Coke Vending Machine On Condo Complex

I haven't had any experience with it. Just know that the IRS would consider any income from those machines as taxable.

Just wondering how much use your pool gets? Just how many cokes could they sell with these machines per season?

We don't allow food or drinks in the area of the pool so for that reason we would not consider this.

Several years back the MC then decided this was worth the effort. Our pool gets very few visitors so in the end the cash generated was not worth the electric bill caused by the machine during a three month season.

Think this serves the vending company NOT the property.

Electricity use will be about $20 month per machine.

I've found buying soda from coke or pepsi vendor to be very expensive. Its cheaper for me to buy soda at Sams Club/ BJ's.

Heres a point you are missing...Coke/Pepsi machine vendors typically RENT the space their machine is placed. The machine vendor collects the PROFIT of the machines NOT the HOA. The HOA gets their take from charging for the use of space and electricity.

I would say go for it as long as the HOA for the space not a cut in the product sales. There may be some tax ramifications so make the rental fee enough to make it worth it and covering operating costs.

Our building is adjacent to a care center (the two buildings connected by a tunnel)
There are multiple vending machines in the employess lounge of the care center. We are allowed to go to the room with the vending machines. If I want a snack any time day or night I can just walk through the tunnel and use the care center's vending machines. I just am not allowed to go into the room with the tables for the employees to sit at on their break.

We used to have a soda vending machine - we brought the machine and it was placed in front of our clubhouse and our president or someone else usually went to the grocery store and brought several 24-packs of sodas to fill it, so all the profits were ours. The machine was used a lot during the summer and we made at least $2000 a year from it, which was really helpful in purchasing various things for the community.

But then, the machine was broken into several times and the last incident damaged the machine so badly, we decided to get another one. It was heavier than the previous one and we thought its lock system was more secure. Apparently it was becuase one early morning thieves hauled the entire machine into a truck and drove away - along with machines they'd also stolen from the grocery store and liquor store in the strip mall across the street and gas station on the corner.

It would have cost too much for us to get yet another machine with even more security, so we considered bringing in a vendor who would bring in his/her own machine and pay a monthly rental fee and/or a percentage of the profits. We couldn't find anyone to give us the percentage we wanted and most of them said they wanted the Association's insurance to cover the machine (their insurance would cover the first loss). With that, we said forget it and we haven't had one since.

One more thing, our clubhouse also has a pool and we also had problems with kids buying pop and throwing empty cans everywhere - expect into the dumpster next to the clubhouse! So litter was also an issue.

After reading the pros and cons, I would suggest against.

Thanks to all for the very very good thoughts, etc on this subject. I was not much in favor of the idea bseforehand
and am less so now after reading all for cons and very little pros.

This should be decided by your board. Someone should make a motion to bring in a Coke machine, debate the pros and cons, and vote on it. Note also that if this is to be done the board should solicit doing this from several vendors and choose the one with the greatest benefit to the HOA, which may not ultimately be the homeowner's son.

If the board votes against the machine, you have your answer. Simply send a letter to the homeowner thanking him for his suggestion and saying that the matter was brought before the board and discussed, but the board has determined that installing a Coke machine at the pool is not in the best interests of the HOA at this time. There is no need to give specific reasons (which could be many).

> I was thinking that more of a detailed reason should be given...

I don't see why. If you do- you open a debate where objections are brought forward and then countered, repeat until you are tired. If the board voted no after consideration, that's the end of the story.

Barring a substantially different offer, or replacement of the board that is.

Alex,

If having vending machines on your property doesn't cost the HOA money and is desired by customers (not the vendor), it could be a nice addition. It's strictly a local decision for your neighborhood only. You'll read the pros and cons here.

If it means you make a "profit" and pay taxes on that profit and it's enjoyed, then pay the taxes. It's a matter of taste.