When Declarant Control Ends: The 80% Rule

Unless the declaration provides otherwise, the period of administrative control terminates 60 days after the day on which 80% of the lots that may be created in the association are conveyed to lot owners other than a declarant.

Read "lots that may be created" carefully. The denominator is not the lots that exist today; it includes lots that the declarant may still create. In a development being built out in phases, the 80% point can be much further away than the current lot count suggests.

The Outer Limits, Whatever the 80% Figure Says

Regardless of Subsection (1), the period terminates no later than the earlier of these two:

• The day the declarant no longer owns any lot and no longer possesses any development right, OR
• Seven years after the day the declarant ceased offering lots, including lots that may be created, for sale in the ordinary course of business

The seven-year backstop is what protects owners in a development that stalls before reaching 80%.

The 300-Day Extension, and What the Association Must Do To Get It

For a large master planned development, as that term is defined in Section 57-1-46, the termination day under Subsection (1) or (2) may be extended by 300 days to facilitate completing the turnover of governance to the owner-elected board.

The extension is not automatic. Before the period would otherwise terminate, the association must do one of two things:

• Establish a committee of the board that includes one or more lot owners to facilitate turnover, OR
• Send notice to each lot owner for nomination of eligible board candidates to commence turnover

If neither happened before the deadline, the extension is not available. The turnover process it covers may include nominations, eligibility verification consistent with the governing documents and Section 57-8a-501(3), compliance with meeting notices, proxy solicitation, ensuring quorum, and updating association records and accounts.

What the Declarant May Do While in Control

A declarant may voluntarily surrender the right to appoint and remove board members before the period ends. Short of that, the declarant may require that specified association or board actions be approved by the declarant before they take effect, if a recorded instrument the declarant executed says so, and may appoint its own officers, employees, or agents to the board.

What the Declarant Owes You While It Is in Control

During the period of administrative control, the declarant shall do all of the following:

• Use reasonable care and prudence in managing and maintaining the common areas
• Establish a sound fiscal basis for the association by imposing and collecting assessments and establishing reserves for maintenance and replacement of the common areas
• For any service the association is or will be obligated to provide, disclose how much the declarant is paying for or subsidizing it
• Maintain records and account for the association's financial affairs since its inception. 
• Comply with and enforce the declaration, including design controls, land-use restrictions, and the payment of assessments
• Disclose all material facts and circumstances affecting the condition of the property the association maintains, and the association's financial condition, including the declarant's and its affiliates' interest in any contract, lease, or agreement the association entered into

The records-from-inception duty is the one to invoke at turnover. It means the new board is entitled to the association's full financial history, not just the current year.

Service Contracts Survive Turnover Unless the New Board Ends Them

A contract for services such as garbage collection, maintenance, lawn care, or snow removal, executed on behalf of the association during the period of administrative control, is binding beyond that period unless the board terminates it after the period ends.

The default here is survival. A new owner-elected board that wants out of a declarant-era service contract has to act. And the termination power has a carve-out: it does not apply to golf course and amenity management, utilities, cable services, and other similar services that require an investment of infrastructure or capital. 

What Happens at Turnover

Upon termination of the period of administrative control, the lot owners shall elect a board of an odd number of at least three members, a majority of whom shall be lot owners. Unless the declaration provides for owners to elect officers, the board elects the officers, and board members and officers take office upon election or appointment.

Note what that requires: an odd number, at least three, and a majority of owners. A board that does not meet those conditions is not the board contemplated by this section.

See Boards for who may serve, the board member overview for what the law asks of the new board, and Records and Document Requests for obtaining the association's financial history.

Every deadline on this page also appears in Deadlines and Thresholds. If the declarant will not disclose what this section requires, read Advisory Opinions and Where To Take a Problem.

Reviewed against the Utah Code, current as of September 8, 2026.