HBA-TBM H.B. 2685 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2685 By: Bosse Business & Industry 4/5/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, a property owners' association (association) has the ability to obtain a judgment against a homeowner for unpaid association maintenance fees and to sell the home at public auction to satisfy that judgment. The average homeowner may be unaware of the power an association has over their home. House Bill 2685 sets forth provisions for the redemption of a home by the owner after foreclosure and limits the amount of attorney's fees an association may include in a property lien. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 2685 amends the Property Code to limit the amount of attorney's fees a property owners' association (association) may include in the indebtedness covered by an association lien in a foreclosure. This provision does not prevent an association from recovering or collecting attorney's fees in excess of the limitation by other means provided by law. The bill provides that a person who purchases property at a sale foreclosing an association lien (foreclosure sale) must commence and prosecute a forcible entry and detainer action to recover possession of the property from any previous owner in possession of the property. The bill authorizes the owner of property in a residential subdivision to redeem the property from any purchaser at a foreclosure sale within a specified time period. The bill prohibits a person who purchases property at a foreclosure sale from transferring ownership of the property to a person other than a redeeming property owner during the redemption period. The bill specifies the amount a property owner must pay to the purchaser to redeem property purchased at a foreclosure sale. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.