"All rental, sales and purchases, and transfers of real estate in Duneland Beach are subject to the prior written approval of the Association's Real Estate Committee and/or Board." That sentence comes from Article 1, Section 1 of the Duneland Beach Association's Rules and Regulations. The Association's board reprinted it in its April 15, 2026 letter to members.
So a Duneland Beach seller has to get two approvals. The buyer has to accept the house, and the Association has to accept the transfer. The Indiana General Assembly changed the rules for selling a home inside a homeowners association on July 1, 2026, and those changes set a firm deadline of their own. None of the state requirements covers the Association's own approval, its transfer form, or the return of beach tags. A seller who plans only around the state deadlines has planned only half the closing.
Why the Association Holds the Pen Here
The Association describes Duneland Beach as about 200 homes spread through tree-covered dunes, with roughly a mile of Lake Michigan shoreline. The Association owns the beach, the water system and the roads, and it provides "other privatized services."
That ownership explains why the approval rule exists and what it reaches. Beach access depends on a green tag that owners must display, and the Association's 2026 letter puts it bluntly: "NO GREEN tag=no beach access." The water comes from Michigan City but runs through the Association's own system. A water tower boosts the pressure, especially for fighting fires. Dues pay for all of it. In most places a sale moves a deed. Here a sale also passes along access to a beach, a water connection and a share of private roads, and the organization that runs them gets a say in the transfer.
The Association's Own Paperwork
The 2026 letter asks anyone planning to sell to get a copy of the Association's real estate transfer form, which is requested by email from the Association office. The same paragraph repeats a rule that matters on closing day: "all beach tags must be turned in to the Association office prior to closing."
The penalty used to be in writing. The April 2024 letter said tags not returned before closing meant "a $3000 fee will be paid to DBA upon the closing of your home." The 2026 letter repeats the deadline but leaves out the dollar amount. The $3,000 figure is the 2024 rule, so sellers should ask the Association what applies now and not assume either way.
Dues show up in the closing numbers too. Dues are billed twice a year and are due January 31 and July 31. The Association emails invoices a month before each due date and charges a $100 late fee for each month a payment is overdue. Payments by credit card or ACH also carry a processing fee. A sale that closes in late January or late July lands right on a billing date, so check where the most recent invoice stands before the settlement statement is final.
The last item is the one sellers forget most easily. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management requires a backflow device on every sprinkler system and swimming pool, tested every year with the results documented. The 2026 letter says it is the homeowner's responsibility to get that certificate to the Association. It also warns that owners who don't comply risk having their water shut off, and notes that IDEM reviewed the Association's 2025 records. For a house with an irrigation system or a pool, a current certificate on file is part of a clean handoff.
What Indiana Added on July 1, 2026
House Enrolled Act 1115 became Public Law 155 and took effect July 1, 2026. It amended IC 32-21-5-8.5, which now requires the seller to give the buyer four things at least ten days before closing:
- A disclosure that the property is in a community governed by a homeowners association
- A copy of the recorded governing documents
- A statement of whether there are assessments, and how much they are
- The name and business or home address of a board member, association agent or contracted manager
The same section caps the fee an association may charge for a statement of unpaid assessments or other charges on a resale or refinance at $50. It also says that if the seller fails to provide any of those documents, the association can still enforce its governing documents. The $50 cap covers that statement. The Association's beach-tag rule is a separate charge, and the two should not be confused.
Indiana's seller disclosure form comes earlier in the sale and has its own wrinkle. The Indiana seller disclosure form must reach the buyer before an offer is accepted, and the seller answers from current actual knowledge. The instructions allow "unknown" only when the seller truly does not know. The form asks about HOA covenants and assessments, a shared driveway, and whether the property is reached by a private road, a public road or an easement. On water, it asks whether the house is connected to "a public water system" or to "a private / community water system." In Duneland Beach the water is bought from Michigan City and delivered through an Association-owned system, so neither box fits perfectly. Sellers should settle how they answer before the form goes out, not when a buyer asks about it.
Together, the state and Association requirements look like this:
| Requirement | Who sets it | When it is due |
|---|---|---|
| Seller's residential disclosure form | State of Indiana | Before an offer is accepted |
| HOA disclosure, governing documents, assessment statement, contact | State of Indiana, effective July 1, 2026 | At least 10 days before closing |
| Prior written approval of the sale | Duneland Beach Association | Before the transfer |
| Real estate transfer form | Duneland Beach Association | Requested by email from the office |
| Beach tags returned | Duneland Beach Association | Before closing |
| Backflow test certificate, if there is a sprinkler or pool | IDEM rule, collected by the Association | Annually |
A Workable Order of Operations
Put together, these requirements suggest an order that keeps the Association's steps from piling up in the last week:
- Email the Association office for the current transfer form before the house goes on the market, and ask what the approval involves and how long it usually takes.
- Confirm the current dues balance and the date of the next invoice, keeping the January 31 and July 31 due dates in mind.
- Gather the recorded governing documents early so the state's ten-day package can go out on time.
- If the house has a sprinkler system or pool, make sure the most recent backflow certificate has reached the Association.
- Decide how to answer the water and road questions on the state disclosure form before any offer is accepted.
- Count the beach tags, collect them from family members and renters, and turn them in to the Association office before closing.
What the Buyer Takes On
The approval rule also shapes what the buyer is purchasing. The Rules and Regulations say rentals "for periods of less than one (1) month or to more than a single family will not be approved," and rental agreements go to the Association office. Weekend rental income is not possible under those terms, and that limit holds no matter who owns the house.
The Association's 2026 letter lists a few rules that come up right after closing. Only watercraft with a DBA sticker, and lily pads, may stay on the beach overnight. Watercraft can't be stored on the dune grass. Golf carts driven into neighboring Long Beach need a Long Beach sticker and proof of insurance, and carts shouldn't be left at the beach stops or along the roads.
Some questions are still open as of early October 2026. In April, the Association was working with an engineering firm to see whether improvements to Michigan City's system would let it decommission the water tower and avoid significant future maintenance costs. The annual meeting was set for Saturday, June 27, 2026, at Living Way Church, 2410 Duneland Beach Dr., and the new budget needed a quorum to pass. The Association's meeting page still lists that date and shows no results. A buyer should ask for the approved budget and any decision on the tower. The state's ten-day package includes the assessment amount, but not either of those.
A Few Direct Questions
Does Indiana's new HOA law replace the Association's approval?
No. Section 8.5 lists what the seller must give the buyer, and it says that leaving out any of those documents does not stop the association from enforcing its governing documents. The Association's approval requirement sits on top of the state rules. This is factual background, not legal advice. Questions about how the state's HOA Act applies to a particular association belong with a real estate attorney.
What does the Association charge at closing?
The only published figures are the $100-per-month late fee on overdue dues and the 2024 rule of $3,000 for unreturned beach tags. The 2026 letter keeps the tag deadline without restating the amount. Confirm current charges with the Association office.
Is there a published dues amount?
The 2026 letter tells owners to pay the amount shown on their invoice and doesn't publish a figure, so the current invoice is the number to use.
If you are getting ready to sell in Duneland Beach, Shoreline Advice can lay out the Association's steps and the state's ten-day package on one calendar before the house goes on the market. Start with a Free Home Valuation, and we will build the closing schedule around both.
