# Illinois Condo Liens: The Automatic 6-Month Rule (2026) > Under the Illinois Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g), a condominium association's lien for unpaid assessments is automatic. It attaches on default without any filing or pre-lien notice, and it covers unpaid common expenses, fines, interest, late charges, reasonable attorney fees, and collection costs. The lien is senior to other liens except real estate taxes and previously recorded encumbrances such as a prior mortgage. The part that matters most to a buyer: if you purchase a unit at or after a mortgage foreclosure sale, the association can recover up to 6 months of the prior owner's unpaid assessments from you, as long as it tried to collect before the foreclosure closed. One big distinction: this automatic statutory lien belongs to condominiums under the Condominium Property Act. A non-condominium HOA governed by the Common Interest Community Association Act has no statutory lien at all, and has to rely on a lien clause in its declaration. _Source: https://hoanotes.com/hoa/illinois/assessment-liens-and-foreclosure/ | Last reviewed 2026-06-03_ ## How the automatic condo lien works For an Illinois condominium, there is no waiting for paperwork. The lien exists the moment an owner defaults, no recording and no pre-lien notice required, and it sweeps in not just unpaid dues but fines, interest, late charges, attorney fees, and collection costs. It sits ahead of most other claims, behind only property taxes and previously recorded encumbrances. The 6-month rule is the one a buyer at a foreclosure sale needs to know. When a unit changes hands through a mortgage foreclosure, the association can collect up to six months of the former owner's unpaid assessments from the new buyer, provided it pursued collection before the foreclosure wrapped up. Plan for that figure if you are buying out of foreclosure. ## Condos and non-condo HOAs are different The automatic lien is a Condominium Property Act feature. If you are buying into a non-condominium common interest community, a townhome or single-family HOA under the Common Interest Community Association Act, there is no statutory lien. That association can only lien and foreclose if its declaration grants those rights. So the first question is which kind of community you are buying into, because it changes how collections work. ## What to check in the disclosure package Before you make an offer, confirm: - Whether the community is a condominium (automatic lien) or a non-condo HOA (declaration lien only). - The statement of unpaid assessments and any lien in the resale disclosure package. - For a foreclosure purchase, how much of the prior owner's back dues you could owe under the 6-month rule. - Whether fines, attorney fees, and collection costs have been added to any balance. ## Why this matters to your offer An Illinois condo lien attaches automatically and can follow the unit, especially at a foreclosure sale where the 6-month rule can hand you a real bill. Knowing the community type and reading the assessment statement is how you avoid a surprise. An HOA Notes brief identifies the community type, pulls the assessment statement and any lien from the disclosure package, estimates your foreclosure-sale exposure, and cites the page behind every number. ## What the statute says **765 ILCS 605/9(g)** (Automatic CPA assessment lien (condos only)). Under the CPA, the condominium association's assessment lien is automatic -- it attaches upon default without any filing or pre-lien notice required; the lien covers unpaid common expenses, fines, interest, late charges, reasonable attorney fees, and collection costs; the lien is senior to all encumbrances except recorded prior mortgages and tax liens; CICAA (non-condo HOA) associations have NO statutory lien -- their lien and foreclosure rights must be expressly granted in their declaration. The CPA association may foreclose the lien by court action in the same manner as a mortgage; a post-foreclosure sale purchaser (other than the mortgagee) must pay the lesser of: the assessments that would have accrued during the 6 months before collection action began, or actual unpaid assessments; the mortgagee who forecloses takes subject to assessments from the first day of the month after the foreclosure sale is confirmed. ## Illinois condo liens: common questions ### Does an Illinois condo lien need to be recorded? No. Under 765 ILCS 605/9(g), the condominium assessment lien is automatic and attaches on default without recording or pre-lien notice. ### If I buy a condo at a foreclosure sale, do I owe back dues? Possibly up to 6 months. The association can recover up to six months of the prior owner's unpaid assessments from a post-foreclosure buyer if it pursued collection before the foreclosure concluded. ### Does a non-condo HOA have the same automatic lien? No. A non-condominium HOA under the Common Interest Community Association Act has no statutory lien; it can only lien and foreclose if its declaration grants those rights. ### What does the condo lien cover? Unpaid common expenses, fines, interest, late charges, reasonable attorney fees, and collection costs. ## Sources (verified 2026-06-03) 1. 765 ILCS 605/9 (Illinois Condominium Property Act; assessment lien), Illinois General Assembly. Verified 2026-06-03. https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/fulltext.asp?DocName=076506050K9 2. Illinois condominium lien priority under 765 ILCS 605/9(g), Illinois Condo and HOA Law Blog. Verified 2026-06-03. https://ilhoalaw.com/2022/07/18/illinois-condominium-lien-priority-what-types-of-encumbrances-does-a-condominium-lien-have-priority-over/ 3. Illinois Statutes Chapter 765 Property 605/9, FindLaw. Verified 2026-06-03. https://codes.findlaw.com/il/chapter-765-property/il-st-sect-765-605-9/ HOA Notes is not a law firm and this is not legal advice.