What Not to Do When You Receive HOA Communications

In this busy world of the Internet, cell phones, email, social media, television, and daily conversation, some of us are on 24/7 information overload! We communicate non-stop all day with our jobs, our hobbies, and our friends. When we finally reach the comfort of our home, all we want to do is catch our breath. However, communication is what humans were made for, and it keeps us informed about life around us.

So, when you receive HOA communications from your homeowners association or HOA management company, such as letters or emails, there a few things you don’t want to do.

Don’t Put the Newsletters in the Junk Mail Pile

 If you’re like anyone else, you probably just throw your junk mail away without giving it a second glance. Make sure you read the newsletter from your homeowner's association or HOA management company instead of putting it in the junk mail pile.

It may have detailed articles about recent board decisions, announcements about upcoming social events, or important information about legal issues or homeowner trends.

Don’t Make a Paper Airplane Out of Your Special Notice

We’ve all done it. If you’ve violated a homeowners association rule or failed to pay your association fees, then you could run the risk of being fined if your association documents allow for it. Like when you get a parking ticket, failure to pay can result in a hefty fine turning into an even more substantial one or the board having to take action and hire an attorney.

Do yourself a favor and acknowledge the notice received from your association. You can potentially save yourself a lot of time and money if you do.

Don’t Mark Email Communications as Spam

Some homeowners associations may choose to send out notices electronically to save paper and be more economical. These emails may provide weekly reminders about operations, such as the time pool maintenance occurs, give you links to resources, such as home maintenance tips, or the detailed board meeting minutes.

Make sure you save the board's email address and whitelist it so it doesn’t end up in your junk mail folder. You can even have these automatically added to a particular folder you set up for HOA-related issues.

Don’t Accuse your Dog of Eating the CC&Rs

When you first move into your homeowners association, you may receive a copy of the "covenants, conditions, and restrictions” or CC&Rs of the association. It’s easy to stash away CC&Rs and forget about them or maybe even lose them altogether. Don’t blame your dog or toddler for chewing them up. File them away in a safe place.

Associations should also include these as an attachment in any emails so residents don’t have any excuse that they either didn’t receive them or didn’t know the rules and regulations.

Take a Second to Glance at the Bulletin Boards

If your community has bulletin boards, they are usually located in a central location like the clubhouse or gate entrance. Sometimes these boards also have approved flyers from other HOA members advertising items for sale, offering services, or postings from the association advertising upcoming social events and meetings.

Attend Meetings

The member's meetings provide a recap of the HOA’s accomplishments from the past year, as well as the goals and activities for the upcoming year.

Again, it’s important to be informed. Your homeowners association should be doing everything it can to communicate with you, and it’s your job to pay attention!