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The Corporate Transparency Act: 6 things board members need to know
Although there are mixed opinions about whether the CTA applies to condo and HOAs, FirstService Residential is proactively assisting board members serving condo and HOAs in understanding and navigating this act. -
Don’t Be the HOA Bad Guy: 4 Proven Policy Enforcement Tips
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: -
5 common HOA problems & board mistakes to avoid
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. -
Avoiding Community Conflict: Best HOA Practices for Dispute Resolution
How do you prevent conflict, avoid costly litigation and maintain a great resident experience in your community? Start by adopting these best practices for dispute resolution. -
Finding The Right Lifestyle Community For You – Five Things to Consider
Are you considering moving to a community with more lifestyle elements? How do you choose which one is right for you? Do you research and consider these five tips to ensure you find your perfect match! -
Before Creating a New HOA Policy, Ask These 5 Questions
Great policies can help your association run smoothly, enhance the resident experience and improve your reputation. Here are five questions to ask before creating a new HOA policy. -
5 Surprising Reasons to Raise Your HOA Assessments
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. -
Don’t Be the HOA Bad Guy: 4 Proven Policy Enforcement Tips
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: -
Reserve Funds: HOA Budgeting Tips to Improve Your Returns
Are you getting the best returns on your reserve funds? Most Arizona board members aren't sure. Find out six ways to improve your association's reserve fund returns, like creating an HOA investment policy. -
Maintenance, Capital Improvements, Useful Life: Is Your HOA Prepared?
Not sure which components you should fix and which you should replace entirely? You're not alone. Get the answers to some of your top questions about maintenance, capital improvements, and useful life. -
Navigating HOA On-Site Parking Policies: Best Practices
Because on-site parking draws out strong opinions from both residents and board members, it’s imperative that associations be educated about on-site parking and understand what they can and cannot do, especially in regard to resident demands. With such a broad stretch of opinions, how do you approach on-street parking policy as an HOA member? -
6 Ways Your Board Can Improve HOA Meetings
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. -
The Strategic Community Plan - A Road Map for the Future
Is your community interested in introducing a Strategic Community Plan? Read more to learn about the benefits of having a Strategic Community Plan in place and how to introduce them into your association. -
React, Outsource, or Prevent? Find Your Association’s Maintenance Style
How does your Arizona association handle maintenance? Discover your association's unique maintenance style. -
Why Master and Sub-Associations Should be Managed by the Same Community Management Company
Have you ever been in a situation where you didn't know who to call when an issue in your HOA came up because you live in a sub-association of a master-planned community that has two different community management companies? This is a consistent challenge for many homeowners living in multiple managed communities. -
An Ounce of Prevention
Like changing the oil in your car, regular maintenance on a building helps keeps everything working properly and safely. For stratas, some tasks are not optional, they are mandatory. -
Does Your Strata Corporation Have A Plan For Fostering A Sense Of Community?
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. -
Five Ways to Make Your Strata Council Meetings More Effective
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? -
Strata Annual Maintenance Planning Infographic
A maintenance plan is a great tool for organizing and discussing a Strata Corporation’s property repairs and maintenance. -
The Six Secrets to Building Your Strata’s Volunteer Pool
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. -
Depreciation Reports: What You Need to Know
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. -
5 HOA Board Blunders to Avoid
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. -
Bidding Process Simplification Tips for HOAs in California
Some community associations simply get three proposals and price quotes, and go with the lowest bidder. That sounds easy, but buyer beware – there is much more to the bidding process than many board members realize. Sometimes simply choosing a vendor by its low price will get you exactly what you pay for. Here are some best practices on simplifying the bidding process and maximizing the value your association receives. -
React, Outsource, or Prevent? Find Your Association’s Maintenance Style
How does your California association handle maintenance? Discover your association's unique maintenance style.