Florida Condominium and HOA Arbitration Through the DBPR

Florida condominium arbitration through the DBPR is a mandatory, nonbinding process that most condo owners must use before they can sue their association over governance or records disputes. It is run by the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes inside the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The filing fee is $50, the process is faster than circuit court, and the losing side generally pays the winner’s attorney fees. Skipping the presuit steps required by Florida Statute 718.1255 will get your case dismissed.

Which Disputes Qualify

Florida Statute 718.1255 sets the boundaries. Eligible condominium disputes fall into two groups: the board claiming authority it doesn’t have (forcing an owner to do something, or blocking an owner from doing something), and the board failing to do what the law or governing documents require, such as running elections properly, giving proper meeting notice, or providing access to official records.¹

Election disputes and board member recall disputes also go through DBPR arbitration, though with some procedural differences noted below.

Disputes the DBPR Won’t Hear

Several categories are carved out by statute and must go to circuit court instead. Filing an ineligible petition wastes the $50 fee, which is non-refundable once the Division receives it.¹

Title disputes over who owns a unit or common element.
Warranty interpretation or enforcement disputes.
Assessments and collection actions, whether an owner is challenging a fee or the association is trying to collect one.
Evictions of tenants from a unit.
Claims that directors breached fiduciary duty.
Claims for property damage tied to the association’s alleged failure to maintain common elements.

The assessment exclusion trips people up most often, because a fight over a special assessment feels like exactly the kind of board-versus-owner conflict this forum handles. The legislature drew the line at governance and records, not money.

HOA Disputes Follow a Different Rule

Homeowners’ associations are governed by Florida Statute 720.311, which sends only two kinds of HOA disputes to the DBPR: election disputes and board member recall disputes.² Records access, meeting notice problems, architectural review fights, and everything else must be handled through mediation, court litigation, or whatever the HOA’s governing documents require. HOA members often assume their process mirrors the condo process. It doesn’t.

The Presuit Demand Letter or Mediation

For a condominium dispute that isn’t an election or recall, you must complete one of two presuit paths before an arbitrator or a judge will hear you: send a statutory demand letter and then file for arbitration, or start presuit mediation.¹

The demand letter has to give the other side three things: written notice describing the specific dispute, a demand for the relief you want along with a reasonable chance to fix the problem, and a warning that you intend to file for arbitration or go to court if it isn’t resolved. The arbitrator has no power to waive this. Missing any element gets the petition dismissed without prejudice, which means you can refile after correcting it, but you’ve lost weeks. Send the letter by certified mail and hold onto the receipt.

Presuit mediation is the alternative. Nothing binds either side unless everyone agrees, and if it fails you can still file for arbitration or go to court. Election and recall disputes are not eligible for mediation and are exempt from the demand letter requirement.

Filing the Petition

Petitions are filed on Form DBPR ARB 6000-001, the Mandatory Non-Binding Petition Form, available through the DBPR’s website under the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes.³

The petition needs to include:

Full legal names and mailing addresses of every party.
A chronological statement of facts citing the specific bylaw or declaration provisions at issue.
Copies of the relevant bylaws, declaration of condominium, and articles of incorporation.
Proof of the presuit demand, typically the certified mail receipt, unless the case involves an election or recall.
A specific statement of the relief you want the arbitrator to order.

The $50 fee must accompany the petition by check or money order. Without it, the Division won’t process the filing. Once received, the fee is not refunded.¹

Petitions are mailed or faxed to the Division’s Arbitration Section at 2601 Blair Stone Road, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1030. The fax number is 850-487-0870. There is no electronic filing option.⁴

What Happens After You File

An arbitrator reviews the petition for legal sufficiency. If something is missing, the arbitrator can order the petitioner to correct it or show cause why the case shouldn’t be dismissed. If the petition passes review, the Division sends it to the respondent with an order to answer.

The respondent has 20 days to file a written response addressing each allegation and attaching relevant evidence and defenses.⁵ The arbitrator can shorten that window if health, safety, or welfare is at stake. A respondent who ignores the deadline can be defaulted and lose without being heard.

The Hearing

Once the pleadings are in, the arbitrator decides whether a hearing is needed. Some cases are resolved on the written submissions alone. When a hearing is set, the arbitrator can swear in witnesses, take sworn testimony, and review documents.

Hearings must take place in Florida and are scheduled near where the parties and witnesses live. The arbitrator can also hold the hearing by phone or video conference without needing both sides to agree.⁶ That flexibility is one of the practical differences from circuit court, where in-person appearance is typically required.

The Final Order and Attorney Fees

The arbitrator must issue a written Final Order within 30 days after the hearing. The order sets out findings of fact, conclusions of law, and specific directives telling each side what to do or stop doing.¹

The prevailing party is entitled to arbitration costs and reasonable attorney fees. The statute says the prevailing party “shall be awarded” these amounts, which covers fees from both the arbitration and any earlier mediation. To collect, the prevailing party files a separate motion within 45 days of the final order.⁷ If someone files a trial de novo, the 45-day clock doesn’t start until that appeal concludes. Defending a losing position, or bringing a case you shouldn’t have, can get expensive.

Rejecting the Result: Trial De Novo

Because the process is nonbinding unless both sides agreed in writing to make it binding, either party can reject the arbitrator’s decision and take the case to circuit court. The request for a trial de novo has to be filed in the circuit court where the condominium sits, within 30 days of the Final Order.¹

If nobody files within 30 days, the arbitration decision becomes final and enforceable. Courts treat the trial de novo as a fresh case, though the arbitration record comes in as evidence. That means arbitration effectively previews both sides’ arguments, so anyone rejecting the outcome should have a real reason to expect a different result from a judge.

Fair Housing Claims Go Elsewhere

The DBPR has no jurisdiction over housing discrimination. Claims based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, or disability fall under the federal Fair Housing Act and must be filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development or brought in state or federal court.⁸ If a single dispute has both elements, for example a records refusal tied to a denied disability accommodation, the records piece can go through DBPR arbitration while the discrimination piece has to travel a separate track. Filing everything with the Division sends the discrimination claim nowhere while its own deadlines run.

1
Florida Senate. Florida Code 718.1255 – Alternative Dispute Resolution; Mediation; Nonbinding Arbitration; Applicability
2
Florida Senate. Florida Code 720.311 – Dispute Resolution
3
Legal Information Institute. Florida Administrative Code 61B-45.017 – Initiation of Arbitration Proceedings; Content of Petition
4
Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Frequently Asked Questions – Arbitration
5
Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Florida Administrative Code Chapter 61B-45 – The Mandatory Non-Binding Arbitration Rules of Procedure
6
Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Florida Administrative Code Chapter 61B-50 – Rules of Procedure Governing Recall Arbitration
7
Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Florida Administrative Code Rule 61B-45.048 – Claim for Costs and Attorneys Fees
8
U.S. Department of Justice. The Fair Housing Act