Who needs a CAM license in Florida?

Anyone who performs community association management for pay, or holds themselves out as able to manage a community association, when the association or associations served contain more than 10 units or have an annual budget or budgets over $100,000 (Fla. Stat. §§ 468.431(2) and 468.432(1)).

Does a self-managed HOA have to hire a licensed manager?

Part VIII licenses the people and firms who manage. It does not require an association to hire a manager. If the association pays someone to perform the management practices listed in § 468.431(2), and the association is over the 10-unit or $100,000 threshold, that person must hold a CAM license.

Do board members need a CAM license?

The definition covers the listed practices only "when done for remuneration," so it reaches paid managers, not volunteer directors carrying out board duties. A director who is paid to perform management services is in a different position and should get advice from association counsel.

Can office staff without a license work for a manager?

Yes, for clerical or ministerial work. Section 468.431(2) says a person who performs clerical or ministerial functions under the direct supervision and control of a licensed manager, or who only performs maintenance and does not assist in management services, does not need a license.

Is an association with 10 or fewer units exempt?

Only if its annual budget is also $100,000 or less. The threshold is more than 10 units OR an annual budget over $100,000, so a small association with a large budget is covered. The statute measures "the association or associations served" and "budget or budgets", which reads as counting a manager's associations together; confirm a specific situation with DBPR.

How do I check whether a manager is licensed?

Search the Department of Business and Professional Regulation license database at myfloridalicense.com. Every licensee must keep an online licensure account that names the management firm they work for and each association where they are the designated onsite manager (Fla. Stat. § 468.432(3)).

Florida statute reference · F.S. § 468.431

Who needs a community association manager license in Florida?

In Florida you need a community association manager (CAM) license to perform community association management for pay when the association, or the associations you serve, have more than 10 units or an annual budget over $100,000. Clerical work under a licensed manager's direct supervision, and maintenance-only work, do not need a license (Fla. Stat. § 468.431(2)).

Last verified October 4, 2026 against the 2026 Florida Statutes and Florida Administrative Code Rule Chapter 61E14. Reviewed by the Common Elements editorial team, which includes a Florida-licensed community association manager (LCAM) and insurance broker.

The test in the statute

Section 468.431(2) defines “community association management” as a list of practices “requiring substantial specialized knowledge, judgment, and managerial skill when done for remuneration and when the association or associations served contain more than 10 units or have an annual budget or budgets in excess of $100,000.” Section 468.432(1) then makes the license mandatory:

A person shall not manage or hold herself or himself out to the public as being able to manage a community association in this state unless she or he is licensed by the department in accordance with the provisions of this part.

Fla. Stat. § 468.432(1)

Three conditions therefore have to line up: the work is one of the listed practices, it is done for pay, and the association side of the threshold is met (more than 10 units, or a budget over $100,000). Advertising yourself as able to manage an association also requires the license, whether or not you have a client yet.

A “community association” under § 468.431(1) is any residential association where membership is a condition of owning the unit or lot and the association can levy a fee that may become a lien: condominiums, cooperatives, homeowners' associations, townhouse, villa and mobile home communities included.

What counts as community association management

The practices listed in § 468.431(2) are:

Controlling or disbursing association funds
Preparing budgets or other financial documents
Assisting in the noticing or conduct of association meetings, and determining the number of days required for statutory notices
Determining amounts due to the association, and collecting them before a civil action is filed
Calculating the votes required for a quorum or to approve a proposition or amendment
Completing forms created by statute or a state agency for managing the association
Drafting meeting notices and agendas
Calculating and preparing certificates of assessment and estoppel certificates, and responding to requests for them
Negotiating monetary or performance terms of a contract subject to association approval
Drafting prearbitration demands
Coordinating or performing maintenance and related routine services in operating the association
Complying with the governing documents and the law as needed to perform these practices

Who does not need a license

Clerical and ministerial staff working under the direct supervision and control of a licensed manager (§ 468.431(2)).
Maintenance-only personnel who do not assist in any of the listed management services (§ 468.431(2)).
People licensed under another law or court rule practicing the profession they are licensed for: “nothing in this part prohibits any person licensed in this state under any other law or court rule from engaging in the profession for which she or he is licensed” (§ 468.432(1)).
Unlicensed staff of a timeshare management firm working under the direct supervision of the licensed manager the firm must keep at each location (§ 468.438(2)).

The management company itself may also need a separate firm license. See when a company needs a CAM firm license.

Read the sections

Common questions

Who needs a CAM license in Florida?: Anyone who performs community association management for pay, or holds themselves out as able to manage a community association, when the association or associations served contain more than 10 units or have an annual budget or budgets over $100,000 (Fla. Stat. §§ 468.431(2) and 468.432(1)).
Does a self-managed HOA have to hire a licensed manager?: Part VIII licenses the people and firms who manage. It does not require an association to hire a manager. If the association pays someone to perform the management practices listed in § 468.431(2), and the association is over the 10-unit or $100,000 threshold, that person must hold a CAM license.
Do board members need a CAM license?: The definition covers the listed practices only "when done for remuneration," so it reaches paid managers, not volunteer directors carrying out board duties. A director who is paid to perform management services is in a different position and should get advice from association counsel.
Can office staff without a license work for a manager?: Yes, for clerical or ministerial work. Section 468.431(2) says a person who performs clerical or ministerial functions under the direct supervision and control of a licensed manager, or who only performs maintenance and does not assist in management services, does not need a license.
Is an association with 10 or fewer units exempt?: Only if its annual budget is also $100,000 or less. The threshold is more than 10 units OR an annual budget over $100,000, so a small association with a large budget is covered. The statute measures "the association or associations served" and "budget or budgets", which reads as counting a manager's associations together; confirm a specific situation with DBPR.
How do I check whether a manager is licensed?: Search the Department of Business and Professional Regulation license database at myfloridalicense.com. Every licensee must keep an online licensure account that names the management firm they work for and each association where they are the designated onsite manager (Fla. Stat. § 468.432(3)).

Working toward the license?

Common Elements Academy is building a 16-hour Florida CAM pre-licensure course and exam prep. Courses publish once the state approves them; each course page shows its approval status.

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