How to File a HOA Complaint with the California Attorney General’s Office
Posted on the CCHAL website today are instructions for filing a complaint about a homeowner association issue with the California Attorney General’s office. PLEASE NOTE that the Attorney General has jurisdiction over certain kinds of complaints that violate specific sections of the Corporations Code. Those sections are listed here:
https://calhomelaw.org/resolving-disputes/filing-complaints/filing-complaints-part-ii/filing-complaints-with-the-attorney-general/
To file a complaint, use the form posted on the AG’s website (“Complaint Against a Business” (though the courts have make clear that HOAs are really businesses with governmental powers.) Homeowners can attach additional pages of evidence to the complaint form. We suggest that, after you submit the complaint online, that a copy of the complaint (with attachments) be snailmailed to the Public Inquiry Unit of the AG’s office with a tracking number.
We also recommend that, before filing a complaint, homeowners visit a Self-Help Center attached to the superior court in the county where the (alleged) complaint occurred. Staff at the Self-Help Center (and also the county law library) can be a source of information and support while the complaint is being processed by the AG. Here’s the link for finding Self-Help Centers and (free) county law libraries in all 58 counties. https://calhomelaw.org/resolving-disputes/county-self-help-centers-and-county-public-law-libraries/
A six-page sample written complaint by a homeowner is posted on the CCHAL website and is available to Contributing Members of the Center. https://calhomelaw.org/resolving-disputes/filing-complaints/filing-complaints-part-ii/filing-complaints-with-the-attorney-general/sample-complaint-to-the-ag/
What happens after a complaint is filed? For more information about the process, Contributing Members to the Center for HOA Law can contact CCHAL for a phone appointment. (Not sure if you’re a Contributing Member? Go to your CCHAL account to find out: https://calhomelaw.org/my-account/
[Can’t remember your password? Just click on “Forgot Pswd” to re-set it.]
Homeowners should keep an organized file of ALL correspondence to/from the AG’s office regarding their complaint, including responses from the association regarding the complaint.
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