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HOA Tools Community

Our Home Owners Association (HOA) Tools were developed to support a HOA where the residents are the owners and live in the community year round. It is for places that have amenities such as a clubhouse, pool, etc. In these settings there is a board elected by the homeowners. They then hire vendors to perform daily operations and maintain the common HOA areas. A management company is typically hired. So everyone assumes the management company will do everything and do it well. However, that is a wrong assumption.

The HOA is a company itself. It is a non profit company that exists in the public trust of the community owners. The board runs this company with the help of residents that are part of committees. The board has a fiduciary responsibility to the homeowners. The challenge is to ensure that the HOA non profit company and its board have tools to effectively manage the organization.

When a builder develops a community with a HOA it provides only rudimentary tools to manage the HOA. These tools are primarily to support their responsibility until the community transitions to full control by the homeowners. Once the builder takes a minority role and eventually leaves, the HOA is left to it own devices to develop the tools that are actually needed to run a high quality HOA. Once the builder leaves, the community may start a downward quality spiral. Many homeowners do not have the background to address this serious issue.

The reality is that the management vendor is there to make a profit and do only what is in the contract. Further they will not have the tools that are needed to support HOA management. The HOA itself must step up to the challenge and manage its operations.

These tools are offered as a starting point for providing a high quality HOA. These tools are not a be all and end all. They are here to help you to start to think in a certain way so that you can develop what you need and address new concerns as they surface.

When you become a member you gain full access to our tools. They address the following areas and include various policies, procedures, forms, checklists, and spreadsheets:

Quality Management

Vendor Performance Forms
Community Inspection Checklists
Defect tracking online tool and spreadsheet template

Vendor Selection

Policy and procedure document
Existing Vendor evaluation document
Tradeoff selection matrix spreadsheet

Board Training

Responsibility to residents
Transparency and right to know
Board public trust
Board public treatment
Vendor problems
Losing control to vendors

Budget Analysis

Policy and procedure
Reporting at each meeting
Year over year visualization spreadsheet

Community Website

Policy and procedures document
Website development instructions
Prototype website structure

Technology management

Misuse of technology guidelines
Privacy cautions

Conflict of Interest

Vendor Conflict Of Interest Training
Board Member Conflict Of Interest Training
Conflict of interest examples

As you can see the tools are focused on protecting the interests of the residents. This is in contrast to protecting the interests of a company that owns property with renters or a vacation community where investors are trying to maximize their returns. This is a subtle but important distinction and the first step in bringing your HOA under control so that it acts in the best interests of you the owner resident.

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Organazation Maturity Levels

Levels

Named

Typical Evidence

Failure Risk

Description

1

Chaotic

None

Very High

There are no processes other than weak paper trails. Everything is random, you don't know what anyone will do next, things are very political, lots of liars and bullshit artists, and honest folks are afraid, management prays on the innocent. Failure risk comes from no documented evidence and conflicting statements from people.

2

Repeatable

Tribal Knowledge

High

Things tend to get done in a repeatable way, everyone knows what everyone else is doing and how their part fits into the collective. Failure risk comes from no documented evidence.

3

Documented

Documents

Medium

There are documented processes that people follow and the documents are maintained, in other words they always represent more or less what is happening no matter the time of the year or what year it happens to be. Failure risk comes from poor documents because there are no reasonable automation tools.

4

Measurable

Computer Tools Internet Website

Low

The organization actually starts to measure stuff that matters, everyone knows those measures and are not afraid of the measures because everyone is enlightened enough to not hurt anyone in the group, so it's not about shallow productivity asset stripping schemes by poor management. Failure risk is low because there is documented evidence.

5

Predictable

Computer Tools Internet Website

Very Low

Based on metrics the organization evaluates new techniques, technologies, tools and it is able to make qualitative and quantitative predictions about their introduction into the process. Failure risk is very low because there is documented evidence and the organization is constantly thinking about improvements rather than ignoring issues as they arise.

* Failure risk is a the risk of a negative event.

HOA Website Maturity Levels

Levels

Named

Rating

Failure Risk

Website

Email

Storage

HOA Docs

Defect Database

Description

1

None

Very Low

Very High

-

-

-

-

-

No website. No company email accounts. HOA data is not being archived in an online service. This usually i.s the state when the builder is still in the community. Once the builder turns the HOA operation over to the HOA non profit company it must move to Level 2. Failure risk comes from personal email accounts used for official HOA business.

2

Rudimentary

Low

High

X

X

-

-

-

Website and company email accounts. Website is rudimentary splash page with no real content that is helpful to anyone. Failure risk comes from lost data such as meeting minutes and unreasonable access to old paper documents

3

Casual

Medium

Med

X

X

-

-

-

Level 2 plus. Website has events, meeting minutes, and HOA documents on file at the state level. It is primarily for the casual resident. While most of the important non personal identifying data is archived on the website, the other HOA business is not archived except on the management company computers which may withhold the data after contract termination.

4

Professional

High

Very Low

X

X

X

X

-

Level 3 plus. Includes HOA documents like budgets, policies, procedures, and HOA data is archived on web server non public area. It is a serious tool for the engaged resident, the board and committees. Both the public HOA data and the private HOA data is preserved and will not be lost.

5

Professional

Elite

Very Low

X

X

X

X

X

Level 4 plus. There is a defect and communications submission mechanism with reporting that is an electronic online database. There are procedures, forms and training for Quality Management, Vendor Selection, Board Training from the resident perspective, Budget Analysis, Technology, and Conflict Of Interest.

* Failure risk is a the risk of a negative event.

Members Access

Latest Info . Quality Management . Vendor Selection . Board Training . Budget Analysis . Website . Technology . Conflict Of Interest

Levels	Named	Typical Evidence	Failure Risk	Description
1	Chaotic	None	Very High	There are no processes other than weak paper trails. Everything is random, you don't know what anyone will do next, things are very political, lots of liars and bullshit artists, and honest folks are afraid, management prays on the innocent. Failure risk comes from no documented evidence and conflicting statements from people.
2	Repeatable	Tribal Knowledge	High	Things tend to get done in a repeatable way, everyone knows what everyone else is doing and how their part fits into the collective. Failure risk comes from no documented evidence.
3	Documented	Documents	Medium	There are documented processes that people follow and the documents are maintained, in other words they always represent more or less what is happening no matter the time of the year or what year it happens to be. Failure risk comes from poor documents because there are no reasonable automation tools.
4	Measurable	Computer Tools Internet Website	Low	The organization actually starts to measure stuff that matters, everyone knows those measures and are not afraid of the measures because everyone is enlightened enough to not hurt anyone in the group, so it's not about shallow productivity asset stripping schemes by poor management. Failure risk is low because there is documented evidence.
5	Predictable	Computer Tools Internet Website	Very Low	Based on metrics the organization evaluates new techniques, technologies, tools and it is able to make qualitative and quantitative predictions about their introduction into the process. Failure risk is very low because there is documented evidence and the organization is constantly thinking about improvements rather than ignoring issues as they arise.

Levels	Named	Rating	Failure Risk	Website	Email	Storage	HOA Docs	Defect Database	Description
1	None	Very Low	Very High	-	-	-	-	-	No website. No company email accounts. HOA data is not being archived in an online service. This usually i.s the state when the builder is still in the community. Once the builder turns the HOA operation over to the HOA non profit company it must move to Level 2. Failure risk comes from personal email accounts used for official HOA business.
2	Rudimentary	Low	High	X	X	-	-	-	Website and company email accounts. Website is rudimentary splash page with no real content that is helpful to anyone. Failure risk comes from lost data such as meeting minutes and unreasonable access to old paper documents
3	Casual	Medium	Med	X	X	-	-	-	Level 2 plus. Website has events, meeting minutes, and HOA documents on file at the state level. It is primarily for the casual resident. While most of the important non personal identifying data is archived on the website, the other HOA business is not archived except on the management company computers which may withhold the data after contract termination.
4	Professional	High	Very Low	X	X	X	X	-	Level 3 plus. Includes HOA documents like budgets, policies, procedures, and HOA data is archived on web server non public area. It is a serious tool for the engaged resident, the board and committees. Both the public HOA data and the private HOA data is preserved and will not be lost.
5	Professional	Elite	Very Low	X	X	X	X	X	Level 4 plus. There is a defect and communications submission mechanism with reporting that is an electronic online database. There are procedures, forms and training for Quality Management, Vendor Selection, Board Training from the resident perspective, Budget Analysis, Technology, and Conflict Of Interest.