Virginia Title Teams: POAA and Condominium Act Resale Certificates

Virginia runs on a single resale disclosure regime. Since July 1, 2023, resale disclosure for condominiums (Virginia Condominium Act, § 55.1-1900 et seq.), property owners' associations (POAA, § 55.1-1800 et seq.), real estate cooperatives (§ 55.1-2100 et seq.), and horizontal property regimes (§ 55.1-2000 et seq.) has been governed by one statute: the Virginia Resale Disclosure Act, Chapter 23.1 of Title 55.1. The seller or the seller's agent must obtain the association-prepared resale certificate and provide it to the purchaser or the purchaser's agent — a requirement that cannot be waived or changed by agreement. The association has 14 days after a written request to deliver, and if it misses the window, the certificate is deemed unavailable, which arms the purchaser with a cancellation right that settlement teams must track on every file. For a complete walkthrough of what goes into a resale certificate, see our guide to what an HOA resale certificate is.

Virginia Resale Disclosure Law: One Act for Condos and HOAs

Virginia replaced its patchwork of resale rules with a single statute in 2023. Before July 1, 2023, condominium resales required a "resale certificate" under the Virginia Condominium Act, while property owners' association resales required a "disclosure packet" under the Property Owners' Association Act, each with its own form and its own fee rules. Senate Bill 1222 and House Bill 2235, passed during the 2023 General Assembly session, pulled those provisions out of the three acts and consolidated them into Chapter 23.1 of Title 55.1 — the Virginia Resale Disclosure Act (§ 55.1-2307 et seq.).

The consolidation changed more than terminology. Three shifts matter most for title teams:

• One document, one name. Every resale package is now a "resale certificate," and the term "disclosure packet" is gone.
• One standardized form. The Common Interest Community Board (CIC Board) developed the mandatory resale certificate form under § 54.1-2350(3), and every association must use it for resales on or after July 1, 2023.
• One set of deadlines and fees. The 14-day delivery clock and the CIC Board's maximum fee schedule now apply uniformly to POA, condo, and cooperative resales.

The contract itself carries disclosure duties. Under § 55.1-2308, a resale contract for a unit in a common interest community must state that the property is in a common interest community, that the seller or the seller's agent must obtain the resale certificate and provide it to the purchaser or the purchaser's agent, that the purchaser may cancel under § 55.1-2312, that the purchaser or the purchaser's agent may request an updated certificate under § 55.1-2311, and that those rights are waived conclusively if not exercised before settlement. If the contract omits these disclosures, the purchaser's sole remedy is to cancel the contract before settlement — another reason settlement teams should confirm the disclosure language is present at contract review.

The 14-Day Delivery Clock and "Deemed Unavailable"

The delivery requirements live in § 55.1-2309. The seller or the seller's agent obtains the resale certificate from the association and provides it to the purchaser or the purchaser's agent, and the statute is explicit that this requirement shall not be waived or changed by agreement. For title teams, that means a signed contract that tries to shift the duty or skip the certificate is not a workaround — the obligation remains.

On the association side, § 55.1-2309(B) sets a hard clock: unless the transaction is exempt under § 55.1-2317, the association, its managing agent, or any third party preparing the certificate must deliver it within 14 days after a written request by the seller or the seller's agent. If no certificate is delivered within 14 days, the certificate is deemed unavailable — a status that has real consequences, because it triggers the purchaser's cancellation rights under § 55.1-2312.

Two details routinely catch teams off guard:

• The request must be written, and the clock runs from receipt. An email that goes unanswered still starts the 14-day window. Save the request and any acknowledgment so the deadline can be proven.
• No purchaser's name required. Neither § 55.1-2309(B) nor § 55.1-2310(B) allows the association to demand the purchaser's name before preparing or completing the certificate. A management company that refuses to start without the buyer's identity is out of step with the statute.

In practice, well-run management companies deliver within 5 to 10 days, but self-managed associations and volunteer boards routinely use the full window. Calendar the 14 days from the written request, add a buffer, and escalate at day 10. On a Northern Virginia file where the certificate must reach the lender and the purchaser within the contract's financing window, a week of association delay is often the difference between a clean settlement and a rescheduled one. For a state-by-state comparison of delivery rules, see our guide to HOA disclosure requirements by state.

What the Resale Certificate Must Contain

Under § 55.1-2310(A), the association must deliver the completed CIC Board resale certificate form with supporting documentation attached in the order set out in the statute. The official form (CIC Board Form A492-05) is structured as a summary followed by numbered appendices, and the documents must appear in the prescribed order — not the association's preferred order.

The required contents span roughly thirty enumerated items. The ones title teams should verify most closely are:

• Preparer and managing agent identification. Name, address, and phone numbers of the preparer and any managing agent, including the CIC manager license number where applicable.
• Governing documents. A copy of the governing documents and any rules and regulations of the association.
• Restraints on alienation. Any restrictions on the right to transfer the unit.
• Assessments. The amount and payment schedules of assessments, any unpaid assessments due, and any other fees payable by the owner.
• Reserves and capital expenditures. The amount of reserve funds and any designated project amounts, plus approved capital expenditures for the current and succeeding fiscal years.
• Financials. The most recent balance sheet and income and expense statement, if any, and the current operating budget.
• Insurance, litigation, and violations. Insurance coverage, pending litigation, and any notices of code violations that have not been cured.
• Rental restrictions. Any restriction, limitation, or prohibition on renting the unit.
• Board and association minutes. Approved board minutes for the last six months and approved or draft minutes of the most recent association meeting.
• Common elements and approvals. Any pending sale or encumbrance of common elements and any secondary mortgage market project approvals in effect.
• Annual report certification. Certification that the association has filed its CIC Board annual report, with the filing number and expiration date.

Because the form is standardized, completeness checks are faster than they were under the old dual regimes — but only if the certificate actually comes from the association on the official form. An informal status letter or a management company summary is not a resale certificate, no matter how complete it looks.

Resale Certificate Fees and the CIC Board Caps

Virginia takes a capped-fee approach. § 55.1-2316(A) permits the association to charge for preparation, delivery, expedited delivery, inspection of the unit, and a post-closing fee, and it assigns responsibility: the seller pays for preparation and delivery of the resale certificate, including any inspection fee; the requesting party pays for an updated resale certificate; and a settlement agent may pay certificate fees up front and seek reimbursement from the seller.

Fees are due when the certificate is requested unless the association adopts a different policy (§ 55.1-2316(B)) — another departure from the old practice of collecting at settlement. The CIC Board establishes the maximum allowable fees (§ 55.1-2316(C)), and the schedule is adjusted at least every five years by the CPI-U; the current figures took effect January 12, 2023, and the next CPI adjustment is scheduled for 2028.

The caps are conditional. Under § 55.1-2316(F), an association may not collect these fees at all unless it (i) is registered with the CIC Board, (ii) is current in filing its most recent annual report and fee, (iii) is current in paying any assessment made by the CIC Board, and (iv) offers the option to receive the resale certificate electronically. An unregistered or delinquent association loses its right to charge — a useful lever when a management company demands an over-cap fee or refuses electronic delivery. The association must also publish and make available its fee schedule (§ 55.1-2316(D)), so teams can price every file before the invoice arrives. For more on how fees compare nationally, see our state-by-state HOA document fee guide.

Updated Certificates and Financial Updates

Virginia certificates age quickly. Under § 55.1-2311(A), if a resale certificate was issued more than 30 days but less than 12 months before settlement, the seller or the purchaser (upon proof of being the contract purchaser) may request an updated resale certificate, which must be delivered within 10 days after the written request, in the format requested. The updated certificate must contain current information for every item that may have changed, or a statement that there are no changes (§ 55.1-2311(B)).

For faster-moving figures, § 55.1-2311(C) lets a settlement agent or other third party authorized by the seller or purchaser request a financial update, which the association must provide within three business days of the written request. This is the tool for the classic scenario: the certificate cleared contract review, but the file slipped past 30 days, and now the numbers need refreshing before funding without restarting the full package.

Budget for both: on files where closing is scheduled more than 30 days after the certificate was issued, order the updated certificate or financial update proactively rather than discovering the stale date in the settlement room.

The Purchaser's Right to Cancel

The purchaser's cancellation right in § 55.1-2312 is the provision that keeps Virginia settlement teams honest. The default window is three days, and the clock runs differently depending on when delivery happens:

• Delivered before ratification. The purchaser may cancel within the period agreed in the ratified contract, or within three days of ratification if the contract is silent.
• Delivered after ratification. The purchaser may cancel within the agreed period, or within three days of receipt if the contract is silent.
• Never delivered. The purchaser or the purchaser's agent may cancel at any time prior to settlement.

Three refinements matter in practice. First, the standard Virginia REALTORS contract typically extends the cancellation window to seven days, so check the ratified contract before assuming three. Second, if the unit is governed by more than one association, the window runs from delivery of the last certificate (§ 55.1-2312(E)) — a multi-layer community can extend the exposure. Third, cancellation is without penalty and the seller must return deposits or escrowed funds promptly, and the purchaser bears the burden of proving delivery of the notice of cancellation (§ 55.1-2312(D), (F)).

For title and settlement teams, the operational rule is simple: do not fund a Virginia closing until the cancellation window has run — or the contract's agreed period — after the certificate (or notice of unavailability) was delivered, and document the delivery date in the file. On files where the association missed the 14-day clock and the certificate was never delivered, the purchaser can cancel right up to settlement, which is a funding risk that should be surfaced to the lender and the parties before the closing date is locked.

Liability and the Binding Effect of the Certificate

Virginia allocates liability in a way that protects both sides. Under § 55.1-2313(A), a seller who provides the resale certificate is not liable to the purchaser for erroneous information supplied by the association or for the association's failure or delay in providing the certificate. The exposure sits with the association, not the seller who relays it.

On the money side, § 55.1-2313(B) gives the certificate real binding force: a purchaser is not liable for any unpaid assessment or fee greater than the amount set forth in the certificate, updated certificate, or financial update. The association is bound by the current assessments, including approved special or additional assessments, and any violations disclosed as of the certificate date — unless the purchaser had actual knowledge the contents were in error.

That makes the certificate functionally an estoppel document for assessment exposure: whatever the association put in writing is the ceiling for what the purchaser can be charged. Settlement teams should therefore treat the assessment figures in the certificate as the file's anchor and reconcile the payoff and proration figures against them at closing.

Exemptions and Administrative Traps

Section 55.1-2317 carves out a defined set of transactions from the certificate requirement. The exemptions are narrow, and most arm's-length resales do not qualify — including sales where the certificate is simply slow. Treat any claimed exemption with skepticism until it is verified against the statute, because funding a file that should have had a certificate exposes the buyer to a late cancellation claim.

Beyond the exemption list, the administrative traps that stall Virginia files are consistent:

• Association not CIC Board-registered. An association that is not registered or is behind on its annual report cannot collect fees — and management companies sometimes pass those fees through anyway. Verify registration before paying.
• Electronic delivery refused. Offering electronic delivery is a condition of collecting fees (§ 55.1-2316(F)). A refusal is both a red flag and a reason to push back on the invoice.
• Outdated forms. Some associations still use the pre-2023 disclosure packet format or their own template. The standardized CIC Board form is mandatory for resales on or after July 1, 2023.
• Purchaser's name demanded. The association may not require the purchaser's name to prepare or complete the certificate. Requests for buyer identity should be declined.
• Multi-association files. Where the property sits under more than one declaration (§ 55.1-2315), order a certificate from each association and track the cancellation window from the last delivery.

Virginia's busiest markets — Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William counties, plus Richmond and Hampton Roads — run heavily on POA-governed subdivisions where the same management companies handle hundreds of files. The standardized form is a genuine efficiency gain in those markets, but it only helps if the certificate arrives within the window and the fees match the schedule.

Virginia Title Team Compliance Checklist

Use this checklist on every Virginia resale file to confirm the certificate is ordered, delivered, and funded correctly.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the deadline for a Virginia resale certificate?

Under Va. Code § 55.1-2309(B) of the Resale Disclosure Act, the association, its managing agent, or a third-party preparer must deliver the resale certificate within 14 days after a written request by the seller or the seller's agent. If no certificate is delivered within 14 days, it is deemed unavailable.

Who pays for a Virginia resale certificate?

The seller is responsible for all fees associated with preparation and delivery of the resale certificate, including any inspection fee, under Va. Code § 55.1-2316(A). The requesting party pays for an updated resale certificate, and a settlement agent may pay certificate fees up front and seek reimbursement from the seller.

What are the maximum fees for a Virginia resale certificate?

The Common Interest Community Board caps preparation and delivery at $211.96 in paper format and $176.64 in electronic format (effective January 12, 2023), with an expedite fee up to $70.66, an inspection fee up to $141.31, and a post-closing fee up to $70.66. The caps are adjusted every five years by the CPI-U.

Can a Virginia buyer cancel the contract after receiving the resale certificate?

Yes. Under Va. Code § 55.1-2312, a purchaser may cancel within three days of ratification if the certificate was delivered before ratification, or within three days of receipt if delivered after. The ratified contract may set a different period, and if the certificate is never delivered, the purchaser may cancel at any time prior to settlement.

Can a seller waive the Virginia resale certificate requirement?

No. Va. Code § 55.1-2309(A) states the requirement to obtain and provide the resale certificate shall not be waived or changed by agreement. The purchaser's rights to receive the certificate and to cancel are conclusively waived only if not exercised before settlement.

What happens if the Virginia association does not deliver the resale certificate within 14 days?

The certificate is deemed unavailable, and if it is never delivered, the purchaser or the purchaser's agent may cancel the contract at any time prior to settlement. Under Va. Code § 55.1-2314, a purchaser is not required to pay delinquent assessments or remedy violations existing as of the certificate date when the association fails to comply.

How long is a Virginia resale certificate valid?

If the resale certificate was issued more than 30 days but less than 12 months before settlement, the seller or purchaser may request an updated resale certificate under Va. Code § 55.1-2311, which must be delivered within 10 days. A financial update must be provided within three business days of a written request.

Key Takeaways

• One act, one form. The Resale Disclosure Act (Va. Code § 55.1-2307 et seq.) governs POA, condo, and cooperative resales with a single CIC Board standardized certificate effective July 1, 2023.
• 14-day delivery clock. Associations must deliver within 14 days of a written request; otherwise the certificate is deemed unavailable.
• No waiver. The seller's and seller's agent's duty to obtain and deliver the certificate cannot be waived or changed by agreement.
• CIC Board fee caps. Paper $211.96, electronic $176.64, expedite $70.66, inspection $141.31, post-closing $70.66 — adjusted every five years by the CPI-U.
• Three-day cancellation. Purchasers can cancel within 3 days (or the contract period) of ratification or receipt; if the certificate is never delivered, cancellation is available any time before settlement.
• Stale certificates need updates. More than 30 days before settlement: updated certificate within 10 days or financial update within 3 business days.
• Binding figures. The purchaser is not liable for unpaid assessments above the certificate amounts, and the association is bound by its disclosed figures.

If your team is juggling multiple Virginia POA and condo files and needs predictable turnaround on resale certificates and financial updates, consider routing orders through a dedicated retrieval service that tracks the 14-day delivery clock, verifies the CIC Board form, and confirms the fee against the current caps before the package reaches your desk.