If you live in a condominium, cooperative or homeowner association, you've probably wondered why community associations can be so bureaucratic, what the board's responsibilities are or how you can evaluate the financial health of your association. For the answers to these questions and a wealth of practical advice on fostering responsive, competent, harmonious associations, plan to attend Community Associations Day, Saturday, Oct. 31 at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City, Arlington.

Four seminars crafted specifically for homeowners and board members will be presented during the Community Associations Institute's 45th National Conference, including:

Championing Community Excellence—less bureaucracy and more leadership can help your association build community spirit, pleasing residents and attracting potential home buyers Reserves and the Budget Process—a panel of legal, accounting, management and engineering professionals guide associations through the process of planning for future major repair and replacement expenditures Fair Housing Act: How to Minimize Your Association's Exposure—you should be concerned about this timely issue and understand its legal, management and insurance impact on community associations Town Hall Meeting -a lively question-and-answer forum concerning roles of directors and officers, liability exposure for volunteer leaders and insurance concerns

Community Associations Day is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.; admission is $35. For more information, call CAI's Washington Metro Chapter at 703/750-3644 or e-mail kbolton@caidc.org.

The Community Associations Institute is a nonprofit association created in 1973 to educate and represent the nation's 205,000 community associations—condominium associations, homeowner associations and cooperatives. CAI members include homeowners, associations and related professionals and service providers.