Interestingly, the emergence of the HOA in America began in the 1960s, around the same time that the football Super Bowl began. Of course, the HOA had been around for quite a long time before that, however, it was largely restricted in nature. With the development of housing communities with architectural uniformity about them, the HOA grew in rapidly in the 1960s. Sadly, many of the HOAs began to keep out people who were unwanted, especially along racial lines. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that such rules were unenforceable. But, the HOA had been birthed out of much more important purposes: to maintain a standard of housing to protect owners from loss of value, to offer guidelines for architectural beauty and to provide community areas that were lovely and available for swimming, playing and living comfortable family life.
The Super Bowl of the HOA can be defined as the Annual Meeting. That meeting is of SUPER importance. Annually the HOA must meet to consider several critical issues related to the past, present and future aspects of the community. This meeting may not be as exciting as a Super Bowl in football, but it is significant and crucial to the neighborhood.
First, the HOA must elect officers and committee members for the new year. These individuals will essentially shape the community for the next year. Of course, the HOA has guiding principles defined in the legal documents, but poor leadership can always find a way to bring about a decline in any organization. For this reason, it is essential that residents participate in the work of the HOA and that they choose leaders carefully and thoughtfully. A willingness to serve on various committees ensures that a broad and inclusive view will be taken in the decisions made for the coming year.
Secondly, the HOA must create a budget. Money matters! The way the funds are received, dispensed and the results achieved by them is a matter of great consequence. There are those who don’t like the cost of HOA assessments, but when one participates in the process of creating a budget, he or she will appreciate how much it matters in maintaining a stable community and hopefully increasing home values. In this age of decreasing home financial appreciation, the budget of the HOA is even more serious.
Third, the HOA must review projects that have been undertaken and those that must be considered for the coming year or years. The HOA leaders must be careful in this process. It is always easy for those in leadership to give themselves some slack when it comes to projects that have not turned out the way they should or the way they were expected. Honest assessment of success and failure is helpful during this process. Politicians are known for putting “spin” on every situation in order to make themselves look good before the public. HOA leaders must avoid “spin control” and assess performance based on facts. Laying out plans for the future will help budget properly and will keep the community moving forward. We have all seen communities that began to decline and the fault for that often lies at the feet of the HOA leadership. Care must be taken not to let that happen.
Lastly, the HOA leadership should review the suggestions made by the homeowners when making decisions about leadership, budget, and projects. Listening is important in every area of life and the HOA is no different. In one of the first Super Bowl games played, Coach Vince Lombardi was not sure what offensive play should be run on fourth down near the goal line. The quarterback told the great coach that he was sure they could put the ball in the end zone if he were allowed to run one more play over the right side of the line. Lombardi listened to the player. The play resulted in a touchdown and a win! The coach was known for his hard-nosed approach to the game and he is remembered to this day as an iconic football personality. But, he was not too big or too important to listen to one of his players. HOA leaders need to listen as well. Of course the leaders can’t do everything suggested, nor should they, but listening can make you a winner in the HOA super bowl if you have the wisdom to listen and act on good advice!