What are some of the ineffective, inefficient, and sometimes even illegal things Boards of Directors can do to mess up their association's, manager's, and own lives? The following are the seven deadliest sins that will prevent a Board from entering the pearly gates of community association nirvana:

#1  Trying to Manage the Management Company
Boards often feel compelled to monitor, manage, or otherwise oversee the work of the Management Company. This is, at best, counter-productive and, at worst, financially wasteful. The board’s role is to set policy; the manager’s role is to carry out the policy. Advice: Pick a good management company and let them do their job.

#2   Following Personal Agendas
Board members, like all of us, can let their egos get the best of them. A Board member may not let go of an unrealistic campaign promise he or she made, or perhaps has a personal axe to grind, and this overshadows the best interests of the community. Advice: Keep the best interests of the association at the forefront of all board action.

#3  Holding Ineffective Meetings
Sometimes, board meetings seem little more than social gatherings, complete with gossip sidebars. Boards re-review their own work by examining the minutes of the last meeting, or read their board packets at the meeting, or spend time discussing issues that are not on the meeting's agenda. Advice: Prepare, in advance, for meetings; adhere to a well-planned agenda and budget sufficient time for important agenda items.

#4  Paying a Little, Expecting a Lot
Sometimes associations contract with the lowest bid vendor and then expect and insist on the same service or product that the highest bid vendor promised. The extra management cost of supervising the lowest bid vendor to ensure the job is done properly is often not worth it. Advice: Expect a lot? If so, expect to pay more.

#5  Acting Out
Policy-making inspired by anger, discrimination, or revenge creates more problems than it solves. Boards, on occasion, develop and implement new policies simply to silence a complaining homeowner or to punish an unpopular neighbor. The long-term effect can be difficult in enforcing these and other association rules because they were not reasonably developed nor uniformly applied. Advice: Adopt policies with a view to the best interests of the association not out of emotional reaction.

#6  Disregarding Potential Liability
Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for one or more members of the Board to exhibit, verbally or through official action, discriminatory behavior. Anti-discrimination laws apply to associations, and the liability for such conduct is potentially extensive. Advice: Keep discriminatory attitudes and actions out of the boardroom.