Tips for Reviewing Your HOA Management Company

A homeowner’s association (HOA) not only helps neighborhoods maintain a neat, attended look but can also add significantly to a home’s value. Particularly effective HOAs can also contribute to the structure and organization of a well-planned community by providing common areas and amenities that make a neighborhood more desirable.

All that said, an HOA can take a considerable amount of work to operate and maintain. When things go wrong, an ineffective HOA can leave a community vulnerable.

Poor HOA management can cause a number of problems for residents. Common areas may suffer from neglect, property values may dip, and, all the while, monthly fees might still creep up despite not providing justifiable value.

For that reason, it’s an excellent idea to regularly review your HOA’s management company to ensure you’re receiving the service you’re paying for and getting the best value for the fees you pay. You can identify any areas where problems may exist and take the necessary steps to improve overall member satisfaction within your community.

A Comprehensive Review of Your HOA Management Company

To ensure that HOA management is doing its job well, you should examine these main areas:

CC&R Enforcement

The rules of an HOA community are laid out in something called a Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs). The CC&Rs describe the requirements and limitations of what residents can and cannot do with their property. This can include such things as trash removal, the appearance of the home and yard, parking, and more. The goal of the CC&Rs is to protect the property values within your community.

Is your management company following up on any issues with homeowners not following the CC&Rs? Take a drive or walk around your neighborhood to see if homes and yards are being adequately maintained. Keep a record of potential violations and document when possible. CC&R enforcement by your management company could be an area that needs improvement.

Look at Their Financial Management

Does your management company operate transparently? Do you have access to financial reports and have an understanding of how they collect assessments? Ask for an analysis of your management company’s financial processes so you’re certain funds are being handled responsibly, and that community members can easily be notified on fees and how to pay them.

Review Their Reserve Study

A Reserve Study analyzes a community’s common areas and makes up a plan for any needed replacements and repairs. It then looks at how much the management company and Board should be depositing into reserves to ensure funds exist for these projects when the time comes.

Check Project Reviews

If the Board is planning a large project or has recently finished one, a Project Review will examine the quality of the work and overall value added to the community. It will also look at the budget or pricing that went into the project. If any issues arise, the Board can use this information when planning future projects to make them more efficient and fiscally responsible.

Assessing each of these areas will allow you to understand better how effective your HOA operates and what areas might need improvement.

HOA Management Reviews Help Everybody

If you review the performance of your HOA management company and find areas lacking, Henderson Association Management can help. Our association management services can help you take the necessary steps to address your shortfalls and provide a better service to your community’s members.

Visit our website to learn more about our services and how they can help your Board better meet the needs of your community members today.