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In this article, we answer the most frequently asked questions regarding HOA backyard rules as well as steps for requesting an architectural modification to your home.

Enforcing HOA policies is nobody’s cup of tea, but having good policy enforcement in place helps improve the resident experience and elevates your reputation. Follow these 4 principles for healthy policy enforcement:

With several Arizona cities ranking high in WalletHub’s 2016 listing of most pet-friendly cities, it’s likely that your community allows residents to have pets. Still, your homeowners association (HOA) needs to have a clear policy to prevent residents’ furry family members from becoming a community problem. After all, it isn’t really Rover’s fault if issues arise. It’s up to his owners to clean up after him, to ensure that he remains well behaved and to follow the HOA rules.

These days, you can do almost anything online—buy groceries, look for a job or even find love. But what about voting on issues that affect your community?

Great policies can help your association run smoothly, enhance the resident experience and improve your reputation. Here are five questions to ask before creating a new HOA policy.

Learn why effective HOA policy starts with a strong communication plan.

Enforcing HOA policies is nobody’s cup of tea, but having good policy enforcement in place helps improve the resident experience and elevates your reputation. Follow these 4 principles for healthy policy enforcement:

A healthy and effective Arizona homeowners association is not only able to identify great volunteers and committee members, but will empower them to drive positive change in the community. But how do you get there?

How do you manage collections and HOA funds after a crisis? Get 3 tips to help you plan for the future

Lights, candles and wreaths, oh my! The most decorated season of the year is arriving, with celebrations from many cultures and faiths coinciding in the next few months. For condo communities, the desire to deck the halls can clash with the rules of the corporation. Follow these tips to maintain a festive community without décor running amok.

Great policies can help your association run smoothly, enhance the resident experience and improve your reputation. Here are five questions to ask before creating a new HOA policy.

Learn why effective HOA policy starts with a strong communication plan.

A healthy and effective California homeowners association will not only find great volunteers and committee members, but will empower them to drive positive change in the community. How can your association make this happen?

Do you escape to warmer weather down south once there’s a chill in the air and the leaves start to turn? If you’re a snowbird (or Winter Texan!), you need to know how to protect your home up north while basking in the southern sunshine

For a growing number of community associations across the United States and Canada, statute changes are making electronic voting a possibility for boards. If your state or province permits online voting – or will soon – does that mean that your board should make this option available to homeowners in your community?

Good rules make good community members. The most important factors in association policy making, whether for a condo, co-op, townhome or master-planned community, are clarity and sensibility. The board must be clear – and united – on the policy being created and then must communicate that policy to all residents. Whether the policy is about overnight guest parking, designated smoking areas, amenity usage or approved flooring, the basic steps to creating good policy and enforcing it successfully are the same. It’s important that everyone involved, including board members, residents and the management team, understand who is responsible for the various roles that are part of policy creation, enforcement and compliance.

Regardless of the size of your community, or where it’s located, there is always one thing that every community association board and committee needs: resident volunteers. Unfortunately, however, volunteers are often a scarce resource.

During these unprecedented times, residents are spending the majority of their time at home to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and protect themselves and their loved ones from infection. One of their primary contact points with the outside world is in your HOA or condo common areas, where they can be at risk of contact with lingering coronavirus or even spread existing virus to other areas of the property. Read on for a comprehensive list of places to clean and how to clean them.

Your board should give residents the opportunity to have their voices heard, but you also have a responsibility to keep the meeting moving forward. Use these 5 HOA annual meeting requirements to stay on track.

Part of your job as a board member is ensuring the safety of residents in your community association. To that end, it’s important to educate homeowners about possible fire risks and the steps they can take to prevent fire hazards in their homes. Chances are that fire safety isn’t top of mind for residents. However, home fires are more common than most people realize.

In the past, when planning for emergencies, a global pandemic was likely not on your list. While most board members did not anticipate a pandemic as something that needed a plan before COVID-19, it's now clear that communities need to develop a plan to address this and any future pandemics. Read on to learn how to build a community emergency preparedness plan with a possible resurgence of coronavirus and other potential pandemics in mind.

Your association doesn’t function in a vacuum. It’s part of a larger community. Having members actively engaged in your town or city is good for the association and adds to residents’ sense of community. Find out what your board can do to encourage residents to get more involved in their larger community.

Insurance is one of the most important line items on your association's budget, but it is oftentimes the most expensive. Do you know how to select the right agent?