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Smoking affects the homes we live in by increasing the risk of fire and property damage and by raising insurance costs and legal liability.

We all make mistakes, it happens. Here are a few suggestions to help you avoid common board member missteps.

A successful capital improvement project requires a lot of planning to ensure that things go as smoothly as possible. Does your community know where to start?

Discover how your community’s vision ties into both creating and enforcing policies among your residents and homeowners.

When your association has to invest in its property, whether for repairs or a new construction project, the financing for that work must be considered as carefully as the work itself.

How can you ensure that your association’s parking rules are fair and easy to understand and follow? Here are 6 essential questions to ask before you create or enforce parking policies.

As a Board member, you are familiar with the great things your association does for your community. Some times legislators charged with creating policies and laws that directly affect associations have very little knowledge of their inner workings.

A successful capital improvement project requires a lot of planning to ensure that things go as smoothly as possible. Does your community know where to start?

Your board took the time to create a vision for your community. You’ve gotten buy-in from your residents and crafted policies that support it. Now, how do you enforce those policies to ensure that the vision is supported?

It can be tough to balance festive and tasteful, when it comes to holiday décor. Setting policies for decorating will help maintain peace and goodwill for all within your association.

Very few issues and problems that come up seem to have anything to do with pets. However, here are tips to help resolve any pet-related issues.

As the weather heats up and stay-at-home orders surrounding COVID-19 are lifted, it's important to remember the social distancing guidelines in place.

Nothing lasts forever and you need to have a plan to replace major items and systems before their lifespans end. How do you create that plan? Start with a quality reserve study.

Whether your board is dealing with emergency rules or general community policies, here are some things to consider when addressing change in your community.

Are you doing all you can to make sure your self-managed community meets its goals?

As a board member, you know the importance of making rules and establishing policy; these must be clear and sensible. The process for creating and enforcing rules successfully is the same.

The dangers of smoking and secondhand smoke have been highlighted in recent years. Smoking also affects our physical environment by increasing risks of fire and property damage, raising insurance rates and increasing legal liability.

It’s that time of year again – budget season is upon us. You know the things to consider when creating your budget, but what drives your process? Are you focused on achieving a particular vision for your community? Avoiding conflict in the community? Solely looking to avoid increasing dues?

Maintaining the health of your Minnesota community homeowners association’s finances is similar to the way you keep yourself healthy: make good choices, don’t overindulge and exercise good judgement.

It’s that wonderful time of year! Many of us are shopping online to get that perfect gift for our loved ones. And, for those doing last-minute shopping, we don’t want to have to worry that something will go wrong with our deliveries.

Some self-managed associations believe they can't afford to hire a professional property management company to manage and maintain their community's operations, assets, finances, common areas and other day-to-day activities. However, as you'll learn in this article, a professional property management company is one thing many communities can't afford to be without.

It’s no secret that association management is a big job. Across Minnesota, common areas require a lot of routine maintenance to uphold community standards – things like exterior light bulb replacements, landscaping and paint touch-ups. Depending on your townhome community, the scale of your amenities' needs will vary.

It’s that time of year again – budget season is upon us. You know the things to consider when creating your budget, but what drives your process? Are you focused on achieving a particular vision for your community? Avoiding conflict in the community? Solely looking to avoid increasing dues?

One of the most important responsibilities your HOA board of directors faces is effectively planning for major common-area repairs and replacements. Whether a costly expenditure is needed in a few years or 20 years from now, it’s the board’s fiduciary duty to make sure your homeowners association (HOA) has adequate funds when the time comes. That’s where HOA reserves come into play.