New Hampshire Condominium Assessment Lien Priority Calculator — Six-Month Limited Priority (RSA 356-B:46)

How this calculator works

This is a priority-bucket model for a New Hampshire condominium assessment lien under the New Hampshire Condominium Act. Given the monthly assessment, months delinquent, payments to date, first-mortgage balance, attorney's fees and costs, optional property value, and late fees and fines, it returns:

1. The applicable limited-priority window in months (six months under RSA 356-B:46(IV) on the conservative reading — narrower than the UCIOA super-priority adopted by neighboring Vermont).
2. The limited-priority dollar amount (assessments only — New Hampshire does not include attorney's fees in the limited-priority position by statute).
3. The sub-priority dollar amount (assessments beyond the limited-priority window, late fees, fines, and attorney's fees and costs).
4. The total lien net of payments made to date.
5. Recovery-probability bands for the limited-priority position (typically HIGH because the first mortgagee tenders to preserve priority, though contestation is more common than in UCIOA states) and the sub-priority position (depends on estimated equity after the first mortgage).

Use the calculator at the start of every collection file to set the recovery target; again at month four or five to confirm the recoverable amount is on track within the six-month window; and again at the foreclosure-initiation decision point to confirm the recoverable amount before selecting between the judicial pathway and the nonjudicial power-of-sale pathway under RSA 479.

The relevant RSA 356-B statute

The New Hampshire Condominium Act lives at RSA 356-B and was enacted in 1977. New Hampshire did NOT adopt the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act (UCIOA) and continues to use its pre-UCIOA framework. The Condominium Act covers condominiums; planned communities and cooperatives are governed by separate statutes and common-law principles.

RSA 356-B:46(I) — The unit owners' association has a statutory lien upon each unit for any unpaid assessment of common expenses, late charges, fines, interest, and reasonable attorney's fees and costs incurred in collecting the assessments or enforcing the lien. The lien arises automatically when each assessment becomes due; no separate recording is required to perfect the lien against the unit owner. Recording a notice of lien with the registry of deeds for the county is required to preserve priority against subsequent purchasers and bona fide encumbrancers.

RSA 356-B:46(II) — The lien attaches to the unit and to the proportionate undivided interest in the common area appurtenant to the unit. The notice of lien must identify the unit, the amount due, the date the assessment became due, the name of the unit owner, and the association as lienholder. The notice must be signed by an officer or authorized agent of the association.

RSA 356-B:46(IV) — limited priority — The condominium lien is prior to all liens and encumbrances recorded after the declaration except (i) liens for real estate taxes and governmental assessments and (ii) a first mortgage of record made in good faith and for value. New Hampshire's pre-UCIOA framework provides for a LIMITED-PRIORITY element: the association lien retains priority over the first mortgage to the extent of common-expense assessments accruing during the six months immediately preceding institution of an action to enforce the lien (conservative reading). The limited-priority element is materially narrower than a UCIOA-style super-priority and is more frequently contested by first mortgagees.

RSA 356-B:46(V) — The lien is enforced by foreclosure in the same manner as a mortgage on real estate. New Hampshire permits BOTH judicial foreclosure and nonjudicial power-of-sale foreclosure under RSA 479 when the condominium declaration includes a power-of-sale clause. Most New Hampshire condominium declarations from the 1980s onward include power-of-sale clauses to enable the faster nonjudicial pathway.

RSA 356-B:46(VI) — Reasonable attorney's fees and costs of collection are recoverable as part of the lien. These costs sit OUTSIDE the limited-priority dollar window (they are sub-priority) unless the declaration provides otherwise.

New Hampshire-specific gotchas (dual foreclosure regime, no CAM licensure)

THE LIMITED-PRIORITY IS NARROWER AND MORE CONTESTABLE THAN UCIOA SUPER-PRIORITY. New Hampshire's pre-UCIOA framework under RSA 356-B:46(IV) provides a limited-priority element that is materially narrower than the UCIOA six-month super-priority adopted by neighboring Vermont (27A V.S.A. § 3-116(b)) and by Connecticut (CGS § 47-258). Some New Hampshire first mortgagees contest the priority on grounds that the pre-UCIOA framework lacks an express super-priority characterization. The conservative reading is six months of common-expense assessments but litigation outcomes vary by mortgagee and trial court. Practitioners coming from Vermont or Connecticut routinely overestimate the strength and certainty of the New Hampshire priority.

ATTORNEY'S FEES ARE NOT IN LIMITED PRIORITY BY DEFAULT. RSA 356-B:46(VI) makes reasonable attorney's fees and costs recoverable as part of the lien but does not extend the limited priority over the first mortgage to the fees. The declaration may provide otherwise — some New Hampshire condominium declarations bring attorney's fees into the limited-priority bucket — but the statutory baseline is sub-priority. Because New Hampshire nonjudicial power-of-sale foreclosure under RSA 479 is generally less expensive than judicial foreclosure, the sub-priority exposure from fees is typically lower than in judicial-only states like Vermont.

THE DUAL FORECLOSURE REGIME REQUIRES DECLARATION REVIEW. RSA 356-B:46(V) provides that condominium liens are enforced in the same manner as mortgages, so the choice between judicial and nonjudicial foreclosure for a condominium lien turns on whether the declaration includes a power-of-sale clause. Practitioners must examine the declaration carefully before assuming the nonjudicial pathway is available — older declarations may lack the clause, and even where present, defects in the clause (incomplete description of the foreclosure procedure, missing trustee designation, etc.) can force the association to proceed judicially. The dual regime materially differs from Vermont (judicial-only) and matches the Massachusetts dual-regime framework.

NEW HAMPSHIRE DOES NOT FORMALLY LICENSE COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION MANAGERS. Florida (LCAM), Illinois (CAM), Nevada (CAM), and Virginia (CIC manager) all require state licensure of CAMs. New Hampshire does not. The compliance work falls to the association attorney and the managing agent under contract. Practical effect: boards in New Hampshire condominium projects should expect to engage the association attorney earlier in the delinquency cycle than in states with licensed CAMs because there is no state-licensed manager handling procedural compliance independently. Industry associations (Community Associations Institute New England chapter) offer professional designations (CMCA, AMS, PCAM) on a voluntary basis but they are not state licenses.

RECORDING IS AT THE COUNTY REGISTRY OF DEEDS, NOT THE TOWN CLERK. New Hampshire real-estate records are maintained at the COUNTY registry of deeds (one per county). Vermont, by contrast, maintains records at the town level. Practitioners moving between New Hampshire and Vermont routinely make the recording-office mistake — looking for a town clerk in New Hampshire or a county recorder in Vermont. New Hampshire has 10 counties, each with one registry of deeds. Confirm the correct county before mailing the notice of lien for recording.

FIRST MORTGAGEE CONTESTATION IS MORE COMMON. In UCIOA states, the first mortgagee almost always tenders the super-priority amount because the statutory framework is clear and litigation rarely succeeds. In New Hampshire, some first mortgagees refuse to tender on the theory that the pre-UCIOA framework does not create a true super-priority. When that happens, the association may need to file a declaratory action to establish the limited priority before the foreclosure can be completed. Plan for this contingency when budgeting collection-cycle costs.

NO EXPANSION BEYOND SIX MONTHS. New Hampshire RSA 356-B:46(IV) does not provide for expansion of the limited-priority window beyond six months. The pre-notification expansion to twelve months under Minnesota Minn. Stat. Sec. 515B.3-116(b) has no New Hampshire counterpart. Declaration provisions purporting to expand the limited priority beyond six months are unenforceable against the first mortgagee under New Hampshire law.

What this calculator does NOT model

The calculator implements the RSA 356-B:46 limited-priority MATH. It does NOT:

• Model the declaration-driven exception under RSA 356-B:46(VI) where the declaration brings attorney's fees into the limited-priority position. If your declaration includes such a provision, the limited-priority dollar amount understates the recoverable amount.
• Validate the foreclosure procedure under RSA 356-B:46(V), RSA 479 (nonjudicial), or the New Hampshire judicial-foreclosure procedure.
• Model the publication and notice requirements for the nonjudicial power-of-sale pathway under RSA 479.
• Validate the declaration's power-of-sale clause for compliance with RSA 479 requirements. The clause must include specific procedural elements; defective clauses force judicial foreclosure.
• Model contested-priority litigation outcomes. The conservative six-month reading is the baseline; some New Hampshire first mortgagees contest and force the association into declaratory-action litigation.
• Model the recoverable interest under RSA 356-B — interest is recoverable but the rate and accrual method depend on the declaration and the collection policy.
• Model payment-allocation rules in detail — the collection policy and RSA 356-B:46 govern allocation between principal, limited priority, sub-priority, fees, and interest.

For any consequential collection or foreclosure decision, retain New Hampshire counsel with RSA 356-B enforcement experience to oversee the procedural compliance review.

Sources

Last reviewed: 2026-05-17 against:

• RSA 356-B (New Hampshire Condominium Act — pre-UCIOA framework, enacted 1977).
• RSA 356-B:46(I) — statutory association lien arising automatically on each assessment.
• RSA 356-B:46(II) — lien attachment to the unit and proportionate undivided common-area interest; notice content and signature requirements.
• RSA 356-B:46(IV) — limited priority over recorded first mortgage; six-month conservative reading; narrower than UCIOA super-priority.
• RSA 356-B:46(V) — enforcement by foreclosure in the same manner as a mortgage; dual-regime (judicial OR nonjudicial power-of-sale).
• RSA 356-B:46(VI) — reasonable attorney's fees and costs recoverable as part of the lien (sub-priority by default).
• RSA 479 — New Hampshire mortgage foreclosure including nonjudicial power-of-sale procedure.
• Community Associations Institute New England chapter practitioner materials on RSA 356-B enforcement.
• New Hampshire Bar Association Real Estate Section practitioner resources.