure the next owner knows.

AB 1684: cooling systems

Rules that prohibit or restrict installing or using a code-compliant cooling system become void. The definition covers window and portable air conditioners, evaporative coolers, fans and heat pumps. The association can require a licensed contractor for permitted work, repair of any common area damage, and disclosure to a buyer. CAI reports a penalty of up to $2,000 for willful violations.

SB 222: heat pumps and gas-to-electric

New Civil Code 4737 voids rules that prevent replacing a gas appliance with a code-compliant electric one, and bars associations from prohibiting heat pump water heaters or heat pump HVAC in a unit. Separately, cities and counties must offer asynchronous inspections for these installs by July 1, 2027.

SB 908: windows

New Civil Code 4754 covers windows in the unit and windows the documents call common area that serve only one unit. Rules that block energy-code compliant replacements are void, and the association must act on a request within 45 days or it's deemed approved. Aesthetic rules survive only in buildings of more than 20 units with no townhomes, and only for changes visible from outside. That carve-out reaches towers like Wilshire Regent (208 residences, 1963) and Century Park East (480 residences, 1966), where the window wall is the facade.

SB 1267: EV chargers

For EV chargers that owners install in the common area, SB 1267 gives associations liability protection and puts damage costs on the owner. It builds on Civil Code 4745, which already protects an owner's right to install one.

For buyers, a unit with new windows, a mini split or a heat pump now comes with a paper trail: the approval, the permits, the contractor, and possibly a recorded notice that makes the upkeep the owner's. A unit without that trail is a question for the seller.

Governance and disclosure

AB 1892 shortens the acclamation notice (when there are no more candidates than seats) from 90 to 30 days, clarifies that the association's duty to restore interrupted gas, heat, water or electric service depends on where the interruption starts, and sets notice rules for electronic ballots. AB 739 requires the board to review the managing agent's fee statement every year, which may expose transfer and document fees that sellers pay.

The disclosure change that matters most to sales is from the year before. Since January 1, 2026, SB 410 puts the most recent SB 326 balcony inspection report in the resale package. The association has 10 days to deliver that package after a written request, and its fees must be based on actual cost (Civil Code 4525 to 4530).

The rules on dues haven't changed. Without a member vote, a board can't raise regular assessments more than 20% over last year or levy special assessments over 5% of budgeted gross expenses in a fiscal year, with exceptions for emergencies (Civil Code 5605 and 5610). SB 1007, which would have capped increases at inflation, died in 2026.

Insurance laws

The 2026 insurance bills mostly protect unit owners. AB 2038 requires insurers to offer renewal for at least three annual renewals and 36 months after a disaster total loss, and bars nonrenewal for two years in or next to a fire perimeter when the only reason is wildfire risk. Condo unit (HO-6) policies are residential property insurance and fall under it. HOA master policies are usually commercial, so don't assume the same protection; ask the association's broker.

AB 2061 requires the FAIR Plan to post its policy counts and exposure by ZIP code each quarter. SB 1301 adds 90-day nonrenewal notices with a reason, starting January 1, 2028. AB 69 and AB 1680 add FAIR Plan notice requirements and oversight. More on all of it on our condo insurance in California page.

Vetoed, died, and expected back

• SB 1238 (manager duty of care to members) and AB 2439 (street use and payment notice rules): vetoed in September 2026.
• AB 1903 (condo construction defect reform): passed the Senate 40 to 0 on August 31, 2026, then was held at the Assembly desk and died. CAI expects it back in 2027. It's the bill most likely to affect how many new condos get built in LA.
• AB 1406 (raising the new-condo deposit cap from 3% to 6%) and SB 1007 (inflation cap on dues increases): died.
• AB 956 (ADUs) passed, but its language allowing ADUs inside condo associations was removed.

The 2027 to 2028 Legislature convenes December 7, 2026. We'll add the new bills to our condo rules timeline as they move.

What to do with this

Owners: read the architectural guidelines for window, cooling and appliance rules that stop being enforceable on January 1, and ask whether the board has written its approval process. Buyers: ask for approvals and permits for any owner-installed windows, cooling or heat pump, and read the reserve study's 30-year projection, not only the percent funded. The buyer checklist lists the rest. Sellers: approvals and permit sign-offs belong in the disclosure package; the seller checklist has the list. Boards: the HOA board brief covers the budget and the January 4 lending date.

For deeper reading, see our posts on what the Governor signed, the bills on the Governor's desk and the 2026 HOA bills, and our LA condo HOA guide.

Common questions

When do the new California HOA laws take effect?

Most bills signed in the 2026 session take effect January 1, 2027, the default date for laws without an urgency clause. Some set their own dates: AB 2050's reserve funding rules start January 1, 2032, SB 222's inspection rules apply by July 1, 2027, SB 1301 starts January 1, 2028, and AB 2692 took effect August 24, 2026.

Can my California HOA stop me from installing air conditioning?

From January 1, 2027, AB 1684 voids governing document rules that prohibit or restrict a code-compliant cooling system, including window and portable units. The association can still require a licensed contractor for permitted work, repair of any common area damage, and disclosure to a future buyer. The protection does not apply if a required permit is denied.

Does AB 2050 raise HOA dues?

It may, starting in 2032, for associations whose reserve study projects a negative balance within 30 years. Those associations must move at least 15% of their gross annual budget into reserves each year until the projection recovers, and may levy a reserve special assessment no more than once every nine years. Well-funded associations may see little change.

Is the January 4, 2027 reserve rule a California law?

No. The 15% reserve line that starts January 4, 2027 is a Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lending rule for conventional loans, not a state statute. California's own reserve funding minimum, AB 2050, starts January 1, 2032. Both matter to LA condo owners, but they work differently and apply to different decisions.

This page summarizes California statutes for general information. It is not legal advice, and we are not attorneys. Effective dates marked January 1, 2027 follow the constitutional default for 2026 statutes without an urgency clause; confirm a specific bill's operative dates in its text. For a question about your association, talk to a California HOA attorney or your association's counsel. Facts are current as of October 27, 2026.