HOA from ground Zero

I live in a small 15 house subdivision in Texas. I have been asked to take over the Presidency of the Association, but am reluctant to do so until I know the laws in Texas.

Can anyone give me advise on where to start?

How is an HOA official?
What is required other than a covenant, etc.

would appreciate any help ont he topic.

Thank you for the start.

Hi John,

I'd say just start reading through the archives to familiarize yourself with the kind of issues most properties seem to have. Documents, members, voting, covenent enforcement...

Being on the BOD has a HUGE learning curve, so just start small, taking baby steps, and come post here if you wonder about pretty much anything. There are no stupid questions...just the ones you either don't ask or the ones you assume you know the answer to.

Good luck!

Hi John,

First heed what Susan above has posted. Second, check out the Library section of this website. There is a link to CAN (Community Associations Network. They have lots of information posted as well as state specific information. Here is a link to that website, under the State of Texas http://www.communityassociations.net/texas_main.html

Good luck and keep us posted!

You have lived there for 8 years and have only gotten a copy of the covenants last year?

John, with all due respect, it seems as though you have been as much a part of the problem as the rest of the owners.

You've lived there for 8 years, have known there was an association and that it had certain functions, responsibilities and covenants, and only last year woke up enough to obtain a copy of the covenants?

I'm not trying to be harsh, but that's a little surprising.

What was the catalyst? What woke you out of your 7-year-apathy?

Was the association under developer control that entire time? When was the turnover to the residents?

Why did no one step forward to help the second president for the last 3 years?

I will give you kudos for realizing that something needs to be done and being pro-active enough (now) to step up to the plate and be the one to help fix it.

And I will most definitely cheer you along and help with whatever advice I can impart, even though some of the more detailed, in the weeds kind of stuff will vary.

Best of luck to you!

And strap on your seat belt, it's going to be a bumpy ride!

John,

In reading your messages, one thing you said struck me as being odd. You stated every property owner is a member of the BOD. Did you mean to say they are all members of the assn?

If you are seriously considering a run for a board position, I would suggest you familiarize yourself with your gov docs. Read them thoroughly, take notes if necessary. Know and understand what the duties and resp. of a board member are. Next, check out state laws for HOAs, including the state nonprofit corp act if your HOA is a nonprofit (most are). The board must also abide by the state laws. All this will give you a head start should you be elected.

Okay, John, I think I hear what you are saying. You didn't know what you didn't know.

So in the 5 years you were not aware of how an HOA works, except for the part about paying assessments, you are saying that you were also unaware that there were covenants attacked to your land?

So in that 5-year period, nobody knew there were things they could not do?

You have a big job ahead of you and I salute you for wanting to step forward the correct way to move to action.

As mentioned up-thread, probably the single most important step you can take is to now familiarize yourself with the covenants and any other governing documents.

It is a rough but I feel very rewarding job to take on!

Best of luck to you!

Couple of things, when the developer was in control, he most likely had the power to "approve" or "waive" the masonry/non-masonry requirements, so I wouldn't go down that road.

But there is a difference between being a member of the BOARD and a member of the ASSOCIATION.

Are you sure you are reading that correctly?

One thing to keep in mind in Texas is the statute of limitations. As for you roof, it may or may not have been approved. But it is too late either way. There is a four year statute on violations. So if they have been in place four years then there is nothing to be done.

Since stucco is mostly cement I am sure it counted as masonry.

One of the big things you should do if you take over is to file liens against any non-paying members. This will protect the others from the lost expense eventually. I won't go into the debate now as for if and when you should file to foreclose on a non-paying member. But at least a lien will provide for recovery of the moeny when the house sells.

Beth,

The liability issues are the same no matter the size of your assn or how many members are serving on the board. Although one person could probably handle all the functions of running your assn quite well, it really would be better to have 3 board members.

I suggest you look at TX HOA statutes to find out what happens if no one can be found to run for a board position. Look at the nonprofit corp laws. In AZ the nonprofit corp statutes state that the incumbent stays in office until a replacement can be found.

This is the wording I found in the Texas non profit code:

....a director shall hold office until the next annual election of directors and until his successor shall have been elected, appointed, or designated and qualified.

I guess that means a director is there until relieved by another volunteer? Yikes! That's like a prison sentence. However, it also seems directors have the power to "appoint" other directors. That would be the way to exit I guess?

It says:

....If the method of election, designation, or appointment is not provided in the articles of incorporation or by-laws, the directors, other than the initial directors, shall be elected by the board of directors.

It's like a big circular dance

Beth,

The fact that your bylaws call for a 3-member board but you have only one doesn't mean your actions are illegal. If you cannot get members to run for office it's through no fault of your own that your board is short members. I'm sure none of the assn members are going to complain. But, if someone does all you have to do is tell them to run for a spot on the board!!

Have you thoroughly checked your bylaws to find out if the board can make appointments to fill vacancies on the board? This is a very common requirement for most assns. Also check out the state nonprofit corp act; it it's not addressed in your bylaws it most likely is in the state statutes. Oftentimes members will be hesitant to run for a board position but will be receptive to accepting an appointment. I guess some people just don't like the possibility of losing!

No, actually you need to do it the other way around. If your docs say that the PRESIDENT (which is an OFFICER position) is to be selected by the BOARD, then when you run for election, what you run for is for Board Member only.

Then, if you win (which it sounds like you will) then the BOARD (you) will appoint/select/elect yourself as President.

In other words, people are confusing officer titles with board member (director) positions.

No, not having board members will not make the corp defunct. But someone has to file the annual reports and do the administrative work (which is what the Board of Directors does).

So it sounds like your membership needs to ELECT DIRECTORS for the board.

Then, once the directors are elected (by the membership), they become the Board of Directors (or "members" of the board).

Once on the board, then those individuals elect from among their board people to fill the officer titles (President, Vice President, Sec, Treasurer).

In your case, if you are the only person running for the board, you will most likely automatically be president once the election is over.

Then you can appoint additional board members, and sort out who gets to be VP, Sec or Treasurer from there.

Beth,

If there is a Pres, then there is a BOD.

I don't know what's so hard for the members to understand. The assn should have a 3-member board which means that at least 3 members from among them should be willing to run for a position on the board. If they are really content with only one member being resp. for making all the decisions for the HOA, then, IMO, there's not much common sense in the whole lot. I'm certainly not saying you would ever do anything illegal that would be of benefit to you, but having only one member in charge of everything could really lead to a lot of mischief.

If you feel comfortable being a BOD of one, then go ahead and run. Otherwise don't put your name on the ballot and see what happens. If the assn ends up w/o a board at all then all the members become personally liable for everything -- paying the bills, personal liability if an injury were to occur on common areas, etc. The members of your assn have to realize that they also have some responsibilities, one being to volunteer their time to keep the assn running. On the other hand, perhaps someone should research dissolving the assn. I don't know what type amenities, if any, you have nor the extent of your common areas; but it may be worth the effort to research this. If it's an impossibility that would be more ammunition to convince your members that it's time for them to step up to the plate and do their part. One person cannot be expected to do it all!

lol I appreciate both your advice and understand your incredulity! I am stunned myself and hence very unsure how to proceed. But the facts are:

1. There IS NO BOARD - and hasn't been since (I think) 1979
2. One President has been running the show
3. There is NO BALLOT
4. Most owners do not have the governing docs and don't care to read copies I bring or hear about it from me (since I am not President)
5. As of now, there are even no official volunteers for President! We are having a meeting to vote (improperly) for an office that no one wants

Mary.......I like your idea of researching dissolution. I will do that and maybe find another way to run the place if the membership persists in ignoring the facts/laws.

Also, thought you might be interested to hear: Texas passed amendments to the Non Profit Corp laws and it now clearly states that "a board member may resign at any time" This obviously has been a sore point with many board members and I guess they successfully lobbied here in Texas!

Thank you both again for your points and advice. I'm sorry to frustrate you. I will take your advice outlined here and let you know the results from the meeting

Shelia I have another idea for your newsletter. One of the best received articles that I wrote was titled "Where Does My Money Go?" I broke down it down into General Maintenance, Administration, Capital Reserves, General Expenses, Ongoing Maintenance Items and Utilities. I explained just what was in each category and how their monthly assessments were spent.

I can't tell you the number of homeowners that commented on the article. Because so much of the stuff that it takes to run an HOA happens behind the scenes or while H/O's are at work they didn't realize just what it takes to keep the lights on and the trash picked up, even though they got the yearly budget breakdown. They knew they had to write the check each month but not what it bought them.

John,

How has this progressed?

How many of your Association's Members (Homeowners) want the HOA? What does your HOA do -- what common properties/facilities does it offer? On what is the budget spent?

Our HOA has only several large, grassy Common Areas that need to be watered and mowed. (Some HOAs have clubhouses, ponds, swimming pools, etc.) The main purpose of our HOA is to maintain these Common Areas and to maintain the architectural standards of the Deed Restrictions in order to keep up property values. Our dues are $260 per year for 280 homes. (They were $260 and less for the past few years, until our current Board got into a lawsuit and is now raising them retroactively and as rapidly as possible without Member input, but that's another story.)

Do your Members think enforcing some of your Covenants would help maintain property values?