720 Statute guidance on getting 3 bids for projects

Without looking at FL statutes.

It is always best to obtain multiple bids to make sure the preferred vendor is not taking advantage of their relationship with the Association by charging higher than market price (trust but verify).

As an example, in my previous association our trash/recycling contract was up for bid. The board wanted to simply sign the new contract. I had already done the work and simply asked permission to request competing bids. Being human, since the work was already done (Request for proposals drafted and ready to mail to multiple vendors), the board said sure - go ahead. When the bids came back, we found the existing companies renewal contract was 10K over market rate. We liked the vendor so asked that they lower the price and they did. Lesson learned - trust but verify.

What can members do -

1) participate -
attend board meetings to see what is going on
Volunteer to do some of the work (regardless if there is a PM or not)
attend and vote at annual meetings to make sure candidates who think as you do are elected.

The Management Company says 3 bids isn't necessary because they have a good rapport with the vendor's and trust their judgement. The Board agrees with the Management company.

The management company may have several client HOAs who also do business with a vendor, and so they're able to get a discount on the service (so they can keep those clients and possibly get more). That can work very well, and I know that's why my assoociation concurred occasionally with the property manager's recommendation on some projects. That said, I agree with you that the more expensive the work, the more important it is to get at least three bids to keep everyone competitive. This is a matter of common sense and shouldn't have to be mandated by a state law. Then again, common sense isn't so common, as Benjamin Franklin once said.

In any case, your beef is really with the board because they make the final decision, so you need to ask them if they've done their due dilligence to ensure this vendor is a good choice, such as asking for references and checking them. If you have concerns about this particular provider, bring that up with the board and see what they (and perhaps the property manager) have to say. If you still don't like what they say, you can always run for a spot in the next board election to replace at least one of them and then push for a policy requiring a minimum of three bids if the work will exceed a certain amount.

Project 1. - trim trees section 1 in March - 6% of budget.

Project 2 - Trim trees section 4 - 5% of budget.

In my view, no bid required.