Six Tips to Run HOA Meetings More Effectively
Still haven't nailed down HOA meetings so they run like a well-oiled machine?
Here are six tips from our experts to make your HOA meetings run more smoothly—and why that's important in the first place.
1. Plan well and in advance. "Have a plan because nobody likes to show up to a meeting that's disorganized," advises Elizabeth White, a shareholder and head of the community associations practice at the law firm of LeClairRyan in Williamsburg, Va.
"What do you want to have accomplished by the end of the meeting?" asks White. "Is it an informational meeting? Is there another purpose? Start with your goal, and work backwards. That'll help you answer questions like: What should we post on the website? Should we do FAQs? One association I represent was looking to sell its water system; that's a hugely regulated industry and very cumbersome for an association to run on its own. The board knew what a headache operating the water system was, but the rest of the home owners didn't. I told them, 'You might need a public relations effort.'"
2. Create a draw. "If it's your annual meeting, give owners a reason to attend," advises David W. Kaman, a Columbus-based partner at Kaman & Cusimano LLC, which represents associations throughout Ohio. "Instead of an annual meeting, make it an annual celebration where the board is presenting results in a positive light: 'Here are the projects we've completed in the prior year. Here's how your money was spent.'
"The meeting should be tremendously informative with detail and pie charts and graphs showing owners how money was allocated," adds Kaman. "If you're in a big building and you've replaced the elevator motors, most owners don't see that. With a PowerPoint presentation and your ability to take pictures, show owners the projects you've completed. Even if one item is that you've installed a new sign at the entrance, have a picture of it there."
3. Plan it to the minute. "Tailor your agenda to the meeting, and assign time frames for agenda items," adds White. "Some home owners resist this, saying 'Isn't this too structured?' All the meeting gurus say you need to put a time on issues. As you're sifting through the agenda and start calculating the time, you'll see what makes sense. You may need more time for the question of whether you should purchase the golf property next door. In fact, you may need three meetings for a decision like that."
4. Leave no document behind. "If it's a board meeting, get the meeting packet out early, and include information or materials the board needs to make good business decisions," adds White. "Some managers are really naïve or untrained, and the board leaves it to the manager to put the agenda together. Maybe the manager wants approval for some work but doesn't include the bids to back up the decision. Maybe there are violations they want to bring to the board's attention, but they don't include the pictures, so the board can't act."
5. Take care of business. "Too many times, you see an annual meeting where the board makes it a social gathering—and it should be," says Duane McPherson, the Carrollton, Texas—based division president at RealManage, an association management firm that oversees properties in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Nevada, and Texas. "But all too often, the president will stand up there talking and doesn't really say much. And then the board forgets to take care of approving the minutes, or if there's an IRS resolution the board needs to approve, they don't do that. You first need a good, strong agenda, and you need to follow it. Treat it like a business meeting because that's literally what it is. Business needs to be done and gotten out of the way before socializing."
6. Get speakers. "Remember, we're dealing with a community, and there's a saying, 'Putting unity in the community,'" says Kaman. "If owners have a choice between watching 'Dancing with the Stars' and attending the meeting, they'll watch TV. But if you're touting a speaker who'll speak for 10-15 minutes, it's a great way to get owners in the door. Have the police chief come one year to talk about how to safeguard your home. Have the fire chief the next year to talk about the types of fires they've had in the past year and how they could have been prevented. Any elected official, whether it's a local council member or the mayor, is more than willing to come to your annual meeting. Just tell them in advance they're limited to 10-15 minutes."