A Homeowners' Association (HOA) is a legal entity created by a real estate developer for the purpose of developing, managing and selling a community of homes.  It is given the authority to enforce the covenants, conditions & restrictions (CC&Rs) and to manage the common amenities of the development.  It allows a developer to end their responsibility over the community, typically by transferring ownership of the association to the homeowners after selling.  Generally accepted as a voluntary association of homeowners gathered together to protect their property values and to improve the neighborhood, a large percentage of U.S neighborhoods where free standing homes exist have an HOA.  Most homeowners' associations are non profit organizations and are subject to state statutes that govern non-profit corporations and homeowners' associations.

A community association is a nongovernmental association of participating members of a community, such as a neighborhood, village, condominium, cooperative, or group of homeowners or property owners in a delineated geographic area.  Participation may be voluntary, require a specific residency, or require participation in an intentional community.  Community associations may serve as social clubs, community promotional groups, service organizations, or quasi-governmental groups.

A Neighborhood Association (NA) is a group of residents or property owners who advocate for or organize activities within a neighborhood.  An association may have elected leaders and voluntary dues.  Some neighborhood associations in the United States are incorporated, may be recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, and may enjoy freedom from taxation from their home state.

???????The term neighborhood association is sometimes incorrectly used instead of homeowners association (HOA). Some key differences include:

Homeowner associations (HOAs) can compel homeowners to pay a share of common expenses, usually per-unit or based on square footage.  These expenses generally arise from common property, which varies dramatically depending on the type of association.  Some associations are, quite literally, towns, complete with private roads, services, utilities, amenities, community buildings, pools, and even schools.  Many condominium associations consider the roofs and exteriors of the structures as the responsibility of the association.  Other associations have no common property, but may charge for services or other matters.

No, although sometimes referred to as "Dues," they are legally known as "Assessments" and are collected by HOAs, Community Associations, or divisions of property management for the upkeep of said organizations or neighborhoods in general. These fees are billed at intervals, sometimes by month, quarter, or annually. 

The declaration, bylaws, operating rules, articles of incorporation or any other documents which govern the normal operating procedures of an association.

The Declaration is sometimes referred to as the 'master deed,' 'documents,' or 'declaration of covenants, conditions, and restrictions' [CC&Rs].  It describes an owner's responsibilities to the association which can include payment of dues and assessments as well as the association’s various duties to the owners. It is common viewed as somewhat of a 'constitution' of the association.  The person or group of persons who either signs the original declaration governing the development and association or acquires the original developer's rights is referred to as the 'Declarant.' 

The term CC&Rs refers to 'Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions.'  A real covenant is a legal obligation imposed in a deed by the seller of a home and or property upon the buyer of the real estate to do or not to do something.  Such restrictions frequently 'run with the land' and are enforceable on future buyers of the property.  Examples might be to maintain a property in a reasonable state of repair, to preserve a sight-line for a neighboring property, not to run a business from a residence, or not to build on certain parts of the property.  Many covenants are very simple and are meant only to protect a neighborhood from homeowners destroying trees or historic things or otherwise directly harming property values.  Some can be more specific and strict, outlining everything a homeowner can do to the exterior of their home, including the number of non-familial tenants one may have, acceptable colors to re-paint the home, exactly when holiday decorations are allowed up, automobile placement or repair on property, satellite dish placement, etc.

A set of rules or guidelines regarding the operation of a non-profit corporation such as a Board.  Bylaws generally set forth definitions of offices and committees involved with the Board of Directors.  They can include voting rights, meetings, notices, and other areas involved with the successful operation of the Association.

In relation to an HOA, Community or other formal organization, a director is an officer charged with the conduct and management of its affairs.  The directors collectively are referred to as a board of directors, and are generally elected or appointed.  Sometimes the board will appoint one of its members to be the chair, making this person the President of the Board of Directors or Chairman. 

Contact information, meeting times, minutes, and other information can be obtained by checking with your Community Manager or by checking the Board of Directors information area of your website.

Association management is a distinct field of management because of the unique environment of associations. Associations are unique in that the 'owners' are dues-paying members. Members also govern their association through an elected board or other governing body, along with association committees, commissions, task forces, councils and other units. Typically, the board selects, retains and evaluates a chief executive officer or an executive director who is responsible for the day-to-day management of the association and paid staff. Managers within the association environment are responsible for many of the same tasks that are found in other organizational contexts. These include human resource management, financial management, meeting management, IT management, and project management. Other aspects of management are unique for association managers. These include: membership recruitment and retention; tax-exempt accounting and financial management; development of non-dues revenue and fundraising. Association managers must also be familiar with laws and regulations that pertain only to associations. To attain the knowledge needed to effectively operate in association management, its practitioners may choose to pursue the Certified Association Executive designation.

A property management entity is contracted by a Board of Directors or community to provide a variety of services including but not limited to collecting assessments, sub-contractor endeavors, financial advisement and statement/reports preparation and analysis, general maintenance and problem resolution, and advisement on legal and other property related matters. Some of these companies manage hundreds of properties simultaneously, while others focus on individual properties.

Founded in 1973, the Community Associations Institute (CAI) is a national and chapter-based membership organization dedicated to fostering successful common-interest communities.  In addition to state and national legislative advocacy on behalf of associations, CAI provides education, tools and resources to those who govern and manage association-governed communities.  CAI members include association board members and other homeowner volunteer leaders, community managers, association management firms and other professionals who provide products and services to associations, such as attorneys, accountants and reserve specialists.  CAI is committed to being the worldwide center of knowledge and expertise for people seeking excellence in association operations, governance and management. Visit www.caionline.org for more information.

A Dedicated Community Association Leader (DCAL) is a designation awarded to HOA members and volunteer leaders who have successfully completed a CAI prescribed set of coursework and other requirements oriented toward educating those individuals on a variety of topics of importance to their HOAs.  Currently all seven members of the Sun City Aliante Board of Directors, as well as a number of additional volunteer leaders in the Sun City Aliante community, hold the DCAL designation.  In addition, several of them have achieved Advanced DCAL designation.

Any area of improved real property intended for shared use by the members of an association.

A monetary claim levied against a property for unpaid mortgage, taxes, contractor work, or other charges.  A lien is attached to the property, not the owner, but legally must be recorded in the property records of the county of residence.  If a Lien is in place, the property owner has very limited ability to do anything involving the property until the Lien is satisfied or removed.

Similar in essence to a lien, the Notice of Noncompliance is a document sometimes authorized under the CC&Rs and may be recorded in the county property records.  It's essential purpose is to notify prospective buyers that the property is in violation of the documents.

An Ordinance is an individual or set of laws adopted by local government at the county and city level.