Rhode Island condominium compliance, with the statute behind every deadline
A self-managed Rhode Island condominium answers to the Rhode Island Condominium Act, R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36.1 — Rhode Island has no separate homeowners'-association or planned-community law, so a non-condominium Rhode Island neighborhood runs on its own recorded declaration instead. GnomeOwner's compliance calendar tracks duties like the annual owner meeting, notice-and-hearing before a fine, and a capped, fast resale certificate, and shows the exact statute sentence behind each one.
Rhode Island's applicability rule is two-layered: a handful of duties — bylaw recording, the annual meeting, records access, fine notice-and-hearing, and the resale certificate among them — reach every Rhode Island condominium no matter its age; the rest of this calendar reaches only a condominium created on or after July 1, 1982, or an older one whose owners recorded an agreement to opt in. GnomeOwner asks which side of that line your condominium falls on once, during setup.
Rhode Island doesn't require board meetings to be open — only the annual owner meeting
Rhode Island's Condominium Act sets a real notice-and-frequency rule for the annual meeting of the unit owners — at least once a year, 10 to 60 days' notice — but a full read of the Act found no equivalent rule for routine executive-board meetings: no notice requirement, no owner right to attend, nothing. That's a genuine difference from some neighboring states' condominium acts, and GnomeOwner doesn't invent a mandate the statute doesn't contain. Whether your board's own meetings are open to owners is a question for your bylaws and rules, not Rhode Island law.
“A meeting of the association must be held at least once each year.”
A few of the duties GnomeOwner tracks for Rhode Island condominium associations governed by the Rhode Island Condominium Act, R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36.1
Every deadline here shows you the exact sentence of the statute it comes from, so you — or your attorney — can check it in seconds.
Hold an annual meeting of the unit owners
Hold a meeting of the association at least once a year. Not less than 10 nor more than 60 days in advance, give notice — hand-delivered, mailed, or (with the owner's written consent) electronic — stating the time, place, and agenda, including the general nature of any proposed declaration or bylaw amendment, any budget changes, and any proposal to remove a director or officer.
“A meeting of the association must be held at least once each year.”
Give notice and a hearing before imposing a fine
Before imposing or assessing any fine against a unit owner for violating the declaration, bylaws, or rules, give the alleged violator notice and an opportunity for a hearing. Daily fines may not exceed $100/day for a residential unit ($500/day for a commercial unit); other fines may not exceed $500 ($1,000 for a commercial unit) — any declaration, bylaw, rule, or regulation that purports to set its own maximum fine or daily fine is invalid, whether it tries to set that cap higher or lower than the statute's own figures.
“Notice and the opportunity for a hearing must be provided to an alleged violator before a fine is imposed and assessed.”
Furnish a resale certificate on request
Within 10 days of a unit owner's request, furnish a resale certificate with the information the owner needs to give a buyer — including the monthly assessment and any unpaid amounts, anticipated capital expenditures, reserve amounts, the current balance sheet and budget, pending suits, insurance coverage, and any known declaration or code violations affecting the unit. The association may charge up to $125 for preparing it.
“The association, within ten (10) days after a request by a unit owner, shall furnish a certificate containing the information necessary to enable the unit owner to comply with this section.”
Keep financial records and make them available to owners
Keep financial records detailed enough to support a resale certificate, and make all financial and other association records reasonably available for a unit owner (or their authorized agent) to examine within 30 days of a request.
“The association shall keep financial records sufficiently detailed to enable the association to comply with § 34-36.1-4.09. All financial and other records shall be made reasonably available for examination within thirty (30) days of a request by any unit owner and his or her authorized agent.”
Notify the owner and their first mortgage holder once an unpaid assessment reaches 60 days
As soon as any part of a unit owner's common-expense assessment has been delinquent for at least 60 days, send a notice stating the delinquency amount to the unit owner by certified mail (return receipt requested) and first-class mail — and send the same notice, the same way, to the holder of the first mortgage or deed of trust of record on that unit.
“When any portion of the unit owner's share of the common expenses has been delinquent for at least sixty (60) days the association shall first send a notice stating the amount of the delinquency to the unit owner by certified mail, return receipt requested, and first class mail. The association shall also send a notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, and first class mail, stating the amount of the delinquency to the holder of the first mortgage or deed of trust as it appears in the land evidence records at the address appearing in the mortgage or deed of trust or such other address as the first mortgagee may provide in writing to the association.”
Carry property and liability insurance on the common elements
Starting no later than the first conveyance of a unit to someone other than the declarant, maintain — to the extent reasonably available — property insurance on the common elements of at least 80% of actual cash value, and liability insurance (including medical payments coverage) in an amount the executive board sets, not less than any declaration minimum.
Applies to a Rhode Island condominium created on or after July 1, 1982, or one whose association and every unit owner recorded a written agreement to adopt the current Rhode Island Condominium Act — an older, never-opted-in condominium is governed by the older Condominium Ownership Act for this duty instead.
“Commencing not later than the time of the first conveyance of a unit to a person other than a declarant, the association shall maintain, to the extent reasonably available: (1) Property insurance on the common elements insuring against all risks of direct, physical loss commonly insured against or, in the case of a conversion building, against fire and extended coverage perils. The total amount of insurance after application of any deductibles shall be not less than eighty percent (80%) of the actual cash value of the insured property at the time the insurance is purchased and at each renewal date”
Every item above is drafted from Rhode Island’s statute text and shown beside the exact sentence it comes from — check any claim against the law’s own words. This page hasn’t had a full attorney review. Confirm anything you plan to act on with your own attorney or CPA; law as reflected here is current as of 2026-08-22.
Rhode Island questions we hear a lot
Does Rhode Island require open board meetings for a condo association?
No — and this is a genuine, confirmed difference from some neighboring states. Rhode Island's Condominium Act sets a real annual-meeting rule for unit owners, but no section anywhere in the Act requires routine executive-board meetings to be noticed to, or open for, owners. Whether your board's meetings are open is set by your own bylaws and rules, not state law.
How much can a Rhode Island condo association charge for a resale certificate?
Up to $125. R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36.1-4.09(b) requires the association to furnish a resale certificate within 10 days of a unit owner's request, and caps the fee it may charge for preparing one at $125. An association that misses the 10-day deadline faces a civil penalty of $100 to $500 per occurrence on top of any other remedy.
Does Rhode Island require condo reserve funds?
No. Rhode Island's Condominium Act treats reserves as an optional budget category the association MAY include (§ 34-36.1-3.02(a)(2)), not a mandate — there's no dollar amount, percentage, or funding formula anywhere in the Act. The only reserve-related disclosure duty falls on the declarant's one-time public offering statement before the first units sell.
What happens when a Rhode Island unit owner's assessment goes 60 days delinquent?
The association has to send a delinquency notice — by certified and first-class mail — to both the owner and the holder of any first mortgage on the unit (§ 34-36.1-3.16(b)(4)). Skipping that notice doesn't wipe out the association's lien priority for up to six months of the common-expense assessments themselves; it only costs the priority on collection costs and attorney's fees.
Is GnomeOwner's Rhode Island compliance calendar reviewed by a lawyer?
Every deadline on this page is shown beside the exact sentence of the statute it comes from — so you can check each claim against the law's own words, right here on the page. What this page hasn't had yet is a full attorney review. It's legal information, not legal advice: confirm anything you plan to act on with your own attorney.
Also covered: North Carolina, Nevada, Virginia, Arizona, Washington, South Carolina, Illinois, Oregon, Utah, California, Colorado, Texas, Georgia, Florida, New York, Michigan, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, South Dakota, Wyoming, Connecticut, Alaska, West Virginia, Vermont, Delaware, Alabama, Montana, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Dakota, Maine, Nebraska, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Kansas, Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri, Wisconsin, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Tennessee. More states are added as their compliance calendars are built — see the full list.
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