Aurora Townhomes Are Cheaper This Fall. The Hail Bill Can Show Up Two Years Late.

A hailstorm hit the Denver metro on May 30, 2024. Two years later, in May 2026, owners at the Peachwood townhome community in Aurora Hills, on the city's northwest side, got the bill. The Denver Post reported that one Peachwood owner was told she owed a $7,000 special assessment, because every building in the community needed a new roof and the HOA didn't have enough cash to cover its insurer's deductible. One neighbor told the Post that the roofs had been replaced for age in 2021 and that nobody's roof leaked after the storm. By the time the assessment arrived, some owners had forgotten about the hail entirely.

That two-year gap matters to anyone shopping for an Aurora townhome or condo this fall. Prices for these attached homes have softened and sellers are offering concessions. But the price on the listing doesn't include costs the association already owes and hasn't billed yet. When a bill like Peachwood's lands after you've signed, the answer to who pays comes from one clause in the state contract and the date on the assessment.

The Clause That Decides Who Pays

The Colorado Real Estate Commission publishes an approved Contract to Buy and Sell Real Estate (Residential). Its current version has been mandatory since January 1, 2026. Section 16.2 covers HOA assessments, and the key sentence reads:

"Any special assessment assessed prior to Closing Date by the Association will be the obligation of Buyer / Seller."

On the form, that's a checkbox, and the buyer and seller pick one. The same section adds one exception. A special assessment for improvements already installed by the date the buyer signs is the seller's obligation "whether assessed prior to or after Closing," unless the Additional Provisions say otherwise.

The clause is keyed to when an assessment is assessed. Colorado's Common Interest Ownership Act adds a related rule: each owner is liable for assessments made against the unit while they own it. Put those together and a storm that hit before your purchase can still produce a bill that lands after your closing.

The Post's reporting from the Soaring Eagles Townhomes in Colorado Springs shows how that plays out. A hailstorm in August 2024 damaged every building there. A year later, the association billed each home $20,700 to cover the deductible on a $3.6 million roof and siding job. One owner bought after the storm and before the assessment. She owed the full $20,700, and her HO-6 condo insurance policy didn't cover it.

Where a Late Bill Shows Up Before You Sign

Under the contract, the seller has to deliver the association's records, called the Association Documents, at the seller's expense by a set deadline. Several items in that packet can reveal a pending bill like Peachwood's:

• Meeting minutes. Board talk about an insurance claim, roof bids or a deductible usually shows up here before any assessment is voted.
• Insurance policy details. The master policy deductible tells you how much the HOA has to cover on its own after a storm.
• The current budget and annual financial statements, including reserves. Compare the reserve balance with that deductible.
• Any reserve study. It projects when big components like roofs will need replacing.
• Notice of a construction defect action. This covers a written notice to the seller from the past six months. It isn't a general list of all litigation.

The contract lets the buyer terminate by the Association Documents Termination Deadline if any provision is unsatisfactory, in the buyer's "sole subjective discretion." If the documents arrive late, the seller has to receive the buyer's notice to terminate within ten days after the buyer receives them. If that ten days would run past closing, or if the documents never arrive, the notice has to reach the seller on or before closing. That review window is when a large deductible paired with thin reserves can still be weighed against the price.

The Peachwood case shows why the comparison matters. The assessment was large because the reserves were too small to cover the deductible. Monthly dues can climb before any assessment, too. At the 46-unit Meadow Hills Town Homes next to the Meadow Hills Golf Course in Aurora, The Colorado Sun reported that the property insurance premium tripled in 2024. The HOA raised dues by $200 a month, to $525.

The Lender Has a Checklist of Its Own

A big deductible and thin reserves raise more than the risk of a future bill. They can also limit who's able to finance the unit. Fannie Mae sets the standards for conventional loans on condo projects, and the HOA's finances are part of that review. Several of the rules changed in 2026, and one more takes effect in January:

Fannie Mae's ineligible projects guidance also requires lenders to look at each special assessment: its purpose, whether it's been approved, its original and remaining amounts, and when it's expected to be paid off. If an assessment is tied to an unresolved critical repair, the project is ineligible. Under the Full Review process, no more than 15% of units can be 60 or more days delinquent on any special assessment.

In practice, the HOA's finances and the buyer's financing are linked. Speaking to The Colorado Sun in 2025, a longtime Aurora-area Realtor said her team often doesn't learn a condo is ineligible until an offer is in and a lender reviews the documents. One of their buyers had a contract rejected by the lender for that reason. The Sun also noted that buyers in that situation can still use cash, FHA or VA loans, though those options can be less flexible and more expensive. The jump to 15% reserves on January 4, 2027, applies to Full Review loan applications. A complex that meets the 10% line this fall could look different to a lender after the new year.

What the Discount Is Pricing In

Taken together, the HOA risk explains part of this fall's price gap. Across the seven-county Denver metro in September 2026, the median condo and townhome price fell 6.2% from a year earlier to $375,000. Supply reached 6.4 months, and homes averaged 67 days on market. Single-family homes slipped just 1.3% to $610,000, with four months of supply. The Colorado Association of Realtors said directly that "rising HOA fees, insurance costs, and affordability challenges continue to weigh heavily on attached housing."

Aurora sits mostly in Arapahoe and Adams counties, and the year-to-date numbers through September 2026 show the same gap in both:

September alone looked a bit different. Arapahoe's attached median held essentially flat at $334,695, with 5.8 months of supply. Adams County's attached median fell 4.3% to $349,250, and homes took 61 days to sell. CAR's local snapshot put Aurora and Centennial prices down 3% to 5% from a year earlier in September, with medians averaging about $25,000 below August.

Buyers also have room to negotiate. Across the metro in September, about 64% of sales included seller concessions, and 80% involved a price reduction, a concession or both. Concessions get negotiated at the same time as Section 16.2. Because that clause turns on the date of assessment, two units with the same list price in the same complex can cost very different amounts depending on which box gets checked and what the minutes say about the roof.

A Few Questions That Come Up

Does a new-construction townhome avoid this? Not entirely, though newer communities start with more planning on record. Under HB26-1099, effective August 12, 2026, the developer of a new planned community or condominium has to pay for an independent reserve study before handing control to owners. The study projects maintenance, repair and replacement costs for the common elements over 30 years.

Does an HO-6 policy cover a special assessment? It depends on the policy's loss assessment coverage and the HOA's master policy. At Soaring Eagles, a lawyer for some owners told the Post that many HO-6 policies covered just $10,000 on catastrophic losses such as hail, because that's what the HOA's covenants told insurers to cover. The bill was $20,700. The Rocky Mountain Insurance Institute told the Post that HO-6 coverage won't help with assessments for things like elevators or pools.

Is there a state cap on special assessments? No. Colorado's HOA Information and Resource Center told the Post that no state laws or regulations govern special assessments, and decisions follow each community's covenants and bylaws.

All of this is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Please confirm how a contract, loan or insurance policy applies to your situation with an attorney, lender or insurance professional.

If you're weighing an Aurora townhome or condo this winter, I'll make sure the Association Documents land early enough that you, your lender and your attorney have time to read the minutes, the deductible and the reserve balance next to each other before the termination deadline. Reach out to Mike Bomgaars for a market consultation, or get a free valuation if you're the one selling.