Governing a condominium or HOA requires a great deal of documentation, including budgets, meeting minutes, owner info, voting records, insurance policies, and more.
Additionally, things like board turnover, unit owner issues, and liability highlight the importance of drafting and adhering to a record retention policy.
Certain records are mandated to be maintained by associations, but the length of time that they must be maintained for differs and it is important to keep those in mind.
To learn how long certain documents must be retained and how to create a record retention policy, click here.
2020 is around the corner. Does your 2020 budget reflect an increase to monthly assessments? If the answer is no, your may not be adequately planning for your operating expenses and funding your reserves for long-term needs.
Keeping dues flat is often seen as an indication that the board is doing a good job, but there are valid instances where raising dues could be the right decision for the long-term prosperity of the community.
When it comes to operating expenses, the budget should at least increase to keep up with inflation and rising costs for the services and amenities provided by dues. Incrementally raising dues can help ensure a sufficient flow of funds into the operating budget in anticipation of those rising costs.
When it comes to reserve funds, industry sources cite that over 70% of community reserves are underfunded, primarily because monthly dues are not adequately allocated to the reserve budget. Incrementally raising dues to allocate adequate contributions to the reserve account allows the board to fund major expenses without imposing special assessments.
It is a challenging task for boards to strike the right balance between containing costs and enhancing communities. However, boards that realistically evaluate the state of their association’s finances are best able to manage their communities without financial surprises.
Learn more here.
Board members are often tasked with making the most difficult decisions for their community association. These decisions can sometimes lead to confrontation if there are differences of opinion.
Below, we have listed several ways to avoid upset, confrontational, or unruly homeowners during an association meeting.
To read more, click here.
68% of US households own a pet. So, it is advantageous for landlords to allow pets if they do not want to miss out on over half of their prospective tenant pool. However, landlords who are renting out a unit in a condominium building are bound to the pet policies that exist for the association. Landlords should consult their association's governing documents prior to allowing any tenant to have a pet, as a condominium board can take legal action to evict any tenant that is not in compliance with the association's documents.
The following are good guidelines for establishing a pet policy, whether for the entire condominium association or by individual landlords residing in condo buildings that do not have an established pet policy. Landlords and condo boards should be mindful when it comes to pets, as they can both enhance and detract from neighbors' living experience.
If pets are allowed, a pet policy and screening process should be established. The policy should do the following:
To learn more, click here.
Unless an association’s governing documents require it, a homeowner’s association is not responsible for using common funds to provide a translator during meetings.
However, non-English speaking community members should still be able to participate. So, what are the best ways to help them?
To learn more, click here.