How To Start A Motion With HOA Board Voting

Have you ever been at an HOA board meeting and what seemed like a minor issue ended up taking most of the meeting because members failed to reach an agreement?  That was probably due to a lack of standard procedures for conducting business during meetings.

Standard procedures can be extremely helpful when starting motions and getting the board to vote on an issue in question.  With firm procedures in place, members are less likely to waste time going back and forth on matters.  When comments are kept to a minimum, meetings go smoother and usually become more productive.

 

As a board member who follows the rules, you need to wait until other members have finished talking about an issue before presenting your own motion.  Then, start the motion by addressing the board with, “I move that our community”, then go on and state your motion.

As soon as you have mentioned the motion, another member should second your motion in order for all members to begin discussing it.  If no one else seconds the motion, it won’t be considered.  On the other hand, if another member seconds the motion, the board should officially discuss the matter before members and later call for a vote.

 

Minutes are the official record of the proceedings at an HOA meeting and associations are required to maintain these records.  When you start a motion, the secretary should be granted adequate time to write the specifics of the motion.  These minutes can then be placed on the homeowner association website where all members may review them.

When meetings are carried out according to standard procedures, there will undoubtedly be increased effectiveness and more members might voice their opinions.  Furthermore, the minutes become clearer and nearly all members will understand them when they’re placed on the homeowner association website!