HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - January 28, 2011
Published: Mon, 01/24/11
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Would Term Limits Be Good for Your HOA Board of Directors?
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In this week's tip, we give you the skinny on term limits for HOA
board members.
Term limits for an HOA board of directors are rare, and they're
becoming even more so. "I can't recall seeing an association that
has term limits in place," says Matthew A. Drewes, a partner at
Thomsen & Nybeck PA in Edina, Minn., who represents associations.
"It's certainly not common."
Neither can Nathaniel Abbate Jr., a partner at Makower Abbate &
Associates PLLC in Farmington Hills, Mich., who represents
associations. "We probably represent about 800 associations, and
I've been at this firm for 10 years," he says. "I can't think of
one that has term limits, though there's nothing in Michigan law
that I'm aware of that would preclude them."
That doesn't mean term limits don't exist in HOA governing
documents. "I've seen them," says Dennis J. Eisinger, a partner at
Eisinger, Brown, Lewis & Frankel PA in Hollywood, Fla., who
represents more than 500 condo and HOA associations. "They used
to be much more common. Now under the condo statute in Florida,
they're effectively outlawed. The statute doesn't say it in those
words. But it says that everyone is eligible to run for the board,
so effectively there can be no more term limits. Under the
Florida HOA statute, if the documents allow for term limits,
there can be term limits. Even there, term limits rarely come
into play anymore."
"I can envision there could be some benefits to term limits,"
says Drewes, "but there are also some detriments."
The biggest pro is that the risk of a tyranny may be lessened. "
You may be able to reduce the possibility that there's what some
people might consider a dictatorship, where a long-term member
appears to rule with an iron hand," explains Drewes. "When you
always have the same people or a particular person on the board,
there can be the impression that things are being run for the
benefit of one person or a small group of people as opposed to
the good of all. By having, encouraging, or requiring board
turnover, you might have more openness and more people involved
in the association's governance."
What are the cons--and are there alternatives to term limits for
HOA board members? For answers, see our new article,
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/530.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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Tips for Making Sure Your HOA's Assessment Level is Just Right
This week's tip gives you a head start on a three-step method for
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Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/public/530.cfm >
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How Can Your HOA Determine the Right Assessment Level?
Too often, developers minimize assessments on owners to entice
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Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/members/529.cfm >
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Great condo or HOA board members possess most, if not all, of 10
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In this week's tip, we discuss three of them.
Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/public/528.cfm >
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Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/members/527.cfm >
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Are Your Manager or Fellow Board Members Secretive?
In this week's tip, we answer a reader's request for help in
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Our experts' advice serves as a helpful reminder to all board
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Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/public/526.cfm >
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