Homeowners at an Orlando condominium community are suing their own homeowners association board, alleging its director imposed a special assessment of $5,000 to $10,000 per unit without proper legal notice, then used association funds to shop at Victoria’s Secret, Burberry, and Macy’s. The 131-page lawsuit, filed in August 2025 against The Residences at Villa Medici Condominium Association at 5172 Conroy Road, was detailed in a report published September 6, 2026 by Hoodline.
What the Lawsuit Alleges
According to Hoodline’s review of the filing, the board never gave the 14-day written notice Florida law requires before approving a nonemergency special assessment. More than 65 of the community’s 131 unit owners are named as plaintiffs, and the suit also seeks removal of the board entirely.
The board’s director and treasurer also served as the property’s manager, and the lawsuit claims he paid his own company tens of thousands of dollars for trash collection and directed more than $500,000 to a friend’s maintenance firm without seeking competitive bids. Bank records reportedly showed association funds spent at Victoria’s Secret, Burberry, and Macy’s; the director has attributed some of those charges to fraud and said refunds were issued.
Where the Case Stands
A judge has since frozen collection of the special assessment, ordered an independent financial audit, and required the board to turn over its financial records to homeowners. Hoodline reports that as of June 2026, homeowners say records were still being withheld, and plaintiffs are now pursuing contempt sanctions.
Florida has tightened condo financial oversight rules since the 2021 Surfside collapse. The Villa Medici case is a reminder that stronger rules on paper still depend on someone actually enforcing them, and that for many condo owners, the first sign of a problem is a bill that shows up without the notice the law was supposed to guarantee.
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