HOA resolutions are set in place to ensure that a community Board effectively manages a community and makes all of the right decisions during board meetings. Essentially, resolutions are governing documents that bring validation to a board’s actions for a community.

Since resolutions go beyond the standard rules and regulations that can easily change to meet new state, federal, and local requirements, there is definitely a process a Board should follow when its members decide a new resolution is best for the community.

Here’s a closer look at the proper steps a Board and HOA management team should take to ensure that a new resolution is enacted with essential due diligence.

How Should Your Board Approach a New Resolution?

Since resolutions usually involve subject matter like policies, procedures, and special individual situations that impact a community, they can’t simply be created and enacted on a whim. Here are the appropriate steps a Board should take when attempting to create a new HOA Board resolution.

Review State Laws

Before any action can be taken to create a new resolution, it’s essential that the board reviews the legality of their decision. State and local laws typically trump any changes an association makes in its operations.

A quick chat with your association management team or legal advisors should easily clear up the legalities of the resolution. If all is clear, move forward with the following steps. If not, it’s unfortunately, back to the drawing board.

Know the Authority of Your Board of Directors

Not all governing documents are drafted in the same language. So, before moving on with the creation of a resolution, consult your association governing documents. Only then will you know if your board is legally able to make new resolutions within the community.

Understand Why This Resolution is Necessary

Before you really dig into pushing a new resolution onto your community, do your research and answer the following questions:

Why does your community need this resolution?

How would it impact owners?

How will the board enforce this resolution?

Are all board members in agreement with the resolution?

Does the resolution create a long-term solution to a current problem?

Once you’ve answered these questions and others that fellow HOA board members may pose, you should have all of the research necessary to begin drafting and filling out the details of your resolution.

Create a Draft

At this point, create a rough draft of your resolution that details the full extent of the resolution, what it resolves, and the specific bylaws that allow the board to complete the resolution.

Try to make this draft as close to the final resolution as possible, because the next step towards resolution creation involves bringing your ideas to your fellow owners.

Obtain Feedback From Owners

Circulate the draft of your resolution throughout the community and across your online portal’s community boards. Ask for feedback from those the resolution will impact the most. If owners know that their voices have been heard, the transition into the new resolution is less likely to be a contested effort.

Make Any Decisions With the Whole Board Involved

Once the details of your resolution are ironed out, it’s time for the Board to take a final vote. In order for a resolution to be passed, board members must vote based on all community voting procedures.

If the resolution is passed, the president and secretary of the Board will sign and date the document.

Create Resolutions With Experience Through Goodwin & Company

If you are a member of a community’s Board of Directors and know that your team needs help from a property management firm, Goodwin & Company is ready to speak with you.

We are an association management team that has experience with resolution changes and other behind-the-scenes essentials that dictate the path for a community’s success. We’ve helped associations of all sizes make the best decisions for their owners, and know that we can help you.

Contact us today to learn more about our services and how you can become a part of the Goodwin & Company family.

An HOA serves as a pillar of the community it resides in. So, while it should always strive to provide the best owner experience for its residents, it should also do everything in its power to reduce its environmental footprint and improve the immediate environments around it.

Fortunately, going greener doesn’t have to be an expensive initiative, and there are several ways that your community can help make the planet a better place.

Here are 5 green tips your HOA should enforce in 2022!

Go Digital for Your Notices and Announcements

Paper is one of the most often used materials in an HOA. From general announcements to late notices, many associations find themselves printing sheet after sheet, knowing that it’s all eventually going to make its way to a landfill.

As technology advances, the need for paper notices is becoming ever more null and void. An association management team can help create an online portal that connects your board and your community members to everything important with your community.

Going digital means saying goodbye to paper calendars and saying hello to easy online payments. It’s the simplest way to go greener and is also one of the most innovative steps your community can take towards improving its general practices.

Create Recycling Opportunities for Your Owners

Whether your HOA invests in recycling bins for the community or starts a weekly recycling pickup for your owners, making recycling opportunities available is excellent for the community.

Most of your homeowners already want to make the world a better place but just don’t have the time to get to a recycling center to drop off their recyclable goods. A community-wide recycling effort puts the hard work in your community management team and vendor’s hands and makes recycling an easier option for eco-conscious owners.

Enforce Management Company Green Initiatives

Most management companies already have a list of green initiatives that they follow for each of the communities they serve. Make sure to review your management company’s green practices they have in place and ensure that any you aren’t already practicing are implemented within your community.

Reduce Water Use Where Possible

One great way to save the environment and save money is to reduce water use throughout the community wherever you can. Aside from educating your owners about the importance of water conservation and creating a community watering schedule, your HOA can invest in water-saving technologies like smart sprinkler systems that can detect recent rainfalls and reduce the waste of one of our planet’s most precious resources.

Go Solar

Although it may be an initial investment to go solar with your community lighting, we guarantee that it’s an investment that will save your association money in the long run. Solar-powered lights eventually pay for themselves and are something that your community can gradually introduce if a full solar effort isn’t currently available in the budget. Even buying a light at a time makes a difference in the environmental big picture.

Take Steps Into a Greener New Year With Goodwin & Company

If your association is ready to go green this year, it’s time to work with an association management company that has similar priorities in mind. At Goodwin & Company, we help get our associations connected to an online portal, find eco-friendly vendors in their area, and ensure that other green initiatives are enforced.

Trust us to be your partner on your journey to becoming a better association for the environment and your community members alike. Contact us today to learn more about our services and how to become a member of the Goodwin family.