Hi everyone

Welcome to the wonderful world of HOAs, better known as the community of brotherly love.

Bad idea. If you resign the majority of the board will choose a replacement to fill your seat. Who do you think they will choose? Someone like you who tries to do the right thing? Or someone more like the rest of the board?

This is what I'm trying to do, but my hubby knows I need to express myself, and then when I come home and need to deal with my girls I'm stressed. I don't like the way our Pres. Deals with people ... Never have. This is a small community, and it's made me so fearful of HOAs that I don't think I'll ever be able to live in one again (my first home). I don't like being on the Board ... I was misled and I can tell I'll end up with fewer friends by the time I get off. This is a DVD community, like the nation.

Welcome Sally.

A few points of discussion.

1. All associations have a Chief Complaining Officer (CCO) but they are a fellow owner and must be paid proper respect even when we all say, not that ahole again. Maybe this person is or is not. Do you know yet?

2. Minutes are not rants and raves nor an exact account of all said. Some are nothing more then actual motions and actions on such.

Motion made on so and so by Harry. Motion seconded by Elizabeth. Motion discussed. Motion voted on, Motion failed 4-3. This simple statement might cover 3 hours of heated debate. No need for the specific/words of that debate to be in the minutes. Try keeping the minutes exact and professional. Keep the personal stuff out. When asked say you want to be precise and professional, not personal.

3. Requests for financials can mean various things. They can be as simple as a copy of last years financials/budgets which all are entitled to. Many times the request can be a witch hunt where they want to account for every penny spent to whom and when as they are looking to hang someone. These type financials are impossible to prepare. Which ones are you being asked for and is the information readily available?

4. Maybe your personal life is to busy to spent the necessary time to be on the BOD. Is, maybe best you do resign.

5. Maybe you are the type that wants to know what is going on and help and if for no other reason, then to protect yourself. If so, then hang in there.

6. Many first time BODers get on as they have a specific agenda/item they care about and when that item is dealt with, they no longer care and do not participate. These people are often the most useless BOD members as they fade away and do not contribute.

Not sure any of this helps but I tried.

As usual, I agree with LarryB13. Maybe your president is able to get rid of people he disagrees with by turning up the stress. Although I agree with your sentiment to not live in another HOA, while you are there you might as well get experience in winning friends and influencing people, valuable skills wherever you go and whatever you do. As for as losing friends, I think that you will make both friends and enemies by taking a stand for what you believe is right. You can cut relations with enemies later, while keeping your friends.

You might find in your HOA documents that it is the secretary's responsibility to maintain, handle, or control the HOA records, files, documents. So actually it would be appropriate for the secretary to provide the financials that the HO (not to be confused with ho) requested. It is good that a homeowner is willing to scrutinize the financials because many directors aren't willing or able to do that job. Homeowners who aren't directors are volunteers too. Calling a record request a "witch hunt" seems paranoid to me.

What a great opportunity. As secretary, you can write the minutes the way you want. Make the president state his desired changes to the minutes at the next open board meeting. Then record in the next meeting minutes the changes your President wanted, so it becomes more obvious who is trying to make "the old guy" look bad. The minutes don't even have to be revised to suit the President if a majority don't approve the revisions.

Don't just go along to get along. Do what's right. Does anybody in your HOA appreciate that? If no, then move.

Moving is just not ideal at the moment with my girls and job. The expenses are too great. However when the mkt really recovers then that will be the top priority. I already spend some free time trying to find communities where there is no HOA. while they are older and the homes plainer I think there is a better quality of life when you are free to make your own decisions without ever getting someone in between the HO and their goals. I don't mind giving up amenities we don't use ... And why don't we use them? Gossip, fights, germs ... In some ways HOAs force people to get to know ea other when they otherwise wouldn't travel in the same circles. Sometimes that's good, sometimes it's bad.

I'm in my mid thirties and I see the kids that are graduating now without jobs and very few with the desire to raise a family. I certainly worry about my kids ... overall I'm guessing that today's graduates won't put up with an HOA. I'm not sure they even care to own. They are more content to blog, jog and smoke a few Co joints. They hook up on the internet and don't socialize like our generation does. HOAs just might be a dinosaur.

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts.

One reason I agreed to be President (a job I did not really want) was I did not agree with how our President (before me) was treating our Property Manager. We have a good PM that we almost lost due to "lack of communication". Long story.
The morning after I was voted as President, I woke up to a major problem. Thanks to the backing of the current Board members this problem was resolved although it did take some time to resolve the problems.