How to Word and Record an HOA Board Motion (5-Minute Video)

Watch the five-minute video above, then write out one motion you know is coming at your next meeting.

Six months after a vote, can your minutes prove what the board actually approved? A board decision is only as good as the motion that got written down. The video above shows how to word a motion so it holds up later, then records four of them in HOAmeeting.com for a demo association, Vista Ridge Condominiums.

Four questions a well-written motion answers

“Motion to approve the landscaping bid” is the kind of motion that causes trouble. Six months later, nobody can say which bid, how much, or who was supposed to sign it. A well-written motion answers four questions, wherever they apply:

1. What exactly is the board doing?
2. With whom, and for how much?
3. When does it take effect?
4. Who is authorized to carry it out?

The four motions in the video

These are the motions recorded in the demo. Borrow the wording and change the details to fit your association.

1. Adopt the budget

Steve Nelson moved to adopt the proposed 2027 operating budget totaling $412,800, including a reserve contribution of $96,000, with regular assessments of $430 per unit per month effective January 1, 2027, subject to owner ratification; to set the owner ratification meeting for December 10, 2026; and to direct management to mail a copy of the budget and notice of that meeting to all owners by November 24, 2026.

Seconded by Lisa Mead. Vote: 5 for, 0 against, 0 abstaining. Passed.

It starts with the words “to adopt” because the minutes put the mover’s name first. It states the total, the reserve contribution, the assessment and the effective date. The owner ratification step follows Washington law, so check what your own state requires.

2. Approve a contract

Lisa Mead moved to approve the 2027 landscape maintenance agreement with Green Valley Landscaping, as presented, at $2,150 per month ($25,800 for the year), for the term January 1 through December 31, 2027, and to authorize the President to sign the agreement.

Seconded by Jane Doe. Vote: 4 for, 0 against, 1 abstaining. Passed.

This is the fixed version of “Motion to approve the landscaping bid.” It names the vendor, the price, the term and who is authorized to sign.

One director had a conflict, so the minutes also carry a disclosure, recorded as a text item under the same agenda item:

Before discussion of this item, Director Ramon disclosed that a family member is employed by Green Valley Landscaping. Director Ramon did not participate in the discussion and abstained from the vote.

3. Ratify an emergency repair

Jane Doe moved to ratify the emergency repair authorized by the President on November 3, 2026, engaging Three Firs Plumbing to replace the failed water supply line in Building B at a cost of $6,840, paid from the operating repairs and maintenance account.

Seconded by Steve Nelson. Vote: 5 for, 0 against, 0 abstaining. Passed.

Unless your governing documents gave the president that authority in advance, an emergency repair approved between meetings is not a board decision until the board ratifies it at a meeting. The motion says who acted, on what date, what they approved, what it cost and which account paid for it.

4. Postpone to a specific meeting

Sofia Ramon moved to postpone consideration of the Building C roof replacement contract to the December 16, 2026 regular board meeting, and to direct management to obtain a third written bid before that date.

Seconded by Lisa Mead. Vote: 5 for, 0 against, 0 abstaining. Passed.

When someone says “let’s table it,” the board almost always means this: postpone the item to a named meeting, with the follow-up task assigned.

The steps in HOAmeeting.com

1. Open the meeting and click Edit, then scroll down to the agenda. Every motion is attached to an agenda item.
2. Click the agenda item, then click Add Motion, and paste in the wording you wrote before the meeting.
3. Pick who made the motion and who seconded it. Both lists come from your officer roster, so names are always spelled the same way.
4. Enter the vote: for, against and abstaining. Check Passed if the motion carried, then click Save. A failed motion is recorded the same way, with Passed left unchecked.
5. Add a text item under the agenda item for anything else that belongs in the minutes, such as a conflict disclosure. Text items print in the minutes. The Notes box on a motion is for your own reference and does not print.

What the finished minutes look like

Back on the meeting page, every motion you recorded is already written up in one consistent format: who moved it, the exact wording, who seconded it, and the vote. From there you can print a PDF, or export the minutes for the board to approve at its next meeting. No retyping, and no reconstructing the meeting from memory on Saturday morning.

Keep going

For more on drafting motions before the meeting and running the vote, read How to Record a Motion and Vote in HOA Board Minutes. New to HOAmeeting.com? Start with scheduling a board meeting and building the agenda.

HOAmeeting.com is free for HOA and condo boards: agendas, motions, minutes and approvals in one place. Create your association and record your first motion.

This is general information, not legal advice. Check your governing documents and state law.