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Is your community prepared to weather a storm? June 1st marks the beginning of the 2016 hurricane season running through November 30th. The National Weather Service reports that, of an average of 12 tropical storms that form over the Atlantic Ocean each year, six become hurricanes. In the Central Pacific, an average of three tropical storms form, with two escalating to full-blown hurricane status. Figures like these make hurricanes a very real threat for many communities and homeowners. In fact, 2016 promises to be anything but your average year. Let’s take a look at why you may want to approach this year in a way that’s as unique as the weather conditions themselves.

Get answers to frequently asked questions from our recent High-Rise Insiders: Structural Integrity webinar to help your association increase building safety for your COA residents.

Are residents in your condominium corporation always aware of upcoming events, construction projects and board meetings? Do they understand their responsibilities and the policies they need to comply with?

You may be unaware that you are opening up all of your emails to scrutiny. When using a personal or work email address to conduct association business, there is a potential liability involved.

We’ve all seen what can happen when rules go too far, are not enforced or are enforced inconsistently. In a homeowners association (HOA), these types of issues can even pit neighbor against neighbor. So what can your board of directors do to make sure that your policies are fair and support your goals of establishing order and building a strong and attractive community? Follow these five recommendations to ensure your policies serve the needs of your HOA without being the source of neighborhood riffs.

We’ve highlighted four common board blunders and included some practical tips for avoiding them. It’s important to identify these potential blunders early to save yourself and your board time and frustration.

Is your HOA ready for a crisis, or does your emergency plan need improvement? Download a complimentary guide, HOA Emergency Preparedness Guide: 8 Questions to Ask .

If your main concern is to avoid increasing assessments, you may want to reconsider. As a board member, one of your primary fiduciary responsibilities is to protect property values, and assessments are an investment that helps do just that.

How should your HOA board handle a pandemic like COVID-19? Start by tackling these 5 questions

Is your HOA ready for a crisis, or does your emergency plan need improvement? Download a complimentary guide, HOA Emergency Preparedness.

Enforcing HOA policies is nobody’s cup of tea, but having good policy enforcement in place helps improve the resident experience and elevates your reputation. Follow these 4 principles for healthy policy enforcement:

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

Many people who live in cities like Phoenix and Scottsdale appreciate the rewards that come with living in a high-rise building. Some of the unique advantages include great amenities, security and even concierge services. High-rise buildings are also unique when it comes to insurance coverage. Besides the individual policies that unit owners need to have, the building and common areas must be covered as well.

Having a diverse group of opinions and perspectives on your HOA board can be a great thing, but it can also lead to challenges because of conflicting personalities. To set you and your association up for success, here are 6 tips to improve board meeting dynamics.

There are often valid reasons to raise assessments, but in some cases, you may want to take a different route. Here are three cost-saving strategies.

Humans are social creatures with a deep-seated yearning for connection and community. This is particularly evident in a strata corporation, where a strong sense of community can be the difference between long-standing residency and high turnover.

Undoubtedly, running meetings is one of the most ;challenging parts of being on your strata council. Members sometimes get off track. Disagreements sometimes turn into arguments. Short discussions sometimes become long-winded monologues. Is there anything you can do to make your council meetings more effective?

A maintenance plan is a great tool for organizing and discussing a Strata Corporation’s property repairs and maintenance.

Safeguarding a strata corporation’s operating and reserve funds is one of the main fiduciary duties of all board members, not just the treasurer. This means strata councils must protect the financial interests of the strata corporation and its members.

As a council member for your strata corporation, you know that your community depends on volunteers to operate successfully. However, finding residents who are willing to be on your council, join a committee or help at an event can be challenging.

A depreciation report provides an inventory of your Strata Corporation’s common property and assets, their projected 30-year maintenance and replacement cost. It is a useful tool for Strata Councils when it comes to budgeting for capital projects and it also gives transparency for owners and buyers on the building.

To set you and your association up for success, we’ve pulled together a list of common board blunders and included some practical tips for avoiding them. If you can identify these early, you may save yourself (and your board) from a lot of frustration.

Is your association really prepared for an emergency? Learn how to develop an HOA emergency preparedness plan in 8 steps.

How should your HOA board handle a pandemic like COVID-19? Start by tackling these 5 questions.