Articles
Here are recent articles about FirstService Residential Minnesota and our impact on the Minnesota markets we serve.
How To Create Good Rules for Your Homeowners Association
Associations need rules to keep order, but if they’re taken too far or aren’t consistently and fairly enforced, things can get nasty. By establishing a solid set of rules, your board and property manager will have an easier time enforcing them; make them clear and communicate them regularly with residents and the job of enforcement should be even easier.
Board Basics: Top Tips for Board Members
Being a board member of your community association is an important role that should not be taken lightly. You have a responsibility to your community members, as a business but also as a neighbor.
Board Basics: The Essential Five People on Your Association Board
It takes a lot to build a great community. You need committed residents, a dedicated board of directors and a clear understanding of everybody’s roles and responsibilities.
Board Basics: Defining Residents’ Rights and Responsibilities Creates a Happy Community
When it comes to community living, a little bit of knowledge can pay off in a big way. When residents are fully informed about their rights and responsibilities and what they can expect from their homeowners association – including what they’re expected to contribute – it can go a long way towards creating an HOA community that is friendly, efficient, serene and yes, even happy.
Board Basics: Recognizing and Preventing Conflicts of Interest
The phrase “conflict of interest” tends to get thrown around without much thought, but in reality it can cause real threats to your Minnesota homeowners association if any conflicts go unrecognized. Understanding what the phrase means and knowing how to recognize when these instances may be happening is an important responsibility as a board member and will go a long way toward ensuring the strength and stability of your community.
Board Basics: How to Run an Effective Board Meeting
Community associations operate like a business, which means they must hold regular meetings of their officers (board members) and shareholders (homeowners). So, love ‘em or hate ‘em, board and association meetings are a necessary part of community association governance.
Board Basics: Community Association Terms You Should Know
Have you been elected to your association board? We put together some vocab you will want to be familiar with. We also recommend asking your property management company if additional specific terms might apply to your association.
HOA Audit & Reviews: The Differences, Requirements & Responsibilities
Is your association considering a financial audit or review, but aren’t sure how or where to begin? Michael Mullen, of Michael P. Mullen, CPA, explains the difference between the two, outlines the legal requirements per the Minnesota Common Interest Ownership Act (MCIOA) and clarifies the responsibilities between a property management company and a Board.
HOA Fees - What are they and what do they cover?
When you purchase home in a community association, you are automatically a member of that association. As a result, you’re required to share in the costs of maintaining and operating the association and everything that makes the community great, like all the common areas and amenities and shared services.
Tips to Maintain Your Minnesota HOA Finances
Maintaining the health of your Minnesota community homeowners association’s finances is similar to the way you keep yourself healthy: make good choices, don’t overindulge and exercise good judgement.
A Minnesota Guide to Sighting and Fighting Mold
The bane of every homeowner: unsightly, unsanitary, and unbecoming sight of mold. As Minnesotans, we experience intense rain in summer months and fast thaws in the spring, both of which can lead to extra moisture in and around our homes. If you suspect mold in or near your home take into consideration a comprehensive strategy rather than jumping right into the battle. We’ve got the tips you’ll need to get rid and keep mold away.
Common Drainage Problems Your Community May Face
Before we know it, spring will be here and with that can come a fast melt from Minnesota’s winter months. Melting snow and spring showers bring excess water and that may lead to drainage issue in your community association.
Community Insurance - Four Key Points You Should Know
It’s crucial that Minnesota community association Boards have a clear understanding of the community insurance policy in place at their association. All associations will have different requirements for their homeowner association insurance coverage as laid out in their bylaws and declarations, and Board members have a fiduciary responsibility to protect the best interest of their HOA and its owners. In addition to this upholding duty, associations are also under pressure to find the least expensive homeowner association insurance options available. But there is a caveat – like most things, community insurance is a buyer beware situation – not all policies are created equal, and if you overlook certain types of coverage, it could end up costing the association more than anticipated.
How to Manage Insurance Renewal in your Minnesota Homeowners Association
Your association’s insurance renewal can be lengthy, drawn out, time consuming and always seems to come down to the wire. Having a clear, laid out plan to help steer the process will keep you, the entire board, and most importantly your association in the best position to obtain quality proposals in a timely manner for a job well done.
Foreclosures, Collections and Property Values
The Twin Cities real estate market is enjoying a welcomed period of prosperity, and a topic not often making headlines is foreclosures. At some point in the future, this nasty word may again join the common vernacular of any real estate conversation, though it’s debatable to what degree and how soon. It is important, however, to reflect on the effect these so called ‘distressed’ properties have on Twin Cities communities so we can be more prepared for the next time we experience a declining market.
HOA Collections: Is Your Minnesota Community Being Proactive?
If only everyone paid their assessments on time every time…well, let’s just say we wouldn’t be writing this article. Regular assessments are what fund the operating expenses for your association, and if some homeowners don’t pay, it negatively affects everyone.
A Guide to Prevent Holiday Decorations from Snowballing Out of Control in Association Maintained Communities
No matter what the holiday or celebration may be, your HOA board needs to make sure that residents don’t run amok with their decorating. How can you establish—and enforce—decorating policies without putting a damper on your community’s festive spirit? Here are four tips for letting residents express their holiday creativity while keeping them from going “hog wild.”
Tips for Minnesota Snow Birds. How to Protect Your Home During Winter Vacation
Once the weather starts to cool and temperatures begin to plunge, we often begin thinking of a winter getaway. The easy part about leaving Minnesota is deciding what to pack, but the job that a lot of people don’t put as much focus on is winterizing and protecting your home while you’re away.
What Are Reserves, Why Are They Important and How Minnesota Associations Should Budget for Them
Reserve components are Association maintained major property components with a determinate useful life. The analysis of the reserve components results in accurate and supportable annual reserve fund contributions.
Evaluating Potential Vendors
When your association hires a vendor, it could either be the best decision you ever made, or the worst; the stakes are high. A good vendor will execute your vision on time and on budget, whereas a not-so-good one can be the source of bad workmanship, unexpected delays, inconvenience, a whole lot of headaches, and could end up costing you more in the long run.