Who is the chairman of the HOA? Rights and responsibilities of a person in this position and other useful information

Who is the chairman of the HOA, what does he do and on what basis does he act?

In any organization there must be a main person who is responsible for coordinating all activities. In an HOA, this person is the chairman of the board. He represents the interests of all owners of apartment buildings.

A candidate for the position of chairman is elected among the members of the board of the association, if the organization’s charter does not provide for the procedure for election to this position on the basis of a decision of the general meeting of residents (clause 3 of article 147 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).

In the course of his activities, the chairman manages general finances in the interests of the house and is responsible for concluding various agreements with third-party organizations providing economic services. The head of the board is always aware of all events occurring in the partnership. He ensures the full functioning of the MKD, coordinating all persons under his leadership.

The Chairman is guided by:

• norms of the legislation of the Russian Federation, in particular, articles 147, 149 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation;
• charter drawn up by the members of the HOA;
• internal regulations of the general meeting;
• other local regulations adopted by the partnership.

All actions of the head of the board must be open and available for review by residents of the building.

Is it possible to do without it?

According to Art. 149 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the chairman heads the board of the HOA . The legislation does not imply the work of a partnership without the presence of a head of the board; accordingly, a person for this position must be selected in any case.

The partnership cannot fully carry out its activities without the main person, since all important functions are assigned to him. In the event that the term of office of the head of the board expires, the organization's charter must provide for the procedure for filling this position until a new head is installed. If among the members of the HOA there are no people willing to occupy this position, then such an association cannot function and is subject to liquidation.

Requirements

Not every apartment owner can take this position; the candidate must have certain knowledge, skills, experience, and abilities .

A citizen with a higher or secondary education in the field of housing and communal services or construction, and with experience in the same position for at least 1 year, can be elected to this position. Training in special courses is required (if there are any in the locality).

Such work requires not only a university diploma, but also:

• ability to work with people;
• understand the mechanism of financial activities of the partnership;
• the courage to take responsibility for the fate of residents, making decisions and signing agreements, obligations, bank debt papers, etc.;
• the ability to negotiate with service providers and contractors, that is, the possession of communication skills and charisma, without which it is impossible to resolve issues at all levels, including in city or town government bodies.

This official has a lot of responsibilities

Could it be someone other than the homeowner?

You can become a chairman if you have ownership rights to living space in an apartment building. This is one of the main requirements for a candidate. The head is chosen from among the board members, and only apartment owners can occupy such places in the organization.

Often they try to circumvent this requirement by issuing a notarized power of attorney to represent the legitimate interests of one of the residents of the house. This option does not work, since the power of attorney has nothing to do with ownership of the apartment.

An officially executed housing lease agreement also does not allow tenants to apply for the position of head of the HOA.

Such restrictions are established to prevent persons from entering the ranks of the board who have no connection with the house and may act in their own personal interests. The organization should be led by a person who knows all the problems of apartment buildings and is interested in improving the economic conditions in the house.

The head of the HOA must be the owner of the apartment in the apartment building , but he does not have to be registered and actually live in it.

Resolving controversial issues

Controversial situations concerning the chairman are often associated with possible abuses on his part or with poor performance of duties in implementing the decisions of general meetings of residents.

The procedure for resolving disputes should be prescribed both in the charter of the partnership and in the employment agreement with the elected manager. If conflicts arise related to the performance of the chairman’s duties, they are resolved sequentially in the following order:

1. negotiation;
2. written complaint to the board;
3. complaint to the housing supervision authority;
4. appeal to the prosecutor's office;
5. going to court.

If a conflict with the chairman arose due to his failure to fulfill his obligations to organize repairs or eliminate the consequences of an accident, it is necessary to draw up a report on the presence of malfunctions or damage caused to the common property of the members of the housing association.

The act is drawn up in the presence of two witnesses, and a copy of it is attached to the text of appeals to the board or supervisory authorities.

When filing a complaint with the board, you must request a certificate of acceptance of the appeal for consideration ; if you do not want to issue this certificate, you should enlist the support of witnesses to the fact of the appeal, since otherwise the head of the partnership may tell the prosecutor’s office that he was not aware of the problem.

IMPORTANT! The judicial authorities will accept the claim for consideration only if the initiative group of residents has evidence of attempts to pre-trial resolve the conflict with the chairman.

Such evidence may include certificates of accepted applications, copies of applications to the housing inspection, reports of violations, etc.

Requirements for an applicant for the position of head of the board

Candidates for the position of head of the board must meet a number of legal requirements:

1. In order to occupy a leadership position, according to the general norms of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, a candidate must be a legally competent citizen; accordingly, his age must be at least 18 years old (Article 21 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
2. A person recognized as incompetent or with limited legal capacity cannot occupy the post of head (Article 29, Article 30 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). Such persons can only take part in small household transactions.
3. The chairman can be appointed only among persons who are members of the HOA (read about how the chairman of the HOA is appointed here).

The following cannot apply for the position of manager:

• persons acting as one of the parties to the agreement on the management of the house with the partnership;
• employees of organizations with which the partnership has existing contracts;
• member of the audit commission;
• an HOA employee performing his duties in the organization under an employment contract.

In addition, the candidate must have a number of individual qualities that are necessary to fulfill the duties of the chairman:

• Economic or technical education is desirable;
• no criminal record;
• availability of free time for a detailed study of MCD problems;
• responsibility.

The candidate must have knowledge of the regulatory and legislative documentation of HOAs.

Responsibilities of the Chairman

• organizing cooperation with companies providing utility services;
• supervision over the good condition of utility networks and other common property of housing construction;
• interaction with owners who have not joined the HOA;
• preparation of technical documentation for repair work;
• control over the collection and expenditure of partnership money.

The activities of the chairman should be based on the provisions of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and the job responsibilities approved on this basis.

The operation of the management of an apartment building by a partnership of premises owners will be effective if the elected board and chairman are competent, proactive, decent, quickly find the necessary solutions and are ready to be responsible for the assigned work.

Job description of the head of the owners' association

One of the documents on the basis of which the chairman carries out his activities is the job description. It is compiled by members of the board of the partnership in agreement with the housing inspection. As a rule, the instructions include the following sections:

1. General provisions.
2. Functions assigned to the official.
3. Job responsibilities of the chairman of the board of the partnership.
4. Rights of the chairman of the HOA.
5. Responsibility of an official.
6. Additional provisions (dispute resolution, procedure for removal from office).

General provisions of the job description include:

1. The main task of the head of the board is to manage the activities of the partnership in the interests of residents.
2. The actions of the head must not contradict the legislation of the country, the signed charter and the requirements of the job description.
3. The head of the organization has the right to distribute assignments among officials.
4. The head of the partnership is responsible for the implementation of all decisions made by the members of the partnership.
5. The chairman may make proposals for consideration at the general meeting.
6. The head of the board has the right to represent the interests of the residents' association in other organizations.

We do not recommend completing the documents yourself. Save time - contact our lawyers by phone:

8 (800) 302-76-94

The legislative framework

A homeowners' association is a state-registered voluntary non-profit association of owners of premises located in housing construction, with the goal of creating conditions for high-quality housing management. The procedure for the formation and functions of HOAs are regulated by the Housing (LC) and Civil (CC) codes of the Russian Federation.

Every adult owner of premises in a housing construction who has declared membership in the organization in writing becomes a member of the partnership.

The highest management of the partnership is carried out by the general meeting. It adopts the HOA charter.

The current management of the functioning of the HOA is carried out by the board. Its powers are enshrined in the charter on the basis of Art. 147, 148 Housing Code of the Russian Federation.

Authority

The head of the residents' association has the following powers:

• has the right to sign financial documents;
• can maintain accounting records for the organization;
• has the right to independently enter into transactions in the interests of the partnership, which do not require the approval of a decision by other members of the organization;
• issues orders that are subject to mandatory implementation by other officials;
• acts as the initiator of general meetings of residents and board members, establishes the time and purpose of their holding;
• can act on behalf of the community without a power of attorney;
• carries out personnel changes (dismiss and hire new employees), as well as punish or reward (fines, bonuses) officials;
• has the right to cast a decisive vote if, during voting, the members of the HOA do not come to a common choice.

The list of powers may include other actions that the board members have granted the chairman the right to perform.

Term of office

The head of the board and its members exercise their powers for the period specified in the charter of the HOA. In accordance with paragraph 2 of Art. 147 the maximum term of office of the elected board cannot exceed 2 years.

At the end of this term, officials are re-elected. Within two years, the chairman can be re-elected or independently leave the leadership position.

Is it profitable to be a boss?

The head of the board works for a fee, which is paid by residents from their contributions, and in return they always want to have:

• light, heat, electricity;
• constant hot and cold water, excellent sewage system;
• uninterrupted operation of the elevator;
• timely removal of household waste;
• clean, renovated entrances, courtyard, adjacent roads;
• sidewalks sprinkled with sand in winter;
• leak-free roof and much more.

What is it worth to see residents alone! The position of the head of a partnership cannot be called particularly lucrative; it is a difficult and troublesome job , for which eight hours a day is never enough.

The answer here is clear: no, it’s not very profitable, plus there are continuous problems with the life support of the house and eternally dissatisfied residents.

Responsibilities in an apartment building

The head of the partnership is assigned a wide range of responsibilities. The Chairman must:

• know all the legislative requirements relating to the management of apartment buildings and timely study changes made to regulatory legal acts;
• monitor timely payment of bills by residents;
• keep accounting under control;
• regulate the execution of decisions made at meetings;
• manage the partnership's personnel;
• be responsible for the implementation of contracts concluded between the HOA and other organizations;
• monitor the implementation of the functions assigned to residents regarding the repair and maintenance of common premises;
• monitor compliance with the rights of apartment owners;
• maintain partnership documentation.

Progress report

The charter of the partnership specifies a clear procedure for the place and time of reporting to the residents of the house. All actions of the organization must be transparent, so residents have the right to familiarize themselves with the work carried out and the expenditure of financial resources.

The partnership's reporting includes a report from the head of the HOA on the work done for the year. It includes information about the work of the head of the board in accordance with his responsibilities. The report contains the following information:

• budget planning and adoption;
• number of hired and dismissed employees;
• decisions made regarding repair work;
• scheduled and unscheduled meetings held;
• other work organized by the chairman over the past year.

We do not recommend completing the documents yourself. Save time - contact our lawyers by phone:

8 (800) 302-76-94

In addition to the chairman’s report, residents can familiarize themselves with the board’s report and the report on the financial activities of the partnership.

Board meeting

Meetings are convened by the chairman. Regular meetings are held according to a pre-approved schedule, but at least once every three months.

Members of the board of directors are notified of an extraordinary meeting in person or by mail at least 3 days before the scheduled event, indicating in the notice the date, time, place and list of issues discussed.

A meeting is legitimate when 50% plus one board member attended. The board can independently consider issues of spending the organization’s funds, or concluding agreements with service companies.

During the meeting, minutes are kept where the voting results are recorded.

Rights

The head of the board is an employee, therefore, he, like other employees who have entered into labor relations with legal entities, is subject to labor legislation. He has the same labor rights as other employees:

• voluntary withdrawal of powers;
• vacation;
• wages and sick leave.

Labor relations between the chairman and the HOA arise upon the signing of an employment contract, and in its absence, on the basis of the actual admission of the chairman to work with the knowledge or on behalf of the employer or his authorized representative (Article 16 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Vacation

In accordance with labor legislation, the chairman has the right to take leave while maintaining average earnings and job. The total duration of vacation is 28 calendar days (Article 114, Article 116 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The procedure and sequence of vacations among HOA officials is established at the general meeting.

Order to take office

The HOA is a legal entity, therefore the appointment of the chairman must occur in compliance with the procedures prescribed by law:

• the meeting's decision to elect a chairman by a majority vote is reflected in the minutes;
• Based on this protocol, the elected chairman issues an order for the appointment of the head of the HOA.

The order is drawn up in form No. T-1, or in free form.

Instead of the chairman, a manager who is not a member of the HOA, but capable of managing the affairs of the partnership, can be hired. This possibility and powers of the manager must be written down in the charter.

Responsibility

Since the head of the board has the right to carry out actions on behalf of a legal entity, he is held liable for damage caused to the partnership in accordance with the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Article 53.1 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). The Housing Code of the Russian Federation does not provide for liability for persons managing HOAs, therefore such provisions must be included in the organization’s charter. It can include sanctions for specific actions, financial liability and other conditions.

The legislation does not stipulate the responsibility of the head of the board for actions that led to ineffective management of the organization.

In general cases, the head of the HOA board may be held criminally liable for negligence, embezzlement, fraud, and abuse of power.

On our website you will find other materials about the structure of the HOA, about the manager, accountant and emergency dispatch service.

If training courses?

Idle talk that there are courses upon completion of which you can become the head of a community is not entirely true.

Are there training courses for chairmen? No, such courses do not exist , courses are short-term lectures and seminars that cannot, over the course of several days or even weeks, provide a systematic amount of knowledge that is acquired upon graduation from a university.

For advanced training?

Yes, within the framework of regional preparatory programs, short-term courses are organized and conducted to improve the qualifications of heads of residents' communities.

It provides information on particularly important topics relating to financial issues, accounting, working with debtors, etc. Upon completion of the course, a certificate indicating that the person has attended the course.

It should be understood that courses alone are not enough to become the head of the HOA board. In addition, not all regions have implemented this preparatory program, and in small localities such training is often lacking.

Dismissal

The chairman has the right to resign his powers at his own request or to resign upon request if violations are committed in his work. To leave at will, the basis is a personal statement written 2 weeks in advance.

If there are violations in the work of a manager, he is held accountable by going to court. This can be done both before and after dismissal. The dismissal process can be initiated by residents of the building, members of the board, or the offending chairman himself . The precedent for removal from office due to lack of confidence will be the minutes of the general meeting of owners of apartment buildings.

In case of dismissal on personal initiative, one should rely on Art. 80 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. In case of forced dismissal, they are guided by clause 7 of Art. 81 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

At the head of the association of apartment building residents is a chairman. Without it, the functioning of the HOA is impossible. One of the regulatory documents regulating the activities of the head of the board is the job description, which sets out the rights, duties and responsibilities of the chairman. Like other employees, the chairman of the HOA is subject to labor laws.

Election of the Chairman

A candidate for chairman is nominated from the board of the partnership.

The chairman is elected by a majority vote of the board, unless the charter provides for elections by the general meeting of the HOA. Application of candidates occurs 10 days before the meeting. At least 50% of the board members must vote for the candidate. Re-elections take place every 2 years in accordance with the charter. The position of the chairman is paid on the basis of a formalized employment agreement.

If the chairman is elected by the general meeting, then 2 types of voting are possible:

• in-person, when the number of participants required for legitimate voting is gathered;
• absentee, when the required number of votes is not obtained during voting.