Serving on your HOA board is a challenging and rewarding position to be in. In this article, we go through how to join the HOA board and 6 reasons why you should become a board member.

How to join the HOA board

To join your community association’s board, you need to participate in an election. This election happens at the HOA’s annual meeting. Following state law, the current board has to inform homeowners a certain number of days before the annual meeting. Then homeowners can put themselves forward to be elected.

When you decide to run, you should prepare by reading your HOA’s governing documents and familiarising yourself with the rules and how things work. You should also be clear about what you want to change and what is important to you in the community. Once you win the election, you become a board member of your community association.

Quorum

A topic that is discussed a lot around HOA elections is a quorum. This is the minimum number of member votes that are required to make a vote valid. Unless you reach quorum, the election isn’t valid, since not enough members have voted. That means that you need to get people to vote. If they can’t be there on the day, they can choose a proxy to vote for them. Using proxy votes will help you to win the election, and join the HOA board.

Reasons to join the HOA Board

Joining the board is very rewarding, as you are giving back to your community, making an impact and you learn a lot, as well as meeting new people. In the video below, we talk about what roles are available so you can see which role will fit you the best.

1 – Take care of the community

There’s no one more interested in the safety, and the value of your property more than you and your fellow homeowners. Only homeowners truly understand how important they are and have that motivation to see their community prosper. Being part of the board will also place you in the middle of the decision-making process, making your voice and opinions have an impact on how your community is managed. As well as putting in action any changes you wanted when you were just a homeowner. Pride in your community, patience, and motivation to help others are very important when running for the HOA board.

2 – Use your skills to help out

Everyone in your community has unique skills. Maybe you have experience in a certain field that your community is in need of. The skills and knowledge that you’ve compiled over the years can be put to good use on your HOA’s board.  Both hard and soft skills are appreciated, as there’ll always be something to fix, renew, redo, and relationships among board members and homeowners need to be managed.   If you’ve faced similar challenges, think about how you can apply those hard-won skills to being a board member. You can do and be the change that you want to see. You can start by serving on your board. 

3 – Bring changes to your HOA

Being a board member means that you have the power to bring about change in your neighborhood. Improving management and communication brings a big impact for residents. By bringing in software, residents can report maintenance issues, which the board can easily view and keep track of. It also helps as the board can quickly and easily send emails, texts, and calls in one place. Residents can access documents, and see what events are happening. Having a website improves transparency, communication, and management in your community association.  

4 – Challenge yourself

Serving on a board or committee has its challenges. It’s not an easy or stress-free role and, you should do it mainly out of the enjoyment of helping and improving your community.  You’ll need the motivation to serve your community and to see it prosper over time. This is the main reason to serve on your HOA’s board.  The results are very rewarding, and the position challenges you to be a leader, a friend, a conflict solver, a specialist in communication, and much more. To make your life as a board member easier, you can use an online portal and website, such as Neigbrs by Vinteum which makes your job easier. It allows you to put your HOA’s documents in your portal, communicate with residents, and receive work orders in one place. 

5 – Have a great time

Serving in your community can also be really enjoyable. Seeing your community overcome problems, grow, and improve under your care is amazing. You’ll also meet a lot of new people by being more involved in your HOA. This will mean making new friends and embedding yourself in your community. You will work with your neighbors, create that community lifestyle that you’ve always dreamed about and make it a reality while having fun in the process.

6 – Learn new things

Becoming part of a committee or board can also teach you a great deal about everything inside your community. From how dues are paid, to regional laws, to how you keep all green areas and amenities so well maintained with just a handful of people. There is a lot to learn, and our webinars can help you learn more about HOA. There are also a lot of in-person events that you can attend to meet other people in the industry. So much happens behind the scenes in your HOA. Becoming an HOA board member puts you in the middle of it all. Keep learning and improving, and your HOA will benefit from it.

Wrapping up: How to join the HOA board

Once you have been elected as a board member, being part of the board of directors is a very fulfilling role, where you have the chance to give back to your community and implement change. To help improve your community Neigbrs by Vinteum is an award-winning tool that improves communication and management as well as resident satisfaction. To find out more about how we can help you help your community, while saving you time and money, book your free demo.