Washington condo and HOA financial records: what RCW 64.90.530 requires.

This page is not a substitute for an attorney. RCW 64.90 governs most Washington condominiums and many HOAs formed or converted after July 1, 2018 — older communities can opt in, so check governing documents to confirm which regime applies. The accounting takeaway is narrower: Section 64.90.530 sets four specific obligations for financial statements, audits, and where association money is held.

1. Annual accrual-basis financial statement

Subsection (1) requires the association to prepare, or cause to be prepared, at least annually, a financial statement "in accordance with accrual based accounting practices." Cash-basis books that are only reconciled to accrual once a year at tax time do not satisfy this on an ongoing basis — the statute expects accrual-based practices, not a single year-end conversion.

2. The CPA audit threshold

Subsection (2) requires an annual audit by a certified public accountant for associations with annual assessments of $100,000 or more. Associations below that threshold are also subject to an annual audit requirement by default, but it "may be waived annually by unit owners other than the declarant of units to which a majority of the votes in the association are allocated, excluding the votes allocated to units owned by the declarant." In practice: know your total annual assessments against the $100,000 line, and if you're under it, confirm whether the ownership actually voted to waive the audit for the current year — a waiver has to happen, it isn't automatic.

3. Association funds have to sit in the association's own name

Subsection (3) requires the association to keep all of its funds "in the name of the association with a qualified financial institution." The funds "must not be commingled with the funds of any other association or with the funds of any managing agent of the association or any other person, or be kept in any trust account or custodial account in the name of any trustee or custodian." For a management company handling multiple associations, this means one association's dues cannot sit in a shared operating or trust account with another client's money, or the manager's own funds.

4. Managing agents must deposit promptly

Subsection (4) requires a managing agent who accepts or receives association funds to "promptly deposit all such funds into an account maintained by the association" under subsection (3) (or the alternative account structure permitted by RCW 64.90.535). Funds collected on the association's behalf are not meant to sit in a manager's operating account pending a batch transfer.