HOA Management Blog
There are a lot of property managers out there. They have different backgrounds, styles and strengths. It is important for the board of directors of your homeowner’s association to look for a management company that will best serve your community. Do they have the expertise that your association needs?
There’s a lot more to managing a community association effectively than you may realize. It’s much more than property management; it’s also about governance—enforcing rules, conducting elections and more. Your home and your ownership interest in the common elements represent a huge asset—possibly your largest asset. Doesn’t it make sense to have a knowledgeable, trained, professional community association manager watching out for your interests? Consider all they have to offer.
An HOA functions like a mini-city, collecting funds, managing finances, maintaining facilities and adopting and enforcing rules. An elected board of directors oversees these activities. Board members have fiduciary responsibilities, defined in law and HOA documents. All these activities and responsibilities apply to an HOA whether it has 1,000 units or only 25.
Thus, HOAs are complex, requiring professional expertise to manage properly. The question is, who will be the HOA manager to do this? Before assuming that members of the board can manage all of the HOA’s affairs, let’s look at what’s involved in more detail.
As a homeowners association board member, your responsibilities to the community you oversee are many. Homeowners look to their board to keep their community safe, well-maintained and properly managed. Board members are obligated to do everything in their power to meet its members needs while complying with the community’s CC&Rs as well as any state and local regulations. Unfortunately, there are instances where your HOA board may unknowingly be putting the community at risk. Hiring an HOA manager can take the pressure off of your board members. Let’s take a closer look at the pitfalls that can exist and how you can avoid them.
Every HOA's number one priority is the legal fiduciary responsibility to enhance and maintain their property. The only way to do that is by collecting HOA fees. That's why a clear collection policy is a must-have for your HOA board.
Sounds like fun, right? Maybe not. But the new year is a great time to communicate a detailed collection plan for HOA fees. By managing owners’ expectations about HOA fees and the need for timely payment, you can help your board (and especially your treasurer) meet their goals and reduce the need for costly HOA fees collection.
It’s important for an HOA board to work on ending the year well. It doesn’t matter if your homeowners association plans around the fiscal or calendar year, the questions below apply to both. It’s not too late to ask yourself some of these questions and make a resolution to do these things in the New Year to come.
Working for one of the largest HOA management companies in Northern California I get a lot of phone calls from distressed HOA board members. I hear the same story emerging from these different homeowners association. It’s a sad pattern that is all too common. The story goes something like this:
When people think of an emergency, the first image that usually comes to mind is a natural disaster. But an emergency in your homeowners association isn’t always a flood or fire. There can also be financial or management-related emergencies that an HOA board is faced with. Most Boards aren’t prepared to handle emergencies and can benefit from the expertise of an HOA manager to help them plan for emergency situations. Learn what types of emergencies should be on the radar of your board members.
Most HOA boards know that there are annual disclosures that have to be completed and sent out to the membership each year. But did you know that nearly all states also require that a homeowners association organized as non-profit corporations has the responsibility to file an annual report with the Secretary of State? Failure to do so could result in the Association losing its “Good Standing” status.
Many Boards overlook this step when completing their annual disclosures, either because there is a change in management or board governance or the HOA board is just ignorant – but ignorance is not an excuse!
If your homeowners association operates on the fiscal year, then you’re already a month into the new year – Happy New Fiscal Year! Have your fellow HOA board members asked this question: how did we do last year? If not, then now’s the time to re-evaluate and ask the following questions so your Board sets the Association up for success.
