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A great board meeting should have a balance of diverse opinions and discussions that are rooted in your community’s overall vision. Start with these 6 simple HOA board meeting rules.

There are often good reasons to raise assessments, but in some cases, you may be able to take a different route. Here are three strategies to help save your HOA money and keep assessments stable.

While the start of the new year is typically heralded as the best time to change old habits and commit to new ones, the reality for community associations and their board members is that there’s no time like the present. These 10 changes will help you get your board and your community association on the right track for the rest of the year.

Many people want to live in a community that has a swimming pool, and if there’s one in yours, you know what kind of value it brings. While it’s great to think of all those hot days when you and your neighbors can enjoy an afternoon in the water, with it comes many responsibilities community association board members must adhere to that go beyond staying cool or keeping in shape.

So what’s the most important aspect of your community? Is it aesthetics? Sense of belonging? Neighbors knowing neighbors? Desirability to home buyers?

Are you an insurance expert? Unless you sell it, the answer is probably “no.” But if you’re a member of your HOA’s Board of Directors, it’s a really smart idea to have a basic understanding of the policy that protects your association from liability.

You’re a member of your community association’s board, and it’s time to review your current insurance policies and providers. While it may be tempting to maintain your current relationship, you may find that significant savings can be found when you shop around.

When you hire a contractor, it could either be the best decision you ever made, or the worst. The stakes are high; a good contractor will execute your vision on time and on budget, whereas a not-so-good one will be the source of bad workmanship, unexpected delays, inconvenience and a whole lot of headaches.

Experienced property managers have created countless budgets, and they’re familiar with the best practices entailed in creating one that helps your community accomplish its goals. So to help you get started, here are six community budget basics you can follow.

Picture this: your homeowners association has a big job that needs to be done, so you’ve got to find a qualified contractor to do it. How do you manage your vendor selection process to make sure you find the best one to fill your needs?

There’s a big difference between being a busybody and having a general awareness of your neighbors’ regular activities. Knowing their routines enables you to quickly realize when something is awry, especially for residents who live alone. And in a true emergency, that awareness could literally save a life.

Whether you’re a new or current board member, you can avoid major issues and make your term more fruitful, rewarding and, above all, effective by following these 9 tips for board members.

Summertime is swim time, and for the most part, it’s a plunge into carefree fun. But without the right swimming pool safety practices, your residents and association could be at risk.

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?

If you live in a pet-friendly community, it’s essential that your association board set boundaries to keep order within your community. Many of the issues that become problems in pet-friendly communities have very little to do with the pets – after all, they can’t clean up after themselves.

When you have a large-scale project slated for your community, it’s tempting to select a vendor based on price. After all, what’s more important than saving your association money?

Despite what the meteorologist on your nightly news might tell you, it’s actually pretty hard to predict the weather. And that means it’s difficult to anticipate how much you’ll be spending on snow removal this year.

Keeping your homeowner association (HOA) or community association’s finances healthy works the same way as staying physically fit: don’t overindulge and make smart choices. And the upside is that the only thing you’ll have to exercise is good judgment. Here are some tips to help you do just that.

Vendor management is a large part of serving on the board of a managed community. Every community has outside partners for services like landscaping, sanitation, cable and Internet provision, pool maintenance, valet services and more. Open and effective communication among the board, the management company and the vendors employed by the association is an important part of making the most of any community’s operating budget and improving the lifestyles of its residents.

Life in a high-rise property has its rewards. With great amenities, good security, and even concierge services, there are many advantages that are specific to just this kind of lifestyle. Similarly, there are specific requirements when it comes to insuring it, too. High-rises often have multiple residences, each with their own policies, plus shared common spaces, which also require coverage. Here are a few areas to help you determine if you and your high-rise community is adequately covered.

Your Board of Directors oversees the many day-to-day tasks required to operate and maintain your community…but they can’t do it alone. Your property management team will be expected to hire a wide array of vendors, including painters, plumbers, electricians, landscapers, repairmen for equipment maintenance or emergencies, exterminators, and more.

More than 85% of officials in state legislatures are up for re-election this year. So what does that mean to you as a board member or resident in a condo or homeowners’ association (HOA)? And how does this affect HOA law? There are a variety of initiatives on the table across the nation that will significantly impact community associations. In this article, we’ll take a look at what those issues are – and most importantly, how you can impact HOA law.

Living in a residential community means around-the-clock routine maintenance to preserve the community and its assets. But there comes a time when one of your assets will reach the end of its useful life and require a replacement or significant repairs.

It’s the typical budgeting dilemma for community association boards: How do you keep assessment fees manageable and still maintain the community’s operations?