Item [N]. Executive session On motion of [NAME], seconded by [NAME], the board entered executive session at [TIME] to [consult with association counsel / discuss personnel / discuss contract negotiation / other category your documents allow]. The board returned to open session at [TIME]. [If a motion was made after returning:] See item [N+1]. No other action was taken in open session on this item.
Closed session · two records
HOA executive session minutes
HOA executive session minutes are two documents, not one. The public minutes say the board voted to go in, the topic category if your documents allow it, and the time it came out. Anything said inside — personnel, attorney advice, a contract number — stays on a sealed cover. That cover is not attached to the owner packet and is not posted with the PDF owners may request.
Some states restrict when a board may close a meeting. This page does not list them. If you are unsure you are allowed to go into executive session for this topic, do not. Call counsel. Sample wording only. Not legal advice.
What the public minutes say
That is the whole public record of the closed part: category + in/out time. Do not summarize the advice. Do not name the employee. Do not paste the bid comparison. Do not write “the board decided to fire…” unless that decision was then made as a motion in open session, in which case the open-session motion is its own numbered item with a vote.
What the sealed cover says
Executive session — do not post [ASSOCIATION NAME] · [MONTH DD, YYYY] Time entered: __________ Time returned to open session: __________ Directors present: __________ Others present (attorney, etc.): __________ Category (not a transcript): counsel / personnel / contract / other: ________ Motion made in open session afterward (if any): see public minutes item ____ Notes (sealed). Do not copy into the public minutes: [fragments only — not a play-by-play] Secretary: ____________________ Date: ________
Store it with the secretary’s sealed records. The next secretary inherits the folder. Owners who request “the minutes” get the public PDF. They do not get this sheet.
How you get in and out
- Vote to go in. Vote to come out. Both votes belong in the public minutes.
- Do not take association action that belongs in the open meeting while the door is closed, unless your documents and counsel say that action may be taken in closed session. When in doubt, come out and motion in the open.
- Do not attach the sealed cover to the agenda you send owners. Do not paste it into the regular-board minutes template.
The chair’s one-pager is how to run a 60-minute board meeting. The drafting method is how to write HOA minutes. Neither page tells you whether your state lets you close the meeting for this topic.
- Pay through Paddle (your statement may say Paddle).
- Get an email with the zip.
- Open “00 Read me first.” Copy this month’s files. Leave the originals.
The $49 Word kit includes the sealed cover as file 08, plus matching public minutes. Pricing · See the zip.
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Public minutes stay public
The sealed sheet is in the zip.
You also get a matching agenda, notes, and minutes, plus an executive-session cover you do not post. The kit is $49 once.
Get The Minute Book — $49- Pay through Paddle (your statement may say Paddle).
- Get an email with the zip.
- Open “00 Read me first.” Copy this month’s files. Leave the originals.
Digital download. Delivered immediately after payment. If the zip will not open or the files are not as described, email hello@gettheminutebook.com first and we will help. Payment and refund requests are handled by Paddle, the merchant of record. See the refund policy.
Not legal advice
These are sample forms and a drafting aid, not a substitute for an attorney. They are not valid, complete, or sufficient in every state or for every association. Some states restrict when a board may close a meeting. Check your CC&Rs, bylaws, articles, and state law. Have your association’s attorney review anything that affects owner rights, fines, elections, or assessments.