Welcome Committee

For any HOA that has an active "Welcome Committee", can you detail for me what the members of committee give to any new resident in their HOA?

My understanding is that a realtor should be given to any home buyer at a minimum a copy of the bylaws and covenants of any HOA. Beyond that, what are some of the items that may be in a new resident official welcome packet?

Thanking you all in advance

Our Welcome committee gives a packet of information to each new owner to the Association. This committee will answer owner questions but will not be giving any of the governing documents. That is the responsibility of the seller.

First, a property sale in a HOA in Texas, if a title company is involved, generally follows these steps regarding the governing documents:

1. While the seller is technically responsible for providing the documents, there is no guarantee the documents in the possession of the seller are current. Further, the seller does not have some of the documents which must be provided the buyer. Therefore . . . .

2. Upon receipt of the contract for sale, the title company contacts the management company which prepares the Resale Certificate, current copies of the association documents, and other required information such as the current balance sheet, insurance certificate, etc.

With respect to a Welcome Committee, as the MC we meet with a new owner in the properties we manage. We manage very small condominium associations which have no committees of any kind. We provide an orientation to the property and area, contact information for the MC and the Board, and ensure they understand parking guidelines/rules. We also ensure they have a hard copy of the association rules, if there are any.

In the Association in which we reside, a 105 single family home sub-association of a 9,300 home master association, the Welcome Committee provides:

1. Contact information for the Board
2. Documents which describe association activities, events, and committees. This includes the book club, bridge group, Bunco group, ladies lunch group, National Night Out, Picnic in the Park, etc.
3. An orientation to the sub and master associations and the community
4. Information regarding payment of sub and master association assessments
5. An extract from the Bylaws and Declaration of the rules and guidelines of the association
6. A 'who to contact' list which includes a listing of common scenarios and contact points including city departments, master association contacts such as for general information, modifications, etc., sub-association contact points, and a 'contact of last resort' if the new owner needs help.

Our Welcome Packet to our urban high rise, along with other items mentioned, contains the addresses and contract info for the nearest service a new resident will likely need right away: hardware store, veterinarian, postal store, supermarket/pharmacy. It also has emergency info for safety topics like fires and medical emergencies.

While owners are required to give their tenants our C&Rs, and rules & Regs, we can't count on them so our onsite PM Asst. sends emails new residents the CC&Rs and Rules & Regs. she also meets with them for questions and shows them how to use our websites.

I believe the key here is that you should not assume the realtor has provided them with anything, so give them a list of the most important things they need:

* Rules and Regulations
* Governing Documents
* Architectural Guidelines

We also provide several one page information sheets:

* Important contacts, our web site information, etc.
* A list of "things to do" such as how to get their mailbox key, how to get their clubhouse fob, who to contact for trash collection, etc
* Explanation of the architectural review process
* How to pay HOA fees

Hello. Welcome to our HOA. Pay your dues on time, do not commit any violations, and we will leave your a$$ alone.