Behind the Self Management Summit: Why Community Financials Built a Free Full-Day Event for HOA Boards
Every month, Community Financials hosts webinars for HOA and condo board members. The questions that come in are consistent: What are my legal obligations as a board member? How do I read my financial reports? What happens if we do not fund our reserves properly? What does a collection policy actually look like in practice?
After a year of those conversations, it became clear that a single webinar was not enough to cover what boards actually need to know. That realization became the Self Management Summit.
Where the Idea Came From
The Summit grew directly out of the Community Financials webinar series. “We have been doing monthly webinars for the past year and the response has been tremendous,” says Russell Munz, CEO and Founder of Community Financials. “We wanted to do something bigger and more comprehensive for self-managed boards. The timing is right because more and more communities are choosing to self-manage and they need the right tools and education to do it well.”
The topics on the agenda were not chosen arbitrarily. “The topics were chosen directly from the hot topics of our webinar series,” says Jaime Barnhart, Strategic Marketing and Industry Relations Officer at Community Financials “We get questions and requests about these topics so often that it was simple to choose what attendees needed and wanted.”
Who It Is Built For
The Summit is designed for the volunteer board member who is doing their best with limited resources and limited time. “This is built for the self-managed board member who is trying to do right by their community but does not always have the resources or the expertise to know what they do not know,” Russell says. “It is for the treasurer who is not an accountant, the president who is not a lawyer, and the board member who just wants to make sure they are not missing something important.”
Jaime puts it simply: “Fundamentally, the Summit is built for those serving on their self-managed community boards. Whether they are the Board President or the Treasurer, the sessions will give them a solid overview and understanding of the various financial processes that occur in an HOA or condo community. But we want everyone who wants to learn to join us.”
What the Day Covers
The agenda was built around the topics that get communities into trouble when they are not handled properly. Russell describes it this way: “Legal exposure, reserves, financial reports, collections, insurance, taxes. These are the things boards struggle with most and the things that get communities into trouble when they are not handled properly.”
Jaime is particularly excited about two sessions. “The legal session is so important — everything starts with understanding the legal impact of your actions on a board. I am also really excited for the session on reading your financial reports — knowing what the numbers are telling you each month is the best way to guide your community.”
Every session is recorded and available on-demand after the event for anyone who cannot attend live.
Why It Is Free
For Russell, the answer to this question is straightforward. “Because the mission of Community Financials is to help communities succeed financially. Charging for education would be contrary to that mission. We want every board member who needs this information to be able to get it without a barrier.”
The Bigger Picture
The Summit is not a standalone event. It is part of a larger vision for how Community Financials serves self-managed communities. “Community Financials handles the accounting and financial reporting for self-managed communities,” Russell explains. “The Summit is the education side of that same mission. A board that understands their financials, their legal obligations, their reserve requirements, and their collection policy is a board that can actually use the reports we give them to make good decisions. The two things work together.”
Jaime echoes that: “Community Financials was built for self-managed communities — to get the financial services they need and provide them a way to streamline the management of the community. The Summit is a natural addition to our services — educating the boards so they can confidently lead their board and community.”
What Comes Next
Neither Russell nor Jaime is thinking about this as a one-time event. “This is absolutely the start of something bigger,” Russell says. “We are planning to make this an annual event and to grow it each year. The goal is to build the most comprehensive educational resource for self-managed HOA and condo boards in the country.”
Jaime agrees: “Think big. This is the first Self Management Summit and we are planning on it being an annual event. An educated board member is an effective board member and we are thinking big on ways to get education to those who are self-managing their communities.”
The Self Management Summit is Wednesday, September 30, 2026 from 10:45 AM to 4:30 PM ET. It is free, online, and open to anyone involved in community governance.
