HOAs in the California area organize board meetings regularly, and it’s a must to have at least one meeting per year where each member of HOA should attend. The question is how to get people to come to meetings? Sometimes, it’s challenging to gather all the members together for the meeting, and the board of directors should follow HOA board meeting etiquette while organizing the meeting. There are some actions that board members should take to encourage other members or even more homeowners to attend the HOA board meetings. 

Before jumping to the four essential ways on how to boost meeting attendance, let’s understand the key factors of the meeting, including HOA board meeting requirements. 

What is the HOA Board Meeting?

HOA has five types of meetings — board meetings, annual meetings, executive sessions, committee meetings, and emergency meetings, out of which the most common one is the regular HOA board meeting. HOA board meeting requirements include notifying members of the meeting date between seven and thirty days in advance. 

  • How Often Should the HOA Board Meet?

Generally, the HOA board meeting is held monthly and quarterly, depending on the organization’s size and how much work your association needs to handle. Usually, smaller associations will need to meet up quarterly, while larger ones need monthly meetings. You can check on your association’s by-laws to find out the frequency of board meetings. If your governing documents don’t mention the board meeting’s frequency, then consider organizing it at least quarterly.  

  • Who Can Attend HOA Board Meetings?

Are HOA board meetings open to the public? Who can attend HOA board meetings? These are all questions that members might think about. 

It is essential to check by-laws and governing documents for finding out HOA board requirements regarding the attendees of the meeting. Some homeowners associations open these meetings to the general public, and others only let property owners attend. 

Generally, the board of directors and all community members can attend HOA board meetings to discuss essential topics. However, homeowners cannot participate in executive sessions that usually occur before or after the HOA board meeting. These sessions should be private because board members discuss sensitive and confidential topics, including legal, financial, personnel issues, and more. 

  • Can HOA Board Members Meet in Private?

People may ask can HOA board members meet in private? And the answer is yes. The board of directors can hold private and closed meetings, which are the executive sessions mentioned above.

  • Topics Discussed in the HOA Board Meeting

Here are some topics that members discuss during the meeting:

  • Resolve disputes
  • Manage the progress of HOA maintenance projects
  • Discuss management reports
  • Review the HOA’s financials
  • Give suggestions for property management projects
  • Raise questions and more

Board members take minutes of the meeting, which are official records that include the association’s name, time, date, and the location of the meeting, the summary of the actions, and votes that the board took during the meeting, etc. Seasoned HOA members’ qualities are essential for taking good meeting minutes.

After knowing the basics of HOA board meetings, we need to understand how to run an HOA board meeting and how to get people to come to meetings more frequently to engage in community matters. 

How to Get People to Come to Meetings?

You may be wondering how to get people to come to meetings more. The board should know essential aspects of how to run HOA board meetings successfully to make people attend them without boredom. Here are four essential ways on how to boost meeting attendance. 

1. Share the Homeowners Association Meeting Agenda 

The first way to promote people to attend HOA board meetings is by sharing a noteworthy homeowners association meeting agenda. Share the agenda with attendees to show how you appreciate their time and engagement. Through an agenda, you clarify what topics the meeting will discuss and what time it starts and ends. Homeowners are more likely to attend HOA board meetings when topics apply to their concerns and are mentioned in the agenda. When you take homeowners’ concerns seriously, they feel heard and notice your care. 

2. Provide a Worthy Space

The place where the meeting occurs is crucial for encouraging homeowners to attend HOA board meetings. The place should be enough for attendees and have sufficient chairs and tables, and any essential resources that participants will need. This will encourage HOA members to come to meetings with pleasure. Moreover, the meeting location should be near the community because the shorter commute will motivate more people to attend. 

3. Use Media

How can we imagine the current time without technologies and media? Advertise the board meeting using flyers or making posts on your social media platforms. Notify all the members via emails in advance. Advertise the event on your HOA newsletters and send regular reminders to the attendees. 

If you wonder how to run an HOA board meeting that will keep the attendee’s attention, you will definitely need visuals as well. Now, it’s difficult for participants to catch speakers’ lectures without media. By presenting critical topics with relevant videos or images, you can help attendees understand complex issues more easily. 

4. Be Concise

The shorter your HOA board meetings are, the more likely members will attend to them. Follow HOA Board meeting etiquette, including governing documents, by-laws, and try to shorten the meetings because no one likes a meeting that drags on forever. First of all, start from your agenda and keep it brief, prioritizing the most urgent issues. Follow the agenda and during the meeting discuss each issue in order. Try to organize the meeting for an hour or 90 minutes if your association is larger. While shortening the meeting time, make sure to include HOA board meeting requirements.

These were all the essential points for you to know all about HOA board meetings. If you need any help sending agendas, distributing minutes, or attending meetings, you can always opt for HOA support and administrative services of Wall Street HOA Management.