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A HOMEOWNERS' ASSOCIATION is a business -- and
has to be run as such. Many of these HOAs have bigger budgets than most
small businesses. Most of the elected board members have no
business experience whatsoever, but are in charge of the financials of
all homeowners. Owners often seem to forget that bad decisions by board
members can ruin their personal finances.
Finally the Florida Legislature added education of
board members to the statutes regulating HOAs (FS
720.3033(1).
It's a start, because board members should know the
basics of homeowners' association business. in the past most board
members relied solely on the advice of attorneys and community
association managers -- folks that only have one thing in mind: Making
as much money as possible out of these associations! And it's always
much easier to fleece people who have no idea what they should be doing,
instead of people who have a gewneral understanding of rules and
statutes regulating homeowners' associations.
According to the statutes the Board Member
Certification Seminar has to be
an
educational curriculum administered by a division-approved education
provider. It seems that quite a lot of folks advertise these
seminars -- without being DIVISION-APPROVED.
Other
"providers" seem to think that they are automatically approved
since they were approved for the Condo Board Certification Educational
Curriculums. NOT
SO!
CLICK HERE
to see
the latest list of Division Approved Education Curriculums -- according
to the
Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile
Homes:
Don't
waste your time with attending seminars that are not Division-Approved!
720.3033 Officers
and directors.
(1)(a) Within
90 days after being elected or appointed to the board,
each director must submit a certificate of having
satisfactorily completed the educational curriculum
administered by a department-approved education
provider.
1. The
newly elected or appointed director must complete
the department-approved education for newly elected
or appointed directors within 90 days after being
elected or appointed.
2. The
certificate of completion is valid for up
to 4 years.
3. A
director must complete the education specific to
newly elected or appointed directors at least every
4 years.
4. The
department-approved educational curriculum specific
to newly elected or appointed directors must include
training relating to financial literacy and
transparency, recordkeeping, levying of fines, and
notice and meeting requirements.
5. In
addition to the educational curriculum specific to
newly elected or appointed directors:
a. A
director of an association that has fewer than
2,500 parcels must complete at least 4 hours of
continuing education annually.
b. A
director of an association that has 2,500
parcels or more must complete at least 8 hours
of continuing education annually.
(b) A
director who does not timely file the educational
certificate is suspended from the board until he or she
complies with the requirement. The board may temporarily
fill the vacancy during the period of suspension.
(c) The
association shall retain each director's educational
certificate for inspection by the members for 5 years
after the director's election. However, the failure to
have the written certification or educational
certificate on file does not affect the validity of any
board action.
(d) The
department shall adopt rules to implement and administer
the educational curriculum and continuing education
requirements under this subsection.
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