Homeowners associations, or ‘HOAs,’ often have rules that state a quorum must be reached before the committee can begin each meeting. A quorum indicates the minimum number of members that must be present, either at a board meeting or AGM.
Following voting procedures in a meeting ensures that each decision made is fair and protects the HOA members from changes or outcomes that most disagree with. It also supports the general interest of the community and stipulates that the majority of members must agree before action is taken. While reaching quorum is not always guaranteed, HOAs can be proactive about supporting good, sustained participation, preventing meetings from being adjourned and rescheduled, and avoiding delays in making important decisions due to low attendance.
A lack of attendance is one of the common reasons HOAs experience delays and increased costs as every meeting requires a certain amount of preparation and expenses, such as printing and distributing notices, agendas, and voting forms.
What is a voting quorum? The quorum is the lowest possible attendance or participation in a meeting or vote required for the outcomes to be upheld. Although the HOA board has an obligation to hold meetings, consult with members, and ensure decisions are made properly, continual absences that mean the group cannot establish a quorum can cause a great deal of disruption, including an inability to approve a budget or decide on member subs.
Failing to reach a quorum can also have more significant repercussions if an AGM and annual elections cannot proceed. In this circumstance, current board members may be expected to continue serving, which itself carries risks if the HOA isn't complying with its own rules regarding the maximum time one board member can serve. The key is to adopt clear, transparent, and timely communications, use a reliable and accessible method of circulating meeting notices, encourage members to attend, and clarify why participation is vital for the HOA to serve its purpose.
One of the simplest ways HOA boards can pre-empt problems that result in meeting adjournments is to ensure notices and invitations are distributed well in advance and with a simple mechanism for members to confirm whether they can attend. If a meeting date, venue, or time is inconvenient, and it is clear that a quorum will not be met, the board could propose an alternative or enable members to submit their votes digitally, provided the governing documents allow this.
There may be common reasons members find it challenging to attend in-person votes, perhaps due to:
Digital voting, combined with in-person meeting votes, often works well and provides boards with a transparent way to collate votes and outcomes and report this information. Any contentions around voting results can be rectified by circulating online and physical attendance figures and using graphics to demonstrate how the membership has voted.
Another option may be for the HOA to permit members to nominate a proxy by submitting a paper proxy form or granting another member or representative the right to act as their proxy during an online vote.
A purpose-designed voting software solution such as ElectionBuddy provides varied functionality to assist, including the ability to record online registrations, submit email, post, and text meeting notices, and allow voting via a secure mobile app. HOAs can opt to host meetings remotely, such as through Zoom or Microsoft Teams. They can invite members to vote with their preferred device and display instant results that can be shared through the app, as part of the meeting, and with certified outcomes for the avoidance of doubt.
Board members can showcase their commitment to inclusion and accessibility and enable members to attend and participate in any way that proves most convenient, removing barriers to participation that may exist while enhancing transparency and trust in the outcomes of each vote. Displaying results in real time through third-party software is a great option for HOAs with complex decisions to make or where groups or members have opposing views.
The board can demonstrate how a quorum has been reached, protect the confidentiality of members' votes, and share the results directly, with timely reminders just before each meeting to keep members informed and engaged.
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