homeowners associations are being incorporated at record rates.
Unfortunately, the field of professional community management isn't
growing at the same pace.
The current frenzy of real estate development in the United States means
homeowners associations are being incorporated at record rates.
Unfortunately, the field of professional community management isn't
growing at the same pace.
Today, more than 50 million Americans live in about 250,000
homeowner-governed neighborhoods - from small homeowners associations
and large, master-planned communities to condominiums and cooperatives.
Thousands more are formed every year.
These communities often are managed by professional community managers.
But when a professional can't be found, or the association can't afford
one, the volunteer board has to manage, as well as govern, the association.
Managing these communities involves collecting assessments, maintaining
architectural guidelines, enforcing rules, landscaping, facilities
maintenance, snow removal, trash collection, even settling squabbles
between residents - and that's just for starters. Fortunately, there is
help from Community Associations Institute, a nonprofit group that
supports not only the professionals who manage associations, but also
the elected volunteers who govern them.
Three features set community associations apart from other
neighborhoods, according to CAI. First, you share ownership of common
land and have access to facilities, such as swimming pools, that often
are not affordable any other way. Second, you automatically become a
member of a community association and must abide by covenants,
conditions and restrictions. The third feature is that you will pay an
"assessment," a regular fee, often monthly, that is used for upkeep of
the common areas and other services and amenities such as pools and
tennis courts.
In this type of community, you usually don't have direct responsibility
for maintenance, so you won't have to clean the pool or fix the tennis
nets. You may not even have to mow your lawn. But that doesn't mean
you'll never have to think about these things.
CAI emphasizes the importance of getting involved in your community so
you have a voice in the association's decisions and the future of your
neighborhood. You can get involved by attending board meetings, serving
on a committee or even seeking a seat on the governing board.
Volunteer homeowners who have to govern and manage their community
associations can get help from CAI's instruction manual for managing
property, financial investments and residents: "Self-Management: A Guide
for the Small Association."
Despite its title, the book applies to all sizes of condominium and
homeowners associations and provides the kind of information that helps
protect volunteers from common - and not-so-common - management problems.
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