The short answer
Yes. In Nevada an association can foreclose its lien for unpaid assessments without going to court, through a sequence set by NRS 116.31162 to 116.31168: a notice of delinquent assessment, a recorded notice of default and election to sell, a 90-day wait and a published notice of sale.
People assume an association can only sue, and that a house is only ever taken by a mortgage lender. Neither is true in Nevada, which gives an association a lien on the unit and lets it foreclose that lien the same way a deed of trust is foreclosed, outside a courtroom. It is rare against the number of delinquent accounts, and it is real.
The sequence, and how long it takes
The lien exists from the moment an assessment becomes due, and recording the declaration is what perfects it, so nothing has to be filed for it to attach. Foreclosing it is what has steps, and every one of them is a chance to stop it.
Not earlier than 60 days past due, the association must mail a schedule of the fees it may charge, a proposed repayment plan, and notice of the right to contest the balance at a hearing.
If 30 days pass with no payment, no repayment plan and no hearing request, it mails a notice of delinquent assessment by certified mail, stating the amount owed and describing the unit.
Not less than 30 days later it records a notice of default and election to sell, which must break out the portion of the lien that outranks the first mortgage and carry a warning in bold type that the home could be lost.
The owner then has 90 days from the recording or mailing, whichever is later, to pay the lien plus costs.
After the 90 days a notice of sale is recorded, posted for 20 consecutive days, published once a week for three weeks, mailed to the owner and the lender, and served at the unit. Then the sale.
The nine months that outrank the mortgage
The reason this matters to more than the owner is NRS 116.3116. Part of the association's lien sits ahead of the first deed of trust: the assessments that would have come due in the nine months before the notice of default was recorded, plus enforcement costs the statute caps line by line ($325 for the notice of delinquent assessment, $400 for the notice of default, $400 for a trustee's sale guaranty). Attorney's fees are not in the priority portion at all.
So a lender with a $400,000 loan can sit behind an association on a few thousand dollars, and that is the whole fight. The lien is not permanent either: if no notice of default is recorded and no suit is filed within three years of the assessments falling fully due, the lien for them is extinguished.
What was litigated, and what changed
In 2014 the Nevada Supreme Court held that the priority portion is a true priority lien, so a properly conducted association sale extinguishes the first deed of trust rather than passing title subject to it. For a few years afterward, homes in the valley sold at association auctions for a fraction of the loan against them, and years of litigation followed over whether individual sales were valid.
A 2015 change reworked the notices. The lender now receives the notice of default and the notice of sale, the notices state what the priority amount is, and the lender can pay that amount up to five days before the sale to keep its deed of trust alive. Lenders now pay, which is why the auctions largely stopped. The owner still loses the home if the dues are not brought current, because the sale itself proceeds.
Fines, mediation and the 60 days after
An association cannot foreclose based on a fine for a rules violation, only on assessments, unless the violation posed an imminent threat to health or safety. Fines are still collectible and still a lien; they just cannot be the thing that sells the house. Past due fines also bear no interest.
The Nevada Real Estate Division's Office of the Ombudsman for Owners in Common-Interest Communities is named on the warning in the notice of sale, and it helps process claims into the state's mediation and arbitration program. A sale is also not final the day it happens: the former owner, or a subordinate lienholder, can redeem the unit within 60 days by paying the purchase price with one percent a month interest plus what the buyer has since put in.
Questions people ask
How much do you have to owe before an HOA can foreclose?
Nevada sets no dollar floor. The lien covers whatever assessments, charges and enforcement costs are due, and the procedure turns on the notices and the 90 days rather than on an amount. Only the portion that outranks the mortgage is limited, to nine months of assessments plus capped costs.
Can an HOA foreclose over unpaid fines in Nevada?
No. NRS 116.31162 bars foreclosing the lien by sale based on a fine or penalty for a violation of the governing documents, unless the violation posed an imminent threat to the health, safety or welfare of residents. The fine remains collectible by other means.
Can you get the house back after an HOA foreclosure sale?
Nevada gives a 60-day redemption period after the sale. The former owner or a junior lienholder redeems by paying the purchase price plus one percent a month, any taxes or senior liens the buyer paid, and reasonable maintenance.