When you choose to serve on a board, you may wonder what impact you have on your community. Today, we want to outline that impact and say thanks for serving. Board service, when effective, truly blesses the lives of the homeowners in the community.
When searching for a lifelong home, people are after that “Wow!” factor: beautiful communities with friendly neighbors and well-kept amenities. Volunteer HOA boards are the ones who make these coveted communities possible, so let’s take a moment to recognize all the hard work these undercover heroes (you!) do.
Making Important Decisions
First, the HOA board makes decisions that create long-term positive change for their community. Carefully overseeing a street resurfacing project, putting a fence around the community’s playground, founding a social committee, or starting a program to welcome new neighbors are all ways boards make their communities more enjoyable places to live.
Protecting HOA Assets
Board members also protect the association’s assets, be it a playground or a community clubhouse with a fitness center, sports field, and pool. Caring for the association’s assets involves conducting reserve studies every three to five years, having routine maintenance and repairs completed, and replacing items when needed. Because of the board, homeowners can enjoy community facilities for generations to come.
Managing HOA Finances
Board members are responsible for crafting the yearly budget, comparing bids, vetting vendors, and reviewing the HOA’s financial records each month for any discrepancies. It’s this kind of detail-oriented work that frees up revenue for projects and social events, ensures the HOA has enough money in reserves for emergencies, and makes sure all routine maintenance and repairs are well funded. Board members do a lot to invest in the futures of their communities!
Enforcing Rules Fairly
Homeowners in HOAs all follow the same community rules and guidelines to ensure the value and enjoyment of the community is preserved for all members. It’s the HOA board that’s responsible for ensuring these rules are enforced fairly.
Needless to say, this involves a lot of work: studying the HOA’s governing documents to gain a thorough understanding of the rules and how they apply, reviewing past variances and the community’s violation history to ensure consistency, checking that each lot in violation receives the same notices in the same timeframe, and granting variances on a case-by-case basis. We happily work together to create consistency.
Setting the Tone
From their positivity and enthusiasm at meetings to the many little ways they celebrate community, such as Yard of the Month awards, graduate highlights, welcome baskets, and handwritten thank you notes to other volunteers, board members create the atmosphere of the association. What makes a house a home is a sense of belonging and neighborly good will, which stem from all the many thoughtful efforts of the board.
SpectrumAM would like to say thank you to all board members for consistently celebrating community and kindness. We are grateful to have the opportunity to support our hard-working leaders who do their best every day to make their communities shine! We are proud to partner with you.
