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Important legal disclaimer.
HOA Ballot is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Nothing
on this page, and nothing HOA Ballot says, does, or generates, is legal
advice or may be relied on as legally valid or sufficient. Your
association and its legal counsel are solely responsible for verifying
the approval threshold, legal compliance, amendment language, filing
requirements, and legal sufficiency of the vote. Please independently
verify all information and consult a licensed attorney. Statute
references on this page are shown for transparency about what we review;
they are not legal advice — confirm every requirement with your
association's attorney.
What we look for before quoting
A practical review, not legal advice
Planned communities (no Massachusetts HOA act)
Massachusetts has no comprehensive planned-community or homeowners-association statute. A non-condominium HOA is generally organized as a nonprofit corporation (G.L. c. 180) or as a trust, and is governed by its recorded declaration of covenants (CC&Rs) and bylaws, with land restrictions also touched by G.L. c. 184. Because no statute sets a default, the recorded declaration generally controls who may vote, the approval percentage, and how amendments are adopted and recorded.
Condominiums (Mass. Condominium Act, c. 183A)
Condominiums are governed by the Massachusetts Condominium Act (G.L. c. 183A), and a condominium is created by recording a master deed at the registry of deeds. Chapter 183A generally does not fix a single statutory percentage to amend the master deed; instead it defers to the recorded master deed, declaration of trust, and bylaws, which commonly call for a supermajority (often two-thirds to 75%). Changes that would alter an owner's percentage interest in the common areas generally require the consent of each materially affected owner (G.L. c. 183A, § 5).
How the vote can run
Since the Affordable Homes Act added G.L. c. 183A, § 24 (signed August 2024), condominium associations may generally hold virtual meetings and let unit owners vote by mail-in ballot or electronic means, and may accept electronic signatures, notwithstanding older governing-document language to the contrary. A quorum of unit owners must still be present for the vote, and the governing body may adopt policies for electronic meetings and voting. Notice, quorum, proxies, and any ballot-secrecy practices are generally set by the recorded bylaws rather than a statewide secret-ballot rule.
Before we quote
Massachusetts details that shape your vote
These are the things we check so your quote and timeline are realistic —
not legal advice, just the questions a careful Massachusetts vote has to answer.
Two tracks apply: condominiums fall under G.L. c. 183A, while non-condo HOAs generally rely on a recorded declaration plus nonprofit-corporation law (G.L. c. 180), with no dedicated HOA act.
The recorded master deed, declaration of trust, or HOA declaration and bylaws generally control the amendment threshold and voting method, so confirming those documents is essential to an accurate quote.
Chapter 183A does not set one statutory percentage to amend a master deed; supermajorities in the two-thirds to 75% range are common but always document-specific.
Altering any unit's percentage interest in the common areas generally requires the consent of all materially affected owners (G.L. c. 183A, § 5) — a near-unanimous hurdle for those changes.
Mail-in and electronic voting, virtual meetings, and electronic signatures are now authorized by statute (G.L. c. 183A, § 24, effective 2024) even over contrary documents, but a quorum must still be present for the vote.
Some condominium amendments may need mortgagee consent, though a deemed-consent process lets consent be presumed if a noticed first mortgagee does not object within 60 days (G.L. c. 183A, §§ 5 and 23).
To take effect, a master-deed or declaration amendment is generally recorded at the registry of deeds for the county where the property sits; there is no separate state-agency approval for the amendment itself.
Quorum is often measured by weighted percentage interest, and proxies and ballot secrecy depend on the bylaws — Massachusetts has no statewide secret-ballot mandate for these votes.
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