Terminology

Association – See Community Association.

Best Practice - Professional procedure(s) that are accepted or prescribed as being correct or most effective within the industry of community association management.

Board Liaison - A member of the Board of Directors, typically the president, who works as the primary point of contact between the manager and the Board of Directors.

Board Member - An elected or appointed member of a Board of Directors that acts as the governing body of the community association.

Board of Directors – The elected or appointed members of a community association who are responsible for governing the entity and for appointing the officers of the corporation.

Bylaws - A rule, or series of rules, formally made by a community association to govern the operation of the community association, required to be established in compliance with the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions.

Case Law – A law that is established after a court makes a ruling forming a legal precedent.

Certificate of Account Standing – Also referred to as a Payoff Statement, describes the financial condition of a property within a community association to include account balance, frequency of assessments, and certain other information that varies by jurisdictions which may have specific items or issues that must be addressed.

Common Elements – Space within a community association that is owned by the community association.  The controlling documents of the community association typically delineate this area and govern its use.

Community Association - An organization, usually a type of corporation or other legally formed entity, to oversee the use and administration of a development for either commercial or residential use that is governed by a Board of Directors typically, but not always, comprised of those with an ownership interest in the community association.  The term is broadly applied to condominium associations, homeowners associations, and maintenance corporations.

Condominium -  A form of legal ownership in which ownership is divided into individual units and sold. Ownership usually includes a nonexclusive interest in certain "common properties" controlled by the condominium community association.

Controlling Documents – Also known as Governing Documents, the documents forming and regulation how the community association is operated which usually include the Bylaws, Declaration of Covenants, Rules and Regulations, and Articles of Incorporation. State laws regulate the recording of these documents in land record offices and the distribution to prospective home buyers.

Council of Unit Owners – The group of homeowners comprising a condominium who elect a Board of Directors to govern the condominium community and its property.

Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&R) - A legal document, or series of documents, often referred to as the declaration, typically recorded in a jurisdictions land records that sets forth the regulations for owners of units in a community association and describes the owner's use of limited common areas and general common areas. The declaration usually includes rules for future use and the procedure for selecting the board of directors for the community association.

Deed – The legal document recording the person(s) who have a legal right to property.

Governing Documents – See Controlling Documents.

Homeowners Association (HOA) – A nongovernment body, typically a non-profit corporation, which regulates the homes comprised within the association and oversees certain maintenance issues for the mutual benefit of the community. 

Laws – The enforceable rules enacted as Statutory Law or Case Law that regulating the actions of those under their jurisdiction and are enforced by the imposition of penalties.

Limited Common Elements – Part of a unit that is typically maintained by a deeded owner but that is the property of the community association, typically in a condominium, such as balconies, decks, doors, windows, etc. The controlling documents of the condominium typically govern limited common elements.

Maintenance Corporation – A community association set-up specifically to maintain certain common elements of a group of homes, homeowner’s association, condominium association, or a combination of a smaller associations.

Management Company – The company retained by the community association’s Board of Directors to manage certain aspects of the association as outlined in a management agreement. 

Manager – The person(s) appointed by the Management Company to act as the liaison between the Board of Directors, Homeowners, service providers and others and complete certain tasks as the Agent for the community association.

Master Association – A community association that oversees a group of subordinate associations.

Officers - Usually, but not always, a member of the Board of Directors who acts in an official capacity as directed by the Board of Directors but in compliance with the controlling documents of the community association; examples include a President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

Planned Unit Development – Also referred to as a PUD, a planned development mapping out a planned layout or use for a community.  The term is more often applied to single family homes forming a community association but can refer to other types of home and business forming a development.  A PUD is also a regulatory process for developing a planned community with some definitions and process varying by federal, state, county, and local laws and regulations.

Plat – A map of a lot within a Planned Unit Development (PUD) and where the home is situated on that lot.  A Plat is typically maintained with a county, city, or municipal land records office.

President - Typically a member of the Board of Directors and who is elected by the Board of Directors to serve as leader of the Board of Directors and principal officer of the community association.  Duties and powers are delineated in the communities controlling documents.

Questionnaire – A document with questions sent by lender to determine the financial condition of a community association, the answers of which will assist in the lenders determination is whether or not to loan money to a borrow to purchase a lot within a community association.

Regulations – A set of rules established by a federal, state, local regulatory body, with that body garnering its regulatory authority within the scope of a statute.  Regulations are typically used in housing to adapt to quickly changing technology or processes more efficiently than a legislative body and with a group comprised of individuals from varying level of expertise in correlating fields.

Resale Package - A resale package is a packet of vital information provided to those purchasing a condominium or a home in an association usually purchased/provided by the seller. The package includes a complete set of recorded documents that govern your association. The Resale Package will vary from state to state but each state and some jurisdictions have specific items or issues that must be addressed in each transaction when real estate is sold.  The resale package usually includes a Certificate of Account Standing (Payoff Statement), Articles, Declaration(s), Bylaws, Easement(s), Agreement(s), Resolution(s), Annual Budget, Insurance Accord(s), Rules and Regulations, Management Forms, Inspection Certificate, and Association Disclosures.

Rules and Regulations - A series of rules or regulations usually adopted by the Board of Directors for a community association governing certain aspects of the community association usually allowed to be established in accordance with the Bylaws.

Secretary - The officer of the community association appointed by the Board of Directors whose duties are delineated in the communities controlling documents but who is usually responsible for supervising and handling the documents of the community association such as minutes, resolutions, correspondence, contracts, rosters, etc. 

Statute – Also known as Statutory Law, a law that is passed by an elected group of legislators.

Special Assessment - An assessment that is in addition to a regularly budget assessment, typically assessed by a board of directors, to pay for an expense or expenses of the community association that was not originally budget for in the annual approved budget.

Subdivision – An area of land divided into lots.

Subordinate Association – A community association that is subject to a master association.

Survey – A professional determination of the physical boundaries forming a lot.

Treasurer - The officer of the community association appointed by the Board of Directors whose duties are delineated in the communities controlling documents but who is usually responsible for supervising and handling the finances of the community association. 

Vice President - Typically a member of the Board of Directors and who is elected by the Board of Directors to serve as leader of the Board of Directors and principal officer of the community association in the absence of the President. Duties and powers are delineated in the communities controlling documents.