Whether your association was established decades ago or last year, here is the baseline for basic maintenance compliance in Oregon.
READ: ⚠️ Myth Buster: Does this apply to my older building?
1. The Written Maintenance Plan (Required)
Under ORS 100.175(4), the Board of Directors must prepare and maintain a written maintenance plan for all property the association is responsible for. This is not optional.
A compliant plan must include:
- Descriptions: A clear list of the maintenance, repairs, and replacements to be conducted (e.g., roof inspections, siding sealants, gutter cleaning).
- A Schedule: A timeline showing when these tasks will occur.
- Size-Appropriate Detail: The plan must match the complexity of your specific building.
- Warranty Awareness: It must account for manufacturer warranties and the expected “useful life” of items like HVAC or roofing.
2. The Annual Reserve Study Review
Oregon law requires the Board to conduct a Reserve Study to determine how much money needs to be in the “Reserve Account” for major long-term repairs (those occurring between 1 and 30 years).
- Annual Update: You don’t necessarily need a professional on-site every year, but the Board must review and update the study annually to account for inflation, interest, and actual wear and tear.
- The Funding Analysis: The study must identify each item, its remaining useful life, and the estimated cost to replace it. This prevents the “Special Assessment” trap by ensuring owners pay their fair share over time.
3. The Reserve Account (Mandatory Funding)
Once the study is done, the association is legally required to establish and fund a Reserve Account (ORS 100.175(2)).
- Purpose: These funds are “restricted.” They can generally only be used for the major repairs identified in your study (like a total roof replacement), not for daily operating costs like landscaping or snow removal.
- Borrowing Rules: If you must borrow from reserves to cover an operating emergency, the Board must pass a formal resolution and create a written plan to pay it back.
4. Fiduciary Duty & The “Building Envelope”
In Oregon, the Board has a fiduciary duty to protect the assets of the association. Because we live in the Pacific Northwest, “Water Protection” is the highest priority for this duty.
- Negligence Risk: If a Board ignores the maintenance plan—for example, skipping gutter cleaning for three years—and that leads to structural rot, the Board can be held personally liable for a “breach of fiduciary duty.”
- General Compliance: Following the Golden Rule of Maintenance (Safety > Water > Law > Assets > Aesthetics) is your best legal defense against claims of mismanagement.
5. Records and Transparency
Finally, all maintenance plans, reserve studies, and repair logs must be kept as official association records.
- Owner Access: Under ORS 100.480, owners have the right to inspect these documents.
- Resale Disclosures: When a unit is sold, the association must provide the most recent reserve study and maintenance plan to the buyer. If these don’t exist, it can stall or kill a sale.
⚠️ Myth Buster: Does this apply to my older building?
Why Compliance is Vital for ALL Associations (Not Just New Ones)
There is a common misconception that ORS 100 requirements only apply to “new” condos or those established after a certain date. This is a dangerous myth. Oregon law applies these maintenance and reserve requirements to all associations created under the Oregon Condominium Act, regardless of when they were built.
1. The Law Doesn’t “Grandfather” Neglect Whether your community was established in 1975 or 2025, the Board’s fiduciary duty remains the same. Statutes regarding maintenance plans and reserve studies were designed to ensure long-term structural survival. Older buildings actually need these plans more than new ones because the “useful life” of major components (siding, plumbing, roofing) is nearing its end.
2. Protecting Every Owner’s Equity When an association fails to follow these rules, the building’s “insurability” and “mortgage-ability” are put at risk.
- The Lending Hurdle: Today, lenders (like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) require proof of adequate reserves and maintenance before approving a buyer’s loan.
- The Sale Killer: If an older association cannot produce a current Reserve Study or Maintenance Plan during a unit sale, the buyer’s financing will likely be denied. This lowers property values for everyone in the complex.
3. Liability Doesn’t Have an Expiration Date Courts do not give “older” Boards a pass on negligence. If an association established in 1980 has never had a written maintenance plan and a balcony fails or a roof leaks into a unit, the Board cannot claim they “didn’t have to follow the new rules.” The requirement to maintain common elements has always been the core of COA law; ORS 100 simply defines how you must document that you are doing it.
4. Avoiding the “Special Assessment” Spiral Older associations are most at risk for the “Special Assessment Spiral”—where one failure leads to another because there was no plan or funding. By implementing a compliant Maintenance Plan and Reserve Study now, an older Board can finally stop the “reactive” spending and start stabilizing the community’s financial future.
Summary Checklist for Boards:
- [ ] Do we have a written maintenance plan with a schedule?
- [ ] Has our Reserve Study been updated in the last 12 months?
- [ ] Are we contributing monthly to a dedicated Reserve Account?
- [ ] Are our maintenance records digitally stored and accessible for owners?
Is your plan out of date? Common Ground Maintenance offers a ‘Compliance Deep Dive’ where we review your current plan and help you fill the gaps.
