Timeline for HOA Budgets and Reserve Studies

Following is an example of an ideal timeline for a homeowner association that has a December 31 fiscal year-end.

 

May 1Authorize reserve study provider to start reserve study process.
June 1
July 1Send reserve study to board for approval.
August 1Send budget draft to board for their review.
September 1
October 1Send budget for next fiscal year to owners.
November 1
December 1Last day to send budget for next fiscal year to owners.
December 31Fiscal year-end.

 

Zero - Based Budgeting

Zero-based budgeting is a financial planning method in which every expense item must be justified and approved for each new budget period starting from a zero base instead of relying on prior budgets. Unlike traditional budgeting that uses previous budgets as a baseline and makes adjustments from the prior budget, zero-based budgeting starts from the ground up.