Much of your home’s value is tied to the condition of your neighborhood. Maintaining a high standard requires constant communication with those that live around. Such communication can be facilitated by establishing a homeowners’ association. Yet many come to members of our team here at Stephen A. Martin Attorney at Law Believing that such organizations can only be started by developers or community planners. In reality, any group of neighbors can start their own HOA if they follow the right steps.
How should you begin? The first step would be to designate officers. Oftentimes, some HOA’s will only choose a president and leave the administration of the group to them. Yet before you choose to follow this same pattern, consider the wisdom in empowering just one person with so much authority. A better plan may be to have a range of officers, with a registered agent chosen that can be the central point of contact with state officers.
Section 355.025 of Missouri’s Revised Statutes allows HOA’s to be incorporated through the state. You are only required to pay a $20 filing fee, and doing so affords your HOA with regulatory heft. This will allow you to enforce its bylaws through fines and other penalties (even up to injunctive relief in certain situations).
Speaking specifically of bylaws, these should be determined collectively rather than individually. The purpose of an HOA is to foster improved communication and cooperation between members of your community. Therefore, you are much more likely to achieve compliance if everyone has a say in the standards that your HOA sets.
You can learn more about managing an HOA by continuing to explore our site.