In one line: The part of an unpaid HOA balance that outranks the first mortgage in Nevada.
Under NRS 116.3116 a homeowners association's lien for up to nine months of unpaid assessments, plus certain collection costs, has priority over the first deed of trust. The association can foreclose that lien non-judicially, and the Nevada Supreme Court held in 2014 that the sale extinguishes the lender's loan.
For a few years homes sold at HOA auctions for a fraction of the mortgage. Since 2015 the lender receives notice and may pay the super-priority amount to protect its position, which usually stops the sale; the owner still loses the home if the dues are not brought current.
For a buyer, unpaid dues on a home are a lien that must clear at closing, an HOA in arrears is a distress signal in its own right, and an HOA trustee sale is the one auction where the title question is genuinely unsettled.
A worked example
Dues of $180 a month, unpaid for fourteen months: $2,520 in arrears. Nine months of it, $1,620, plus allowed costs, outranks the $350,000 first mortgage. The association records its notice; the lender pays the $1,620 to protect the loan and adds it to the borrower's balance.
Questions people ask
Can I lose my home over HOA dues in Nevada?
Yes. An association can foreclose its lien non-judicially after the statutory notices, and since 2015 the lender is notified and usually pays the super-priority portion, but the owner still loses the home if the balance is not brought current.
Does the super-priority lien affect me as a buyer?
Unpaid dues transfer with the home unless the contract clears them, so the escrow demand statement matters. And a home bought at an HOA trustee sale carries an unsettled title question; get a title company's opinion before bidding.