Texas HOA records requests: what the law actually requires

What the law says

Texas's homeowners'-association records statute, Tex. Prop. Code § 209.005, is more procedural than Florida's or Arizona's version of the same idea. The request itself has to go by certified mail - not email, not a phone call - to the mailing address the association has on file in its recorded management certificate. The request also has to make an election up front: inspect the records first, or go straight to copies.

If the request instead asks to inspect the records rather than receive copies, the association has that same 10 business days to send written notice of the dates during normal business hours when the owner may come look at them. "Business day" excludes Saturdays, Sundays, and state or federal holidays (§ 209.005(q)), so the clock can run longer than 10 calendar days.

If the association can't meet the 10-business-day window, it doesn't just miss the deadline quietly - it has to send its own written notice saying so, and that notice must name a new date that is itself no later than the 15th business day after the date the association gives that notice (§ 209.005(f)).

What counts as an association record

The statute's grant is broad: "the books and records of the association, including financial records," open to any owner or the owner's designated agent, attorney, or CPA. In practice that reaches minutes, budgets and financial reports, contracts, and the like. A few categories are carved out or restricted:

• An attorney's own files and records relating to the association - generally not accessible, and anything that's attorney work product or attorney-client privileged is excluded outright, though a responsive document has to be produced from the attorney's file if the association kept no separate copy.
• A specific owner's dedicatory-instrument violation history, personal financial information (including payment or nonpayment records), and contact information other than the owner's address.
• Personnel files relating to an association employee.

Those restricted categories can still be released in aggregate or summary form that doesn't identify an individual owner, or in full if the affected owner gives written approval or a court orders it.

What happens if the board misses the deadline

Texas doesn't use a per-day statutory-damages model like Florida's or Arizona's. Instead, an owner who is denied access to (or copies of) records they're entitled to can file a petition with the justice of the peace in the precinct where the property is located. Before doing that, the owner first has to send the association 10 business days' written notice of the intent to sue - by certified mail, return receipt requested, or USPS delivery with signature confirmation - describing the records being requested (§ 209.005(p)).

If the justice of the peace agrees the owner is entitled to the records, the court can grant one or more of: a judgment ordering the association to release or allow access to the records; a judgment against the association for court costs and attorney's fees incurred pursuing the remedy; or authorization for the owner to deduct that judgment amount from future assessments owed to the association. Fee-shifting cuts both ways, though - if the association prevails instead, it's entitled to its own court costs and attorney's fees from the owner (§ 209.005(n)-(o)). That two-way exposure is exactly why boards are generally better off just meeting the deadline than litigating it.

The copy-fee rule is different from Florida and Arizona too

Texas doesn't set a per-page cap in the statute itself. Instead, the association's board has to adopt a records production and copying policy that spells out what it will charge - reasonable costs of materials, labor, and overhead, capped at whatever rate is allowed for the same kind of item under 1 Tex. Admin. Code § 70.3 (the same cost ceiling used for Texas public-information requests). That policy has to be recorded as a dedicatory instrument. If the board never recorded one, it can't charge the owner anything for compilation, production, or reproduction of the records at all (§ 209.005(i)).

A simple template for the request itself

A written request by certified mail is what starts the 10-business-day clock and creates the return receipt you'll need if the association doesn't respond. Copy, fill in the brackets, and send it certified mail to the address on the association's recorded management certificate: