HOA board members are the unsung heroes of every community association. Unpaid, volunteer homeowners who spend their free time working to better the community—but what exactly is a board member, and what are they responsible for? If you’re looking to join your community’s board, here are some answers that can help.
How can I find out who is on the Board and how to contact them directly?
The best way to contact the Board is through your community’s Association Manager. He or she can include your questions and concerns with those of other residents and present them to your association’s Board of Directors for discussion and direction. The ability of your community’s Association Manager to group information together on a common subject allows the Board of Directors to be better informed and make better decisions.
How can I get on the Board so I can make sure we’re not spending too much money?
Serving on your community association’s Board of Directors can be a very rewarding experience. However, the issues the Board of Directors administers reach far beyond not spending too much money, and the terms of office are usually for multiple years.
Each homeowner is welcome and encouraged to make this sort of commitment to participate in your community. The opportunity will be available at the time of your association’s annual meeting and may also become available during the year if a Board member resigns.
The budget is also approved by the membership at the annual general meeting, so even if you choose not to serve on the board, we highly encourage all owners to attend the annual meeting.
Contact your community’s Association Manager for information on current or upcoming opportunities and to request an application if you feel you might like to serve.If you are specifically interested in the expenses of your association but are unable to make the commitment at the time to serve on the Board of Directors, another option might be to serve on a budget committee. Your community’s Association Manager should be able to provide you information on that as well.
Can we put in a community pool? Tennis court? Security Gates?
Technically, almost anything is possible. Since this sort of modification involves placing an initial and ongoing financial burden on everyone in the community, there are a number of activities that need to be undertaken and accomplished before this can happen. They might include: modifying the governing documents for the community, investigations into the feasibility of installing the amenity, researching insurance implications, researching costs, securing permits, obtaining votes of the majority of the homeowners in the community, and possible involvement of mortgage companies that have made loans for home purchases in your community.
If you feel there is a strong interest in your community for the addition of an amenity, you should contact your community’s Association Manager to see what might be involved. If you own a home in a single family subdivision and wish to install a swimming pool in your own yard, you should submit for Architectural Control Committee approval prior to beginning work.
