Know The Ins And Outs Of Your HOA’s Board Meeting Minutes

A board of directors plays an essential role in the overall well-being and culture of a homeowner’s association (HOA) community. The board is responsible for making decisions that keep a community running smoothly, ensure safety, and create a positive environment. One of their responsibilities is holding regular board meetings, discussing the needs of the community and its members. Board meeting minutes are a vital part of running successful meetings and are a legal requirement for every HOA board.

What are Board Meeting Minutes?

Board meeting minutes outline actions and discussions made by the board of directors during meetings. While meeting minutes are not intended to be a verbatim description of meeting occurrences, they should provide a brief reflection of motions made and voting outcomes. Minutes are vital because they are a legal document that can be used in court if the association or members are brought into a lawsuit.

9 Items Included in Board Minutes

Secretaries typically are tasked with taking a note of meeting attendance, limit the minute’s length to two pages or less, avoid personal bias or opinion, and finalize minutes within a reasonable time following a meeting.

The best board meeting minutes include the following items:

• Whether the meeting was a monthly, annual, or special meeting. If it is a special meeting, it’s suggested to include a description of why the special meeting occurred.
• Always include the association name, location, and date.
• Note the time the President called the meeting to order and adjourned.
• Include approval and discussion of previous meeting minutes.
• Briefly summarize new and old business discussions.
• Include report summaries provided by any committees.
• Any motions made and whether they were approved or not.
• List of names that voted yes, no, or abstained from voting.
• Any financial decisions made including the use of reserve funds, transferring money, or opening a bank account.

Board Meeting Minutes Legal Requirements

In addition to the items above, it is best to check with state and local regulations on HOA meeting minutes. Board members should review minutes at every meeting, and as long as a quorum is present, a vote should be taken to approve or make changes to the minutes of the prior meeting.

Board meeting minutes should be accessible by board members, community members, potential new residents, realtors, mortgage companies, and bankers. Meeting minutes are required to be taken at every meeting unless a quorum is present. This meeting should still be noted as being held along with any canceled meetings in the HOA log of meetings.

Rules for how long minutes should be kept vary by state and HOA governing documents. However, since minutes are a legal document, it is recommended that records should be kept on file indefinitely.

Is your HOA looking for assistance with meeting management? Contact our team at AR Management today!