Just elected to your HOA board? Here’s your first 90 days.
Florida gives every new HOA director a homework assignment with a real deadline: a state-approved education course within 90 days. Here is exactly what section 720.3033 requires, and a checklist for the rest of your first three months.
The 90-day education requirement
Since July 1, 2024, section 720.3033(1) requires each director, within 90 days after being elected or appointed, to submit a certificate showing they satisfactorily completed the educational curriculum administered by a department-approved education provider. There is no exemption for small communities and no option to self-certify by reading the governing documents; the course is the requirement.
The curriculum covers financial literacy and transparency, recordkeeping, levying of fines, and notice and meeting requirements. The certificate is valid for up to 4 years, and the new-director education must be completed at least every 4 years.
There is annual homework too: directors in associations under 2,500 parcels must complete at least 4 hours of continuing education each year, and directors in associations with 2,500 or more parcels at least 8 hours.
Miss the deadline and the statute suspends you from the board until you comply, and the board may temporarily fill your seat. Courses are short and inexpensive, so this is the easiest legal obligation you will clear all year: pick a provider from the department’s approved list and get it done in your first weeks.
The rest of your first 90 days
The course is the legal requirement. Actually getting your arms around the association is the real work. Tick off where you stand:
The legal requirement (s. 720.3033)
Getting oriented (practical, not statutory)
The legal items are summarized from section 720.3033(1), Florida Statutes. Check the current statute text before relying on it, and ask your association’s attorney about anything specific to your community.
The course tells you what to do. This is where you do it.
The four curriculum topics in section 720.3033 are daily board work, and scattered spreadsheets and inbox threads are where that work goes to die. Here is how each topic maps onto neighbors.fyi:
A members-only document library holds your governing documents, contracts, and insurance, organized and visible to every owner.
The community calendar carries every meeting with its agenda attached, and residents get notified automatically.
Budgets and financial reports live where owners can actually find them, and dues tracking shows the board where things stand.
Violation tracking keeps every notice, photo, and response in one timestamped paper trail.
And if your community has 100 or more parcels, one of the records you must keep on a members-only website is each director’s education certificate itself. Our guide to Florida’s HOA website law covers that requirement.
Common questions
Do new Florida HOA board members really have to take a class?
Yes. Under section 720.3033(1), Florida Statutes, each director must submit a certificate of having satisfactorily completed the educational curriculum administered by a department-approved education provider within 90 days after being elected or appointed. It applies to every director, in communities of every size.
What does the required curriculum cover?
The statute requires training relating to financial literacy and transparency, recordkeeping, levying of fines, and notice and meeting requirements.
How long is the certificate good for?
Up to 4 years. A director must complete the education specific to newly elected or appointed directors at least every 4 years.
Is there continuing education on top of that?
Yes, annually. A director in an association with fewer than 2,500 parcels must complete at least 4 hours of continuing education each year; in an association with 2,500 or more parcels, at least 8 hours.
What happens if a director misses the 90-day deadline?
The statute is direct about it: a director who does not timely file the educational certificate is suspended from the board until he or she complies, and the board may temporarily fill the vacancy during the suspension. The missing certificate does not invalidate actions the board has taken.
Where do I find an approved course?
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation approves education providers and publishes the list on its website. Verify a provider is on the current list before paying for a course; a certificate from an unapproved provider does not satisfy the requirement.
Does neighbors.fyi replace the course?
No. The course must come from a department-approved education provider, and we are not one. neighbors.fyi is the tool for what the course teaches: it is a members-only portal where your records, meeting notices, budgets, and violation tracking live, so the practices the curriculum covers happen in one place instead of scattered files.
Start your term organized.
Start a free 14-day trial, upload your documents, and invite your board. No contract, no setup fee.
This guide is general information about Florida law, not legal advice. Statute text changes; verify against the current Florida Statutes and consult your association’s attorney for your specific situation.