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Nothing lasts forever and you need to have a plan to replace major items and systems before their lifespans end. How do you create that plan? Start with a quality reserve study.

Are you doing all you can to make sure your self-managed community meets its goals?

It’s that time of year again – budget season is upon us. You know the things to consider when creating your budget, but what drives your process? Are you focused on achieving a particular vision for your community? Avoiding conflict in the community? Solely looking to avoid increasing dues?

Is good communication important to your property management company? Use this questionaire to find out.

Some self-managed associations believe they can't afford to hire a professional property management company to manage and maintain their community's operations, assets, finances, common areas and other day-to-day activities. However, as you'll learn in this article, a professional property management company is one thing many communities can't afford to be without.

It’s no secret that association management is a big job. Across Minnesota, common areas require a lot of routine maintenance to uphold community standards – things like exterior light bulb replacements, landscaping and paint touch-ups. Depending on your townhome community, the scale of your amenities' needs will vary.

Great capital improvements improve property values. Read on to see the three ways to pay for them and the pros and cons.

As a self-managed association, do you need a management partner? Before making that choice, ask these 6 questions.

Do you know how your community rates to newer communities? What can you do to change your image? Find out how you can be keep your rating up in this new article by Erin O'Reilly that was featured in Management Trends.

Replacing a trusted vendor or finding a new one can be a challenge. How can you have peace of mind that the vendors you’re considering are right for you? Follow the tips below to help screen potential vendors and get the best fit for your association.

FirstService Residential and FirstService Energy are prepared to help boards and owners identify capital improvements or retrofits that improve a building's energy efficiency score and letter grade.

View our third episode of Ask the Expert, featuring Andrew Stoutenburg, Regional Executive Director of Reserve Advisors, as he talks about the importance of reserve studies in financial planning.

Managing association covenant enforcement can be difficult in any community. Restrictions for every community can be different, and it can be a challenge to keep the rules fair, reasonable and equally applied to all homeowners. Read on for some basic guidelines that will make navigating through these issues a little easier.

How do you determine which property management company will provide you with the best service? Here are 10 questions that you should ask when consulting with property or homeowner association (HOA) management companies to help you make the important decision.

John Friedrichsen, Senior Vice President & CFO of FirstService Residential parent company FirstService Corporation, is quoted in USA Today about how HOAs benefit from the value-added services provided by leading professional management companies.

Capital reserve fund vs. improvements: Budget for both and know when and how to allocate them in your Texas HOA for a continuously improved community.

In this article, we'll cover what underfunded HOA reserves are, how they happen, as well as the risks and what can be done about it.

Learn about special assessments as a way to fund unexpected capital improvements

Handling day-to-day maintenance and making necessary improvements are critical responsibilities for any homeowners association (HOA). And when your serve on your association’s board of directors, they can quickly become overwhelming if you don’t have a good system in place to manage them. So how do you make sure that your maintenance staff is able to handle that long list of tasks that need to get done so that your community runs smoothly and retains its appeal?

Your reserve study is important to your financial health, but how do you get one? How do you choose the right reserve study firm to conduct it? Learn more.

It’s that time of year again – budget season is upon us. You know the things to consider when creating your budget, but what drives your process? Are you focused on achieving a particular vision for your community? Avoiding conflict in the community? Solely looking to avoid increasing dues/contributions?

Self-managing your condominium property may seem like it saves money, but does it really? Why the cheapest property management option may not be the best.

Keeping your condominium corporation’s finances healthy is much like keeping yourself physically fit. The key is to make smart choices and avoid over-indulgence.

Reserve Fund Studies are based on the assumption that components will reach their maximum useful life. However, if a preventative maintenance plan doesn’t accompany your reserve study, it’s highly unlikely some components will ever reach their maximum useful life.