Self management

How well does self management work. What is the financial status of a community with 40 owners and 6 buildings at the end of 25-30 years. Does the average community have enough reserves to maintain the upkeep and replacement that is required? Or does it take a management company to keep the business on track? Does a small community like this have a dedicaated office to keep records and conduct business? Or does someone have to answer the telephone at all hours to listen to complaints? I am learning and just want to get some ideas. Thanks. Doug

The Board can also hire out or contract out certain jobs (bookkeeper, landscape, security, etc.) These are things that volunteers are NOT expected to do.

Do your bylaws MANDATE a management company?

Whether your association consists of 3 units or 300, it is -- or should be conducted as -- a business. The BoD has the legal responsibility to act reasonably and properly.

Reliance upon non-paid volunteers to run your Association business can leave you exposed on several fronts. The biggest problem can be to get someone qualified to even volunteer in the first place. For many, this would be a part-time job that was taken because no one else would volunteer. Even if the Board chooses to have a management company handle the day-to-day operations, it must still meet regularly, set direction, and make decisions. This requires that Board members have at least an entry level of business knowledge.

While management companies can simplify things for a condo Board, they do not replace the condo Board. The Board still must meet to set priorities, review the budget, vote on major expenditures, evaluate the management company, and help address problems between neighbors. In addition, the Board will probably take the lead in selecting new paint colors for the common area, new plants for the garden, and other similar matters.

Generally, small associations (i.e. - less than 30-40) do not hire management companies and do it all themselves. There are not enough units to support the fees for a management company or to hire a separate site manager. In many cases, the association BoD will only hire a management company or qualified accountant to handle the billing of the monthly assessments and the payment of basic bills.

If you decide to pursue all of part of self-managing your association, I STRONGLY suggest that you visit www.***********.com. The Contents section will provide you with a list of all the things you should consider doing. This tool kit that is offered, provides a clear roadmap of what to do, how to do it, and when to do it. It will save you hours of research time and/or talking to experts trying to figure out what you should do.

Good Luck
JoeK