There are many challenges to face when being a leader of any type. When it comes to community management, Board Members may be confronted with multiple concerns from their neighborhood.
The members who take on this very important volunteer leadership position understand the importance of being part of the decision making process, despite all the strains. Upon speaking to several AAM Board Members I found the top five common issues to be most difficult are:
- Assessment Increases
- Enforcement Actions
- Contract Changes
- Homeowner Appeals
- Foreclosure Actions
Each of these topics has their place amongst board meetings; one common misconception is that if there is a meeting all business should be addressed. This is one area where an experienced community manager is a valuable asset to an HOA meeting.
All decisions affect the homeowners within the community, and all can be a sensitive subject. It is the responsibility of the board and the community manager to ensure that a meeting is conducted properly like any other business meeting.
There are several types of Meetings that a Board of Directors is expected to execute, of which each meeting has limitations to the topics that can be discussed, I will break each of these down in my next blog:
- Open meetings, also known as Regular Session
- Closed meetings, known as Executive Sessions
- Work Sessions, open to homeowners
- Annual Meetings, meetings of the members
- Special Meetings, board or membership meetings
Homeowners have placed confidence in a group of peers to provide a vision and financial direction of their community. This is why the Board of Directors and the Community Manager must join together in a cohesive team to make sure those meetings stay on track and decisions are made promptly and effectively.
By: AAM, Inc.