💬 Join us to post & get advice from 50,000 HOA & Condo leaders.

Create Free Account →

⚡ Takes 30 seconds

Already a member? Log in

WarrenR4 (Colorado)
Posts: 13
Posted:
A brief backstory: community of 5 board members, Delegates in districts can remove or add board members.
In March, I was elected by the delegates to the board to fill the open board position whose term ended at end of 2023, and then subsequently was voted to be the treasurer. The delegates(of which I am also one) voted with 70% majority to recall board members individually, but the management company and the board decided that because all bod were listed, then it meant all or non can be recalled. Fine by me although I was on the board, because if that was the only way to remove the 3 or 4 other bad members, then i would have to get voted off too i guess. So we voted for entire board recall....this meant there was temporarily no board, but in same meeting, voted me and 3 other members back on the board. The president had previously resigned so that position had to be filled by regular election...Confusing enough yet?
Well, but then as we were all elected on the board at the same time, we didnt actually get assigned to either the 3 spots with 2 yrs on their term or the one that had only 1 yr left. The president had only had one year also. So technically there would have to be a decision as to who fills what board position....but the new president(AWFUL and she committed several code of conduct violations recently) had decided that as i was on the board before, and so was she that we resume our terms....meaning at the time, she was vp and a 2 yr term and me as treasurer with 1 year. I believe she cant tell the difference between a director position and officer position....

My question is, should i push for the two year term if I want and cite an improper assignment of terms by the management company and now president? Kicker is that the old management company has since quit as we started to look further into their accounting.... OR since im still a delegate and a board member, should i just look to vote myself back onto the board for a two year term in November when elections happen?

Sorry for the extremely brief synopsis, it may be very confusing....
MelissaP1 (Alabama)
Posts: 13,836
Posted:
I strongly suggest looking at the relationship between the MC and the HOA. There seems to be lines crossed and blurred. Is your HOA still developer owned? If so, the set up makes more sense. If not, then what is the contract between the MC and the HOA look like? The MC is a hired contractor to the HOA. It should NOT be dictating the HOA. It is the other way around.

Former HOA President
ElleN (Idaho)
Posts: 4,420
Posted:
WarrenR4,

Do you understand that directors and officers (president, VP, treasurer et cetera) are two different positions, though often, the same person serves as both a director and officer.

To respond to your question requires that you quote here verbatim what your HOA's Bylaws say about the terms for directors; how officers are elected; and the terms for officers.

Is this a condominium?

Do you know which Colorado statutes apply to this association?

Is this association incorporated?

Is this code of conduct a part of the bylaws? Who implemented the code of conduct?

Understand that people here do not have your association's governing documents in front of them.

If you cannot answer these questions, then you need to pay an attorney.
KerryL1 (California)
Posts: 14,550
Posted:
I, and maybe others, warren, need to understand this "delegate" system. I think it's only come up one here over many years. I also think your narrative is too hard to follow so some who might have good advice aren't truing to help.
WarrenR4 (Colorado)
Posts: 13
Posted:
Yes i understand the difference between the officers and directors. That is a major point of my issue because others do not.
Simply put, there was nothing in the bylaws that addressed how terms are assigned except that the terms are completed if left vacant before the end. There was nothing discussed or addressed surrounding this.

Honestly though, if you don't read what I put, then don't respond.
WarrenR4 (Colorado)
Posts: 13
Posted:
Sorry for the confusion in my question. I do understand it is a difficult situation and has been well beyond what others have tried to comprehend about our HOA. IT appeared that almost nobody had even read the bylaws much less tried to understand them, which is why the recall and reelection was fairly easy.

The delegate system is a typical delegate or district representative system. I will just cancel my question as it will take a long time to fully explain. I will figure it out.
ElleN (Idaho)
Posts: 4,420
Posted:
Quote:
Posted By WarrenR4 on 08/01/2023 12:34 AM
The president had previously resigned so that position had to be filled by regular election...Confusing enough yet?
Well, but then as we were all elected on the board at the same time, we didnt actually get assigned to either the 3 spots with 2 yrs on their term or the one that had only 1 yr left. The president had only had one year also. So technically there would have to be a decision as to who fills what board position....but the new president(AWFUL and she committed several code of conduct violations recently) had decided that as i was on the board before, and so was she that we resume our terms....meaning at the time, she was vp and a 2 yr term and me as treasurer with 1 year.
The reason I asked what I did is because nationwide, it's usual that officers serve at the pleasure of a board majority. It's unusual for officers to be elected.

Also you say that the president resigned. Did the president resign her officer's position (as president)? Or did she resign from being a director?

Some bylaws allow the president to be a non-director.

I think quoting verbatim what your bylaws say about how officers are selected and how directors are selected would be best. Also quoting any verbiage in the bylaws about how long each officer serves and how long each director serves would shed some light here.
JamesB37 (California)
Posts: 351
Posted:
In 2020 we held an election that completely replaced the entire board. (We hadn't had a valid election in years and according to our Bylaws, the BOD just retains their positions until replaced in an election. Bylaws state that all terms after the first election (20 years ago) are for two years.

This year, even though all 5 Directors elected terms had expired, the HOA decided to announce that there were only 2 open positions. (I later found out, they wanted to keep 'staggered terms' because they always have done it that way...)

Well the Bylaws don't say anything about staggered terms after that very first election, and all terms are supposed to be for 2 years. I pushed it, they agreed, and that is how we have 5 open seats this year.

So, does your Bylaws have anything regarding staggered terms or length of terms?

🎯 You've read this entire discussion

Join the conversation with 50,000 HOA & Condo Leaders:

  • ✓ Ask follow-up questions
  • ✓ Share your experience
  • ✓ Get expert advice
  • ✓ Access 350,000 discussions
Create Free Account →

⚡ Takes 30 seconds

Already a member? Log in here