According to Texas homeowners association law, HOA meetings have to happen at least once a year. You should meet more often than the bare minimum, but by law, you'll have to run some meetings. Shouldn't the meetings you run go well?
You should take the time to get a good idea of how to run a meeting. A well-organized meeting takes less time and leaves the participants feeling like you respect their time and effort. A mediocre meeting leaves participants bored and distracted.
If you've got a meeting to run and don't know where to begin, keep reading. We'll give you some key tips for how to make your HOA meeting worth everyone's time.
HOA Meetings Need a Purpose and Scope
When you schedule your HOA meeting, you should know what business it will handle. Do you need to elect directors as part of an annual HOA meeting? Do you need to discuss maintenance and inspections after a weather emergency?
While this sounds simple, a lot of meetings end up slow and meandering. Some estimates indicate that half of all meeting time gets wasted. Going into an HOA board meeting with a sense of purpose will make everything more effective.
In Austin, Texas, the purpose will also determine whether you can run a closed meeting or not. Topics like litigation or personnel issues allow for a closed meeting, while others do not.
Environment Helps
Consider the environment in which the meeting will take place. Do you just need to run something by a few board members, or does this need everyone's input?
Depending on the topic, a Zoom call can make more sense than a face-to-face meeting. A lunch or dinner meeting might suit a situation where you need to meet and discuss something non-sensitive with other board members. Always consider whether the environment you choose will make it easy to convey the necessary information and make the necessary decisions.
Prepare Statements Ahead of Time
If your meeting requires anyone to speak at length on any topic, all speakers should prepare their statements ahead of time. Presentation or speech preparation may seem like a waste of time, but by taking the time to do so, you'll avoid dead air, which can make a meeting drag on.
If you let your audience get distracted, that might lead to another meeting to cover the same topics. Prep can also help you cover dry topics like HOA home value from a different perspective, such as highlighting the benefits of an HOA.
Check Your Bylaws
You don't always need to decide how to run your meeting. Many homeowners associations cover meeting format decisions in their bylaws. Bylaws restrict what an HOA can and cannot do.
If an article in the bylaws of your HOA conflicts with how you'd like to run meetings, you'll need to pursue an amendment. That amendment will then require another meeting.
Meeting the Standard
Running HOA meetings doesn't have to feel like a time-wasting chore. If you go into a meeting with solid preparation and a good sense of the scope, you'll have effective meetings every time.
Call us if you need help running meetings or performing other association management duties in Austin. Our association managers can handle accounting, maintenance, and other tasks for you.
