Preventive Maintenance or Money Waste

Hi,

Just curious on views of preventive maintenance. We have units built in 2006 thru 2023 with roofs with a 25-year life span (in theory). We had an issue with leaks in one Quad unit in which we replaced boots on pipes (from the roof) as well as resealed a few. Since we have had an issue, I am thinking of requesting all units built in the 2006-2008 range inspected. The theory is if the boots look ok, we reseal them if they look marginal, we replace them.

Overall cost would be about 3000-4000 and the money is there. The question: is this maintenance worth it? For instance, if I reseal or replace boots and we go 10 years without issues I don't know if the 10 years without an issue is because of the work completed or if it would have gone ten years without an intervention. Some say since we cannot tell we simply wait until there is an issue and address that. My concern is leaks of any kind while not all preventable causes an inconvenience to the resident and in the "worst case" scenario the repairs will not hurt.

We are self-managed and there really has been no maintenance plan in place. Everything is ad hoc or we move when the complaints are loud enough. The community is responsible for the entirety of the outside of the homes. Including roofs, siding, etc. I am new to the board (several months) and was elected President of the board. All of the members with several years exp really wanted no part of it, and I am beginning to understand why.

We Just spent $5000 o tree maintenance and while a bit of money, we will not have to address these issues for several years. The old way was to spend 600 here or 400 there depending on the issue. My thought is that this type of maintenance will save money in the long run, prevent issues before they occur and make for happier residents. However, this is "my thought" and I am wondering if this type of planning and proactive works makes sense or i am looking at it incorrectly. The board is reasonable and while no one wants to spend money foolishly they are willing if it is worthwhile. Any thoughts would be appreciated. thanks...

Here's what I'd consider in order to make a decision:

* Did the folks who did the first repair tell you how unusual the leak was? What caused the leak? Do they see this sort of thing regularly, or was there something unusual going on? For instance, if it was probably a construction defect, maybe you should get suspicious and look for more.

* What are the potential consequences of having another leak? How much damage could be done as a result?

* Another thing to consider is insurance. If you wait until there's another leak, the repairs may be covered by your insurance. In contrast, doing proactive work is maintenance and would not be covered by insurance. On the other hand, I wouldn't recommend using your insurance unless you absolutely have to. Premiums are spiking around the country, and many boards are worrying about how to afford coverage or even losing their coverage, which would be catastrophic. I'm assuming your community is condos, and your Declaration/CC&Rs probably require you to have such coverage - so you won't have much wiggle room here.

In short, you'll want to compare the projected costs of going ahead with this maintenance vs. rolling the dice and maybe getting an expensive surprise later. Personally, I think an inspection could be money well spent. You can make a more informed decision about what to do next once you have the results.

Exactly what Sheila said. I watch a home inspector out of Maricopa County AZ and the sheer amount of stuff he catches from building contractors is stifling.
Needless to say the Declarants hate his guts because he does his job extremely well and cost them money.

It is never a good idea to skimp on preventive maintenance, a $100 fix now can prevent a $100,000, repair in the future.

Hi,

No, sorry. The remedy in total could be about $4000.00 or so.

Hi,

A reserve study? How did you get that from a question on Maintenance? Just curious.

Are you saying, and JOIHNC caught this, that you have NO reserve study for ANY common area items that the HOA is responsible to repair & replAce???? Your roofs may or may not need repair but that should be paid ferom your reserves fund.” There also should be Aline item in your reserves study for roof replacement. Yikes.

See Andrea’s recent post ASAP

No, lol. i am not saying that. I was asking a question about maintenance. Is it worth spending money on something where the intervention (repair) may fix a possible problem before it occurs..not knowing if it will occur without it. We have had reserve studies, we are well funded. Just a maintenance question.. Thanks

Because it is a good indication that you likely do not have a current reserve study and or a strong reserve fund.

Especially for self managed HOA's

The same pipe flashing off the shelf for a 25 year roof and a 40 year roof are the same . I don’t know you may have an abberation . As someone else said , a muti family production home is probably shingled by piece workers. I’m not saying your roofs are terrible . Where are the penetrations?Is this low slope ? Steep slope ? Down low where’s there’s snow accumulations? Wouldn’t hurt to inspect altho this time of the year may be more hazardous then early summertime. Over time you’ll probably have maintence schedules organized them may abandon some because of finding them unnecessary. For instance, when I bought my condo 38 years ago , there was an annual in unit electric panel inspection . That was discontinued a few years later . No fires . Altho we had a major underground feeder melt down a few years ago . Un related to in unit wiring.