A well rounded and effective Homeowners Association (HOA) is imperative to your community’s pocket book and piece of mind. At Barrera & Company we’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly. In today’s post we’ll go over a few tips for cultivating and managing an effective HOA.

related: 6 Ways to Improve HOA Board Meetings

1. Try to chose homeowners that have business experience and a working knowledge of finance.

The biggest mistake we see HOAs make is to underestimate future expenses – eventually resulting in an HOA fee hike. Often times this can be mitigated by simply choosing individuals that have a track record of overseeing long term projects or business ventures.

2) Whenever possible, it is also extremely helpful to include homeowners that have experience with design and construction – contractors, engineers, architects, landscapers, etc. These types of people are invaluable when it comes to evaluating bids and keeping your community up to par aesthetically.

3) This is an obvious one – attorneys make great HOA board members.

4) It’s not always possible to assemble the “dream team” – and that’s ok. But what’s even more important is that you chose people who are most likely to be long term residents. There’s nothing worse than being forced to raise dues because of the decisions of people who are long gone.

5) Peace is important for an HOA to function effectively. Sure there will be disagreements but keep in mind that you’re all on the same team. If it does get out of hand, it’s best to seek mediation before there is irreparable damage.

While these tips my seem like common sense, you’d be surprised how many HOAs do not keep these guiding tenets in mind. Follow these simple, yet important guidelines and your HOA is on the road to success.

Read More:  The role of an HOA board

Interested in getting a Reserve Study for your community? Click here to get a proposal!