HOA software for Illinois self-managed communities

Illinois uses two separate statutes depending on community type. Planned community homeowner associations with 10 or more units are governed by the Common Interest Community Association Act (CICAA), 765 ILCS 160/1 et seq., which took effect in 2010. Illinois condominium associations are governed by the separate and older Illinois Condominium Property Act (765 ILCS 605/1 et seq.). Smaller planned communities with fewer than 10 units may not fall under CICAA at all and operate entirely under their recorded covenants and bylaws. These three situations — CICAA planned community, Illinois Condominium Act, or covenants-only — carry meaningfully different requirements around member rights, board obligations, and financial disclosures. If you are unsure which framework governs your community, your governing documents or an Illinois HOA attorney can confirm. Hivepoint is designed for self-managed HOA communities — not licensed property management companies.

The Common Interest Community Association Act (CICAA, 765 ILCS 160) was enacted in 2010 to provide a statutory framework for planned community homeowner associations — the kind governed by a declaration of covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&Rs) rather than a condominium declaration. Before CICAA, Illinois planned communities operated entirely under their recorded documents. The Illinois Condominium Property Act (765 ILCS 605) is a much older statute (originally enacted in 1963) that specifically governs condominium associations — communities where owners hold individual airspace units with shared ownership of common areas, created by a condominium declaration. The two statutes have different provisions around reserve requirements, meeting procedures, assessment collection, and member rights. For a self-managed board, the most important first step is confirming which statute — if either — applies to your community.

Planned communities with fewer than 10 units are exempt from CICAA and operate entirely under their recorded governing documents — the declaration, bylaws, and rules and regulations. There is no statutory default to fill in gaps. If the governing documents are silent on a procedure, the board has no statutory fallback. This makes governing document accuracy and completeness especially critical for smaller Illinois communities. Hivepoint stores the declaration, bylaws, rules, and all amendments in the document library so the board always has the authoritative governing text on hand — not just a copy from whenever the original homeowners moved in.

CICAA gives covered Illinois HOAs assessment authority and the right to lien a lot for unpaid assessments. The Illinois Condominium Property Act provides similar authority for condominiums. For communities not covered by either statute, assessment and lien rights depend entirely on what the governing documents say. Regardless of statutory framework, exercising lien rights requires complete documentation: the full payment ledger, every notice sent with dates and delivery methods, fines applied, and board resolutions authorizing enforcement. Hivepoint builds this record automatically during normal dues tracking and enforcement operations. Filing a lien is a legal matter requiring a licensed Illinois HOA attorney.

CICAA imposes several key obligations on covered Illinois planned community associations: boards must hold open meetings with proper advance notice; meeting minutes must be recorded and made available to members; members have the right to inspect association records; and financial records must be maintained. CICAA also requires that associations make certain disclosures to members. Hivepoint records meeting notices, minutes, and attendees for every board meeting, stores all governing documents and financial records in an organized library, and provides Community Edition with a resident portal for member access — supporting CICAA compliance across all major record-keeping obligations.

Illinois does not have a specific state licensing requirement for community association managers. This makes self-management a practical and common choice for Illinois planned communities, particularly in the Chicago suburb markets (Cook, DuPage, Lake, Will, Kane counties) where HOA density is high. Hivepoint is built for those self-managed boards — volunteer-friendly tools, flat-rate pricing (not per unit), and no property management company markup. If your community does hire a professional manager, look for CAI industry certifications (CMCA, AMS, PCAM) as markers of qualified candidates.