What does an HOA secretary or treasurer do?
By OurHOA · General information · Revised
The secretary coordinates official records; the treasurer coordinates financial oversight. The governing documents and board assignments define the actual duties and authority.
Start with the assigned responsibilities
Read the bylaws, relevant law, and board resolutions to identify who is responsible for each task. An officer and a director are distinct roles, even when one person holds both. A manager or bookkeeper may perform much of the daily work, so make the division of duties explicit. Florida section 617.0840, for example, requires assigning an officer responsibility for meeting minutes and authenticating corporate records. It does not supply one universal job description for every HOA secretary or treasurer.
Give the secretary a records calendar
Typical work to assign includes preparing meeting notices, organizing agendas and supporting materials, recording decisions, maintaining approved minutes, and coordinating records requests. Track the applicable notice and response dates and keep evidence of delivery where required. Mark draft minutes as drafts, preserve approved versions and corrections, and distinguish materials that may be shared from confidential records. The person doing these tasks needs clear instructions about approval and disclosure.
Give the treasurer reports and review responsibilities
Typical financial work to assign includes budget preparation, checking assessment and payment records, reviewing invoices against approvals, overseeing reconciliations, and presenting financial reports. Identify who performs bookkeeping, who can authorize a payment, and who reviews the resulting bank activity. A useful report explains cash available for near-term bills, unpaid obligations, collections, reserve balances, and significant differences from budget. Preparing a report does not independently authorize a new assessment or expenditure.
Keep another person involved in financial review
Design review steps that fit the association’s size and applicable requirements. For example, someone other than the person preparing payments can compare invoices with approval records and review bank reconciliations. A second signature is not useful if the signer never sees the supporting documents or the bank does not enforce the arrangement. Ask the bank and accountant how the chosen controls work in practice, including electronic payments and changes to vendor payment details.
Plan the handover before the term ends
Maintain a current list of accounts, service contacts, filing and renewal dates, unresolved discrepancies, and unfinished requests. Store association records where an authorized successor can obtain them. Transfer access through provider-supported procedures and confirm recovery contacts before retiring the outgoing officer’s access. Do not put passwords in meeting minutes or email a shared password list to the membership. If a person remains a director after leaving an office, distinguish office-specific access from access they still need for their remaining role.
Sources
These guides are general education for HOA boards and residents, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules vary by state and by your community's governing documents - check with a professional for your situation.