The Different Levels of Association Involvement

Living in a townhome or condo provides another level of community involvement beyond living in a single-family home.

There are many different opportunities to volunteer as a leader in your association. The most prominent role is as the president of the board of directors, the governing body responsible for the management of the association.

The CC&Rs (see our related blog post) and bylaws detail board responsibilities. The board can also in general: change the Rules and Regulations of the association, hire a professional property management firm, and set the homeowner association dues amounts for the year.

The president oversees the homeowner association board meetings, ensures orders and resolutions are implemented, signs contracts, and cosigns checks.

Of course, there are additional volunteer roles on the board of directors besides president. Other typical ways to be involved on the board include serving as the vice president, secretary, treasurer or as a member at large.

The vice president fills in when the president is absent and performs other relevant duties as needed.

The secretary takes meeting minutes, records votes, sends notifications for upcoming meetings and keeps the member records current.

On the treasurer’s plate is: receiving and depositing money, signing checks, keeping the accounting books, scheduling an audit of the books, and preparing the annual budget.

A member at large serves as a voting member of the board and performs other duties as needed.

Since all the board responsibilities involve volunteering one’s personal time, associations often hire an outside property management firm to handle some of the duties.

Beyond serving on a board, other ways that residents can be involved in their association include: attending board meetings, signing up for a committee, starting a social committee to encourage resident gatherings, proactively communicating with the homeowner association to manage issues, and setting a good example by following the established rules.

There are plenty of opportunities to be involved in your community beyond just being a resident, so take advantage of being able to play your part!