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January 24, 2008
HOW TO "SHARPEN YOUR SAW"
It's Time to "Sharpen The Saw" - It's a New Year and there are some things that we all can do to make this one easier. One of my New Year’s resolutions is to add more “tools” to the “tool kit” to help Boards cope with all of the challenges brought on by complicated laws, hard to understand documents, and lots of responsibilities.
So what solutions might you find to the day-to-day challenges that arise? Where do you start?
First, you might outline all subjects that you think need attention. For example, my list of things to get together includes: book outlines, primers to write, items to put up on the website, list of classes to develop, list of trips coming up, and seminar outlines. What will yours include?
Here are some suggestions:
KEEP AN ONGOING TO DO LIST: Think about it. How can you keep everything you need to do in your head? You need a TO DO list. Why? There are many reasons but one very important one is that it is a stress reliever. If you transfer thoughts in your head to a list, they sit somewhere else for the time being and your mind is not clogged or overtaxed with these things. And they are still there everytime you look at it.
Another very important reason (related to your mental health) is the feeling of accomplishment or achievement each day. It helps keep your spirits up. Many of us do not even realize how much we do each day, until we actually see it! Crossing tasks off the list does just that - it provides a good feeling, a relief, and a sense of achievement. It is one of my favorite tasks each day. And of course, it helps get things done on time and that is important in order to be successful in your work. The absolute worst attorneys, managers, professionals, and board members (or any leaders for that matter) are those who do not get things done on time. They complicate things for everyone else.
CREATE POLICIES and/or CHECKLISTS: The # of laws relating to HOAs in California is staggering. Coordinating laws with the governing documents is a daunting task. You need something easier to work with. It’s that simple! Remember: K.I.S.S. in 2008! I hate to be sexist, but here goes: women will understand this: it is much easier to navigate shopping with a shopping list, rather than taking the recipe to the local market to shop. If you have a list, you will know when you are done, and can avoid the impulse decisions and mistakes. For men, perhaps it is easier to envision the greater ease in having directions to a location before you leave home, (gotta love that GPS system), rather than to have to navigate a complicated (or for those of us over 40 - impossible to read) road map, especially while driving. And who wants to stop and ask for directions anyway? A policy, rule, or checklist may be taking the easy way out, and why not? Here are some types of policies and rules that may help you out, and I am sure you can imagine others.
Meetings/Agenda Policy: The California statutes have many requirements for meetings and the new agenda law that became effective January 1, 2008. To add insult to injury, one has to also compare the governing documents for the HOA to determine what requirements exist for meetings. Things that are important include notice timing and requirements, procedures during the meeting, when and how members can speak (the homeowner forum), what happens if anyone disrupts the meeting, who may attend, and what happens if an item is raised that is not on the agenda for the meeting. A 1-2 page policy on the specific procedures would be a breath of fresh air. This kind of thing benefits not only the Board and management, but also the members who attend the meeting and need to understand the processes. And a policy that includes a procedure for handling disruptions can be given to a member to silence them. Believe it or not, it's harder to argue with a piece of paper than a living, breathing Board President.
Compliance Policy (Nicer Name) or Enforcement Policy/Fines Policy: The laws on enforcement and getting compliance are also quite complicated. There are statutes on fines, disciplinary hearings, IDR (Internal Dispute Resolution), ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution), filing a lawsuit, suspension of membership rights, and there are limitations on various remedies. And, again, each HOA has governing documents that may add to or contradict the laws. It’s not easy to sort this all out, particularly after a violation needs to be addressed. What is the first step? A policy with timelines and requirements for letters and notices, steps for addressing violations (maybe with distinctions between serious and less serious ones), a fines schedule (which is required by law if any HOA is going to fine any owner), and other remedies that may be considered would sure help. Again, a 1-2 page policy or checklist of steps would be the easy way out - but why not?
Parking/Towing Policy/ and Contract: Last year, we were talking about a new law that made towing vehicles from CIDs seemingly more complicated. As it turned out, it was actually easier to cope with in some ways. The pre-tow notice requirements were, at least in my estimation, clarified and simplified. However, there were other things that indicated the need for a clear and understandable tow policy and a protective contract. The tow companies and drivers were burdened with many additional requirements by the new statutes. HOAs need protection from the risk of assuming any liability from the tow driver’s and tow companies mistakes. The HOAs have to assign someone to be on site to authorize a tow. And that person is responsible for determining when a tow was warranted and legal. It is obvious that the person given authority to ask for tows has to have a list of tow situations that is clear. How does one get such a list?
A good policy...
There are many other subjects that might be worthy of a policy such as maintenance responsibilities, satellite dish placement and screening, architectural standards, reserves savings and investments; cross-protections from embezzlement and fidelity issues, check authorizing and signing limitations, and maybe a Code of Ethics for Board Members. I am sure you can think of some too.
CREATE RULES: Much of the discussion on creating policies applies likewise to rules. In many cases, the distinction is difficult to describe. Both contain regulations of one kind or another. But a different analogy for rule-setting might work better. Think of the fact that most of society is willing to live within reasonable parameters. There is a troublesome “fringe”, to be sure, but most want to act responsibly and get along with those around them. So let’s focus on the masses for a moment. If people know what is expected of them, they are likely to accept it. And if the rules are written in a positive vein as opposed to “you can’t do this” and “you can’t do that”, even better. And, the truth is that while neither owners or tenants (or maybe even board members) will ever read the CC&Rs, most will at the least read the rules.
I suggest you make a New Year’s Resolution to make your life easier, through the use of a TO DO list upon which you might place the following: “Develop checklists, policies, and rules on these subjects: ... blah, blah, and blah (add your own).”
And check out my website at http://www.californiacondoguru.com for the January E-Newsletter with more on this subject, and watch for upcoming notices of classes, publications, WEB CHATS, and other tools that are and will be available in the coming year.
Posted by Beth Grimm at January 24, 2008 9:30 PM