Pennsylvania UPCA / UCA Assessment Lien Super-Priority Calculator — Six-Month Window (68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 5315 / 3315)

How this calculator works

This is a priority-and-recovery analyzer for a Pennsylvania HOA or condominium assessment lien. Given the monthly assessment, months delinquent, payments to date, first-mortgage balance, attorney fees, and property value, it returns:

1. The super-priority portion of the lien — capped at six months of the periodic common-expense assessment under 68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 5315(b) (UPCA, planned communities) or Sec. 3315(b) (UCA, condominiums). Pennsylvania did NOT adopt the UCIOA attorney-fees-in-super-priority carve-out, so the super-priority position is assessments only.
2. The sub-priority portion — assessments beyond six months, late fees, fines, and attorney fees and costs of enforcement.
3. Recovery probability bands for each priority class — super-priority is almost always recovered because the first-mortgage holder rationally tenders to preserve priority. Sub-priority recovery depends on equity in the property after the recorded first mortgage.

The calculator distinguishes UPCA (Sec. 5315) from UCA (Sec. 3315) by user selection. The math is identical between the two statutes; only the citations differ. Always check the recorded declaration to confirm which statute governs.

Use the calculator before sending a demand letter to size the position, before filing foreclosure to forecast collection economics, and during settlement discussions with a unit owner or first-mortgage holder.

The relevant 68 Pa. C.S. statute (UPCA / UCA — which one applies)

Pennsylvania common interest community assessment liens are governed by two parallel UCIOA-derived statutes that operate identically on super-priority. The selection depends on the project form.

UPCA — 68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 5101 et seq. governs non-condominium PLANNED COMMUNITIES — most subdivision-style HOAs, townhome communities that are not condominium-form, and any planned development declared as a planned community in the recorded declaration. The super-priority subsection is Sec. 5315(b).

UCA — 68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 3101 et seq. governs CONDOMINIUMS — projects with the condominium-form ownership structure (units plus undivided interest in common elements). The super-priority subsection is Sec. 3315(b).

Sec. 5315(a) / Sec. 3315(a) — the statutory lien. The association has a lien on the unit for any assessment levied against the unit or fines imposed against the unit owner. The lien arises automatically when each assessment becomes due. No recording is required to perfect against the unit owner; recording in the recorder of deeds office preserves priority against subsequent purchasers and lenders.

Sec. 5315(b) / Sec. 3315(b) — six-month super-priority. The association lien is prior to all other liens and encumbrances except (1) liens recorded before the declaration; (2) the first mortgage on the unit recorded before delinquency; and (3) real estate tax liens and other governmental charges. The association lien IS PRIOR TO the first mortgage to the extent of the common-expense assessments based on the periodic budget that would have become due in the absence of acceleration during the SIX MONTHS immediately preceding institution of an enforcement action.

Sec. 5315(g) / Sec. 3315(g) — judicial foreclosure. Foreclosure of the association lien proceeds in the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas. Pennsylvania does NOT permit nonjudicial foreclosure of association liens.

Drafting choice — no attorney fees in super-priority. Unlike Connecticut and Massachusetts, Pennsylvania did NOT adopt the UCIOA carve-out that includes reasonable attorney fees and costs in the super-priority position. In Pennsylvania, attorney fees rank as sub-priority. This is the single most important drafting choice for cross-jurisdictional practitioners to track.

Pennsylvania-specific gotchas (judicial-only foreclosure, Act 91 mortgage assistance)

JUDICIAL FORECLOSURE ONLY. Both UPCA Sec. 5315(g) and UCA Sec. 3315(g) require judicial foreclosure of the association lien in the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas. Nonjudicial / power-of-sale foreclosure is NOT available for association liens. The association proceeds by complaint, judgment, writ of execution, sheriff sale, and confirmation under 42 Pa. C.S. Sec. 8103 and Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure 1141 et seq. Practitioners coming from Georgia, Virginia, or other power-of-sale states must restructure their collection timelines for the longer Pennsylvania track.

ASSESSMENTS ONLY IN SUPER-PRIORITY. Pennsylvania did not adopt the UCIOA attorney-fees-in-super-priority carve-out. A six-month delinquency on a $350 monthly assessment yields a super-priority of $2,100 even if the association incurred $3,500 in attorney fees to collect it. Those fees rank sub-priority and may not be collected from the mortgagee tender. Practitioners drafting demand letters and tender requests must NOT include the attorney fees in the super-priority calculation when negotiating with first-mortgage holders.

ACT 91 OF 1983 — HOMEOWNERS EMERGENCY MORTGAGE ASSISTANCE. Pennsylvania's Act 91 (Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program) imposes pre-foreclosure NOTICE and CONFERENCE requirements on residential mortgage foreclosures. Act 91 generally applies to MORTGAGE FORECLOSURES not HOA assessment-lien foreclosures, but the issue arises when the first-mortgage holder forecloses and the association is a junior party — the Act 91 process may delay the mortgage foreclosure that the association is waiting on. Coordinate with mortgage-foreclosure counsel.

ACT 6 OF 1974 — RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE NOTICE. Act 6 (35 P.S. Sec. 1681 et seq.) imposes a 30-day pre-acceleration notice requirement for residential mortgages. Again, Act 6 primarily binds mortgage foreclosures rather than HOA-lien foreclosures, but it affects the timing of any parallel mortgage foreclosure that the association is tracking.

SIX MONTHS IS A CAP — NOT A FLOOR. Filing foreclosure earlier than six months captures a smaller super-priority position. The super-priority does not grow with additional months of delinquency past six. Practical effect: there is no super-priority benefit to waiting past six months, but there is also no penalty in terms of super-priority (the sub-priority grows). Many Pennsylvania boards file at the seven-to-nine-month delinquency mark to maximize sub-priority pressure while preserving full super-priority.

UPCA AND UCA ARE PARALLEL BUT NOT IDENTICAL. The super-priority subsections in Sec. 5315(b) and Sec. 3315(b) read substantively identically, but cross-citations to other provisions (proxy rules, voting, declaration amendment) differ between the two acts. When drafting collection-policy templates, use the correct citation for the project form — UCA for condominiums, UPCA for planned communities.

NO PRE-FORECLOSURE NOTICE STATUTE. Pennsylvania UPCA / UCA do not impose a Colorado-style sixty-day pre-foreclosure notice. Best practice is to send a demand letter at 60-90 days delinquent, but no statute requires it for the association-lien foreclosure itself. The notice required by the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure for the foreclosure complaint itself controls.

What this calculator does NOT model

The calculator implements the PA super-priority math. It does NOT:

• Compute the Pennsylvania judicial-foreclosure timeline — see the companion Pennsylvania HOA foreclosure-timeline calculator for that.
• Model Act 91 notice and conference requirements for any parallel mortgage foreclosure.
• Apply Act 6 of 1974 pre-acceleration notice timing to the mortgage track.
• Validate the form or content of the demand letter, lien instrument, or foreclosure complaint.
• Compute interest, late charges per the declaration formula, or post-judgment interest at the Pennsylvania statutory rate.
• Model the payment-allocation rules between super-priority and sub-priority where the unit owner makes partial payments — that allocation is governed by the association collection policy and Pennsylvania case law.
• Cover bankruptcy effects on the lien — Chapter 7 / 13 stays, plan treatment, and Sec. 506(d) lien stripping.
• Model the deficiency action against the unit owner after sheriff sale.
• Account for tax liens, federal tax liens, or other governmental priority that may displace the analysis.

For any consequential collection, retain Pennsylvania counsel with UPCA / UCA experience.

Sources

Last reviewed: 2026-05-16 against:

• 68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 5315 (Pennsylvania Uniform Planned Community Act — statutory lien, six-month super-priority, judicial foreclosure).
• 68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 3315 (Pennsylvania Uniform Condominium Act — statutory lien, six-month super-priority, judicial foreclosure).
• 68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 5101 et seq. (UPCA — full chapter).
• 68 Pa. C.S. Sec. 3101 et seq. (UCA — full chapter).
• 42 Pa. C.S. Sec. 8103 (judicial-foreclosure procedural framework).
• Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure 1141 et seq. (mortgage foreclosure rules applied to lien foreclosure).
• Act 6 of 1974 (35 P.S. Sec. 1681 et seq.) — Residential Mortgage Notice (context for parallel mortgage foreclosures).
• Act 91 of 1983 — Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program (context for parallel mortgage foreclosures).
• CAI Pennsylvania Legislative Action Committee practitioner materials.
• Pennsylvania Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section practitioner materials on UPCA / UCA enforcement.