C ROYALOUNCIL MBOARDEMBERS
THE OF S H E I N DI V IDU A L B O A E
By Pedro Cuerva, CMCA, AMS, Clearview Management, Inc.
anaging an association would certainly be much easier if the property manager wielded the same absolute power as the much-hated King Joffrey in the HBO series Game of Thrones. No deliberation, no debate, no question. Thy will be done! Then again, he might suffer the same ill fate since homeowners will not tolerate a tyrant.
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In the world of condominium and homeowner associations, there is no single ruler. There is an owner-elected board of directors, and in the case of many larger associations, often a board-hired property manager who is either an employee of the association or of a management company. The board then appoints from among its members a President, Treasurer and Secretary.
The President, although endowed with a powerful title and charged with running the board meetings, has the same weighted vote as the other individual board members. While the President may sign contracts and other legal documents, he or she can only rightfully do so under the board’s authority.
28 | COMMON INTEREST®
The Master of Coin, <ahem>, I mean the Treasurer, likewise cannot act on his or her own accord. Ideally, the Treasurer would have a good grasp of basic accounting. His or her fundamental task is to monitor the fiscal health of the association and report findings and recommendations to the rest of the board.
The Secretary’s primary responsibility is to maintain the records of the association, including board meeting minutes. On occasion, as with the adoption of amendments or resolutions, the Secretary may be called upon to affix his or her signature on a document to certify its validity.
The board’s involvement in day-to-day matters will vary with every association. Naturally, smaller self-managed associations will demand the most time from its board and officers. There are no slaves or squires (i.e. property managers) to rely upon to handle contract negotiations, process invoices, or manage homeowner concerns. Although if you are lucky enough to have an involved homeownership, you may have volunteer homeowners serve in committees charged with tackling certain areas of interest. In some cases, a board may outsource all accounting functions but retain all administrative responsibilities.
A Publication of CAI-Illinois Chapter
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