How Compliance Inspections Protect Property Value

Ever wonder what the purpose of a compliance inspection is? It may sometimes feel stressful or inconvenient, but compliance inspections play an important role in protecting and enhancing your community. They help preserve property values, maintain neighborhood appearance, and ensure community standards are applied fairly and consistently for all homeowners.

Here are a few ways compliance inspections benefit both you and your neighborhood:

• Maintain curb appeal – Inspections help keep common areas well-maintained and ensure individual properties align with community guidelines, creating a clean and attractive neighborhood environment.
• Encourage proactive maintenance – Regular inspections help identify small issues before they turn into larger, more expensive repairs or safety concerns.
• Ensure consistent enforcement – HOAs are required to enforce community standards fairly and consistently across the entire community.
• Enhance safety and reduce liability – Monitoring common areas, enforcing safety standards, and supporting preventative measures all contribute to a safer community for residents and guests.

Compliance inspections are conducted within the guidelines outlined in your HOA’s governing documents. Their purpose is to help protect property values, by identifying hidden safety hazards, catching minor wear-and-tear before it escalates into expensive structural damage, and enforcing neighborhood or community standards and maintaining the overall appearance and consistency of the neighborhood for everyone who lives there.

Architectural Control Committee (ACC)

What Is It?

When a community has an HOA, homeowners are required to follow its governing documents.

Within these documents, there are typically guidelines regarding changes to the exterior of your property. This can include paint colors, fencing, landscaping, and more. Before making any such changes, homeowners must submit a proposal, often called the Architectural Control Committee, or ACC, application, to the Board of their Association for approval.

What Changed in January 2026?

As of January 2026, a legal update changed how ACC applications are approved or denied.

Previously, Board members could review and make decisions outside of official meetings and later ratify those decisions during a formal meeting. Under the new law, decisions must now be made during scheduled Board meetings.

This change may lead to delays, especially for Boards that meet infrequently (for example, quarterly rather than monthly). To address this, many Boards have begun holding brief additional meetings specifically to review and approve or deny ACC submissions.

How Do You Submit an ACC Application?

To submit a proposal for exterior changes to your property:

• Contact your community management company or your HOA Board to request the ACC application.
• Ask how the application should be submitted (e.g., online or in person).
• Complete the application thoroughly, including as much detail as possible. This helps avoid delays, follow-up questions, or potential denial.
• Review your community’s governing documents to ensure your proposal complies with all guidelines.
• Submit your application well in advance to allow sufficient time for Board review and any necessary follow-up.

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Key Takeaways

• ACC application decisions must now be made during scheduled Board meetings due to a legal change effective January 2026.
• To submit an application:
  • Contact your community management company or Board to obtain the application and submission instructions.
  • Fill out the application completely and accurately.
  • Submit early to allow adequate time for review and response.