What minutes must record
At a minimum: when and where the meeting took place, who convened it and when the notice went out, who attended in person and by proxy, whether the quorum was met, and for each resolution the text adopted, the majority required and the votes for, against and abstaining. Where voting is weighted by ownership share, record the shares, not just the number of owners.
Many jurisdictions also require the minutes to name the owners who voted against or abstained, because they may have a right to challenge a decision, and set a deadline for sending the minutes to all owners. Check your bylaws and local law.
Majorities and abstentions
Ordinary decisions usually need an absolute majority of the votes cast; works, changes to the bylaws and sales of common property often need two-thirds, four-fifths or unanimity. Whether abstentions count as votes cast varies: under Belgian co-ownership law they do not, while some US bylaws count them in the base. Write the rule your association applies into the template so the result column is calculated the same way every time.
From the minutes to the work
An approved budget becomes fund calls to each owner, an approved project becomes a contract and a cost split by ownership share, and a rejected one goes back on the next agenda. Syndic and HOA management software runs the meeting itself, with weighted votes, proxies, online voting and minutes drafted from the record, and keeps the decision next to the costs that follow from it.
Common questions
What should HOA meeting minutes include?
Date, place, who convened the meeting, attendance and proxies, the quorum check, and for each resolution the wording, the majority required and the votes for, against and abstaining.
Do minutes need to record how each owner voted?
Often the names of owners who voted against or abstained must be recorded, because they may be entitled to challenge the decision. Check your bylaws and local law.
Who signs general meeting minutes?
Usually the chair and the secretary, and in some jurisdictions any owner present who asks to sign. Your bylaws set the rule.
How soon must minutes be sent to owners?
It depends on the jurisdiction and the bylaws; some set a deadline of a few weeks after the meeting. Sending them promptly also starts the period in which a decision can be challenged.
Done by hand once. Done automatically from now on.
Run general meetings with weighted votes, proxies and online voting, and draft the minutes from the meeting record.