Condo Association Management Blog

To keep this simple - There is no difference - the board is made up of some or all the elected directors and "maybe" the trustees. 
 

The most important issue here is the source of your information. Police officers enforce the law, attorneys generally have a broader and more accurate grasp of the law. Therefore, I recommend that you consult an attorney, specifically, one whose practice focuses on HOA's. A board of trustees is usually associated with colleges and universities, and are responsible for hiring and evaluating the performance of the president, upholding the mission of the institution, and approving policies. A board of directors functions in a similar capacity which means that they are basically synonymous. The term board of directors is usually associated with non-profit organizations (other than educational institutions), and public corporations. The board of directors is responsible for hiring and evaluating the head of the organization (executive director, company president, or otherwise titled chief executive officer), as well as approving and establishing policies, and insuring fiscal responsibility. The governing body of the HOA will be named in the association's By-Laws.

i think you got bad advice. The Bioard of Directors is an agency of the Council of Unit Owners, The council is the higher authority and the Council is composed of the unit owners. It is your votes that decide how what when and where of you condo life should be. Your board should employ Robert's Rules Of Order to manage their meetings. Over 85% of all deliberative associations in the US employ this guide. The users ranfe from our House of Representatives, to major business organizations ,local garden clubs,PTAs etc etc. 
 
A Board and the unit owners need trainign in employment of Robert's rules-There ware many web sites which can be utilized or even hiring a member of the National Association odf Paliamentarians should be used,

The original poster does not mention anything about how to best conduct a meeting. I do not understand what Robert's Rules has to do with this topic. The question is about trustees. I agree in that regarding homeowners associations there is no material difference between Board of Directors and Board of Trustees. To my knowledge, in HOAs there is no superior authority than the board. I would suggest to the original poster to review her own Declaration and state laws. She could be mistaken in thinking that "what is going on" is wrong or illegal when in fact it may not be.

Again the short answer to your question - The Difference between Board of directors and "Board of Trutees" in terms of a Condo Association - No difference - it is just someone using a different term to decribe the same thing. However we all know there is a technical difference of what a trustee is and what a director is. But in the scope of this question about an HOA board the is no difference. In a HOA there is no such thing as both a Board of directors and Board of Trustees. "For pete's sake" do not get hung up on the details on this question. The detective did not know what he was talking about when he indicated there was two different bodies of oversite.

Well said!

This question is easily answered in the founding documents of the organization. The Restrictive covenants spell out the government that will operate the organization. This document along with the By-Laws tell you who the organization is set up. It doesn't matter what your Board is ( Directors or Trustees). These documents outline the duties and responsibilities of those in charge. These documents where set up by the builder and run with the property for ever. Those that have bought and will buy are bound by these documents. It really doesn't matter what my opinion or yours the only thing that matters is what does those legally binding founding documents say.

But by majority vote ypu may remove all the developers clauise and modernize your bylaws to provide the governance the majority of your unit owners would prefer. There is nothing set in concrete but it takes an effort to modify your set up.

i have a very dumb question. Any idea where i can get another copy of the By-Laws that govern our assoc., i lost my copy. 
 
 
 
thank you

If you cannot get another copy from your Board of Directors or your management company call the clerk of your circuit court. In most states the bylaws must be registered at the cicuit court.If your cannot obtain a new copy from internal sources what would a unit owner selling his property do at closing wehen a set of the bylaws must be given to the purchaser?