Top Ten Strategies to Avoid Conflict in Home Owners Associations

Familiarize yourself with the covenant details (before closing)
1. You might have dreams of your new home and lifestyle dancing in your head, but take a break and read the fine print.
2. Do not base your decisions to purchase on solely what you see in the neighborhood. The bottom line that controls the look and lifestyle is what is written in the covenants.
3. Do not expect management to agree with your version of "reasonableness".
4. Talk to a wide range of current residents.
5. Review court records to determine the record of lawsuits the HOA has been involved with.
Honestly assess whether this covenant climate is acceptable for your lifestyle.
1. The greatest disservice you can do is to not be honest with yourself, pretending that the price justifies the restrictions or believing you can get involved and change the covenants.
HOA management should assess whether the covenants are detailed and clear enough for everyone to understand leaving little room for misinterpretation.
HOA management should provide room for individual style in design and form.
HOA architectural control committees (ACC) should provide a mechanism for streamlining approval of typical requests. Provide pre-approval on a wide range of landscaping/architectural requests.
1. Identify acceptable plantings in specific locations, color, height, size.
2. Identify acceptable holiday or special event decorations that are allowed for a limited time period.
HOA management can include alternative dispute resolution (such as mediation) clauses in their covenants or management agreements to support healthy dispute resolutions. Mediation is less expensive than litigation and can maintain healthy neighbor relationships.
The ACC should audit the properties at least once per year and compare & document changes in landscaping and structure.
1. Maintain a digital archive to document condition of properties at a particular date.
HOA can develop a healthy neighborhood feel through activities that promote neighbors interacting.
1. When neighbors know each other they are more likely to address concerns directly rather than through a third party (board member or attorney).
Create a newsletter that provides proactive reminders of covenant rules and tips to how do address concerns directly in a healthy manner.
HOA management can provide training in meeting facilitation and conflict resolution as a means of assuring the board and committees have the necessary skills to fulfill their responsibilities.
1. Many HOA boards and committees do not adequately assess what skills are required to do the job. Boards typically maintain little support for skill development yet rely heavily on the members to make critical decision and have healthy interactions with association members.