5 Helpful HOA Board Meeting Tips

HOA board meetings are conducted with only the executive board present. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss topics pertaining to the operation of the association. This may include business operations, financial expenditures, voting on action items, delinquent assessments, legal issues, or other confidential topics.  AMG knows executive Board members need tools to help them perform their duties right away. We have prepared a Board Member Toolkit to help our community leaders be more effective.

Here are 5 tips to help board members have more effective meetings.

1.       Always Be Early. When the board meeting has a scheduled time, all members should arrive early so the meeting can be formally called to order at the designated meeting time. It is very important that all board members are in place when the meeting is formerly called to order.

2.      Always Be Prepared. Arrive at the board meeting ready to do business. Be prepared for the meeting and be well versed on the agenda if it was provided in advance.

3.      Be Prepared to Conduct Business. The HOA board meeting is a formal meeting, and its purpose is to conduct business. It is essential that each member come with the attitude to conduct business. Learn more about Board member ethics in our Toolkit.  

4.      Follow Carefully as the HOA President or Designated Leader Directs the Meeting. Most formal board meetings follow Parliamentary Procedure. AMG offers a Toolkit with The Best Information on Parliamentary Procedure.

5.      Help Your Board by Being a Good Board Member. Make it a priority to be in attendance at all board meetings. These helpful Guidelines will be a valuable resource for conducting a meeting.

This list is a good place to start if you are a new board member, and it can be a great reminder for seasoned board members. If all board members work together the board can be very effective in conducting business for the operation of the HOA.

Association Management Group has prepared a Board Education & Toolkit for HOAs. Over the last 30 years, it has become clear to AMG that well-informed executive Board members make better community leaders.

AMG knows executive Board members need tools to help them perform their duties right away. The following are six tools that Board members tell us they appreciate. Read Here

Proposal: Cap corporate landlords at 100 homes

Democratic lawmakers in some of North Carolina’s fastest growing cities want to ban corporate landlords from owning too many rental homes in areas like Charlotte and Raleigh. Rep. Kelly Alexander, D-Mecklenburg, introduced the Home Ownership Market Manipulation Act last week to cap — at 100 — the number of single-family homes that people or businesses can buy in the state’s most populous counties. The measure, co-sponsored by Democrats in Mecklenburg, Guilford and Cumberland counties, is unlikely to pass the Republican-controlled legislature. But it’s the first such proposal aimed at combating the growth of Wall Street-backed firms that have converted tens of thousands of homes to rentals across the country over the past decade.

Read more at: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article272559767.html#storylink=cpy

CAI is being awarded a prestigious award from the Public Affairs Council (PAC) - the Lobbying Strategy Innovation Award for our Condominium Safety Policy Response and Initiative

I am honored to share that CAI is being awarded a prestigious award from the Public Affairs Council (PAC) - the Lobbying Strategy Innovation Award for our Condominium Safety Policy Response and Initiative – in response to the tragic Champlain Towers South condominium collapse. This is a prestigious award program recognizes three top organizations each year for their work in grassroots, communications, or lobbying strategy innovation. The 2022 Innovation Award Category winners include:

Lobbying Innovation: Community Associations Institute

Communications Innovation: AAA (The Auto Club)

Grassroots Innovation: Feeding America

The Condominium Safety Public Policy Initiative was developed under the leadership of Peter Kristian, AMS, PCAM, LSM (Chair) and the Government & Public Affairs Committee over a five-month period with the engagement and leadership of more than 600 volunteers who dedicated hundreds and hundreds of hours to develop a solid and sound public policy that has now been adopted by several states and continues to be considered and adopted by legislatures.

This award is dedicated to the memory of the 98 residents of Champlain Towers South who lost their lives, those who lost loved ones, and those who lost their homes in the tragic collapse in Surfside, Fla., on June 24, 2021.

Phoebe Neseth, Esq. CAI’s Director of Government & Public Affairs will be at the PAC Conference this week to accept the award on CAI’s behalf.

How to Keep Residents Engaged In Your Community

Residents are the heart of any community. The community would not function without the engagement and buy-in of its residents. That is why you should foster a good community through resident engagement. 

Many communities saw a drastic drop in resident engagement with the rise of the Covid-19 pandemic. However, with infections leveling off in many locations, and the widespread availability of the vaccine, communities are beginning to open back up. That means you need to work to build up your resident engagement again. 

Tips for Keeping Residents Engaged 

Looking for ways to keep your residents engaged in your community? If so, try the following tips. 

1) Schedule regular activities.
Activities are a great way to keep your residents engaged. In-person activities allow your residents to meet each other. This social interaction creates important ties between the resident and the community. When residents feel a part of a community, they are more likely to engage with it. Barbeques, parties, and programs for children  are all ways to increase resident engagement. 

Also, you can plan activities around making your community nicer. These volunteer activities foster community engagement because the participants are directly working to make their community a better place. Tree planting, trash clean up, and other similar activities are very popular. 

2) Use social media.
When it comes to community engagement, social media is your friend. Use a couple different sites so that a wider group of residents frequents your pages. 

Remember that different demographics use different social media, so try to have a social media location for everyone. This may mean developing a community page on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. 

3) Talk to your residents. 
You will have a better idea of how to keep your residents engaged if you talk with your residents. Surveys, townhalls, and even informal conversations can help you determine what your residents want. 

Obviously, you will not be able to make everyone happy. But, if you are noticing certain complaints or requests coming up all the time, you should attempt to address them. When residents feel heard, they will be more likely to continue engaging with the community. 

4) Don’t forget online tools. 
We have already mentioned social media. However, there are many other online tools that you can use to foster good community engagement. Zoom, YouTube, and more provide a great place to discuss your community and engage your residents. 

For example, plan some community events to take place online. Many people are still worried about Covid-19 and may be more comfortable interacting with other residents online. Online organizational tools and web portals can also help you bring your community to a single online location. 

If you are looking for more community engagement tips, contact Association Management Group (AMG). We are North and South Carolina’s source for excellent property management. We provide administrative, fiscal, and facility services to our partner communities. We do the hard work, so your Board can focus on making the important decisions and engaging residents.