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Eco friendly high-rise initiatives are not only good for the environment, but can be green for your association budget. How does close to $50,000 in annual savings sound? Here are suggestions you can implement for little to no cost.

Regardless of the size of your community, or where it’s located, there is always one thing that every community association board and committee needs: resident volunteers. However, volunteers are often a scarce resource. Here are some tips to combat apathy.

While the start of the new year is typically heralded as the best time to change old habits and commit to new ones, the reality for community associations and their board members is that there’s no time like the present. These 10 changes will help you get your board and your community association on the right track for the rest of the year.

So what’s the most important aspect of your community? Is it aesthetics? Sense of belonging? Neighbors knowing neighbors? Desirability to home buyers?

They say that good fences make good neighbors. Rules can work the same way – putting the right parameters in place can help keep everyone happy. Too few rules result in anarchy, and too many rules start to feel onerous to residents.

Let’s face it: being a board member of your homeowner association isn’t easy. Neither is self-managing your property. For many boards, hiring a professional property management company is the best decision they’ll make for their community.

Are you an insurance expert? Unless you sell it, the answer is probably “no.” But if you’re a member of your HOA’s Board of Directors, it’s a really smart idea to have a basic understanding of the policy that protects your association from liability.

You’re a member of your community association’s board, and it’s time to review your current insurance policies and providers. While it may be tempting to maintain your current relationship, you may find that significant savings can be found when you shop around.

How well your board communicates has a tremendous impact on your community association. Great communication can lead to better relationships with residents – both homeowners and renters – and helps build a stronger sense of community.

The budget is the launchpad for all of the board’s initiatives. It is more than a series of numbers; it’s the framework for accomplishing your community’s objectives. That’s what makes it so important.

Annual and special meetings can have their own set of rules and needs. Read on to learn more about these two important types of meetings for your HOA or condo association board.

Regardless of how you feel about them, board meetings are more than just something your community association chooses to do. They are something your community association must do. Board meetings are crucial to the governance of your community association. If they aren't run effectively, chances are your association won't function well either.

Dale Young, director of portfolio management at FirstService Residential, and other industry experts reveal the common characteristics of effective and functional boards.

Does your board and management team communicate to the renters in your community? If no, why not? In communities where renters makeup a significant portion of the residents, they are often overlooked by the people running the community.

Whether you’re a new or current board member, you can avoid major issues and make your term more fruitful, rewarding and, above all, effective by following these 9 tips for board members.

NYC's Organic Food Waste Recycling Pilot Program includes Morningside Heights Housing Corp., a cooperative building managed by FirstService Residential’s New York office. This exciting program is designed to reduce the amount of post-consumer waste sent to landfills.

Thriving HOA committees have typically attributed “success by committee" as a factor for their growth. But what are actual HOA committee roles and responsibilities?

As a board member, you want your community to grow and thrive. Having a vision for your community—the aesthetics of it, its reputation, the kinds of programming it offers and amenities it provides—is critical to its long-term well-being. A well-crafted vision will transcend board and resident turnover and keep your community on track.

Like it or not, we have become very dependent on our technology. Whether it’s a cell phone, tablet or computer, our devices enable us to stay connected, conduct business and access information anywhere, anytime. Yet as convenient as these devices may be, cyber security is simply not a priority for the majority of tech users—despite the increased prevalence of cyber attacks. In part one of our two-part series, we look at why cyber security is so important to community associations. We also provide important steps that residents in your community can take to protect their technology so that sensitive information doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

In part one of this two-part series, we discussed the importance of cyber security to your community association and the steps that residents can take to protect themselves and their association. In this article, we look at your board’s responsibility in preventing cyber attacks.

As a Board member, you want your building’s lobby to be aesthetically pleasing and inviting, but also safe and functional – after all, as the hub of your building, it provides essential services and can even become a social gathering place for residents and guests. So if your building lobby isn’t as attractive or functional as it could be – and doesn’t portray the impression you’d like it to – we have some suggestions that can help.

Over the past five years, nearly a half-million U.S. cars in this country have been able to zip right past gas stations – and it’s not because they’ve always had a full tank of gas. That’s how many plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) have been purchased in this country since December 2010, when the first mass-market PEVs – the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt – made their much-heralded debut. Learn more about PEV's in order to ready your HOA.

Is installing EV charging stations the right choice for your community? If your association is considering it, consider this – you’ll not only satisfy the needs of current and future EV owners, but you’ll also enhance your property’s “green” image, which can increase property value and attract future residents. So how should your Board proceed? Start by talking to other community Board members and local community leaders to see if this issue is being addressed locally. Do your research, including consulting with a good property management company. If your community is professionally managed, your property management team can provide you with information and guide you through the process.