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add more detail if you have documents and roster information ready.
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 (POA Act)
Most Virginia homeowner and lot-owner communities are governed by the Property Owners' Association Act (Va. Code § 55.1-1800 et seq.). Unless the recorded declaration sets a different (often higher) figure, that Act generally lets owners amend the declaration on a two-thirds vote of the lot owners (Va. Code § 55.1-1829). Because the recorded declaration controls, the exact percentage, who may vote, and any super-majority for sensitive changes should be read straight from your governing documents.
Condominiums (Condominium Act)
Condominiums are governed separately by the Virginia Condominium Act (Va. Code § 55.1-1900 et seq.). For a residential condominium with owners other than the declarant, amendments to the condominium instruments generally require agreement of unit owners holding two-thirds of the votes, or a larger majority if the instruments specify (Va. Code § 55.1-1934). Certain changes — such as unit boundaries, a unit's undivided interest in the common elements, common-expense liability, or the number of votes per unit — generally need unanimous owner consent.
How the vote can run
Virginia generally lets owners vote in person, by proxy, by absentee (written) ballot, and by electronic means once the board adopts guidelines for electronic voting (Va. Code §§ 55.1-1815, 55.1-1953). Associations typically must give advance written notice of the meeting's time, place, and purposes — commonly at least 14 days for an annual or regular meeting (Va. Code § 55.1-1815). A managed ballot can combine paper and electronic returns while keeping an auditable record of each vote.
Before we quote
Virginia 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 Virginia vote has to answer.
The recorded declaration controls: it may set a higher bar (e.g., 75% or unanimous) than the two-thirds statutory default, so the operative number comes from your own documents.
POA Act default to amend the declaration is generally a two-thirds vote of the lot owners unless the declaration provides otherwise (Va. Code § 55.1-1829).
Condominium amendments generally require unit owners holding two-thirds of the votes, or a larger majority the instruments specify (Va. Code § 55.1-1934).
Some condominium changes — unit boundaries, undivided interest in common elements, common-expense liability, or votes per unit — generally require unanimous owner consent (Va. Code § 55.1-1934).
Owners may generally vote in person, by proxy, by absentee ballot, or by electronic means once the board adopts electronic-voting guidelines (Va. Code §§ 55.1-1815, 55.1-1953).
Notice matters: the POA Act generally calls for advance notice of a meeting's time, place, and purposes, commonly at least 14 days for an annual or regular meeting (Va. Code § 55.1-1815).
An amendment generally becomes effective only when it is recorded in the local land records with a certification by the association's principal officer that the required majority signed (Va. Code §§ 55.1-1829, 55.1-1934).
If the declaration requires mortgagee consent, the POA Act provides a deemed-consent process — a lender that does not respond within 60 days may be treated as consenting, except for amendments that alter lien priority or impair the lot as collateral (Va. Code § 55.1-1829).
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