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What Does the Board Secretary Really Do?
The Board Secretary is responsible for meeting the Association’s legal and financial obligations and maintaining the Association’s records. Depending on the Association’s requirements, some of the following tasks may need to be distributed to other Board Members or it might be necessary to appoint an assistant to the Secretary. -
Repairs and Maintenance vs Capital Expenditure: What's the Difference?
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. -
Getting Your Building’s Spring Cleaning Started
As community association managers begin their inspection, they note the necessary repairs for winter damage as they make their rounds through the community. The spring season is a time for renewal and a fresh look, so being able to properly landscape around the building is of utmost importance. -
Reserve Fund, Assessment or Loan: How to Pay for Capital Improvements
Great capital improvements improve property values. Read on to see the three ways to pay for them and the pros and cons. -
Alternative Amenity Programming for Residential Buildings
Following the temporary closure of fitness centers, interior lounges and other amenity spaces, boards and building owners may want to consider offering alternative programming for residents. -
Avoid These 4 Condo and Co-op Board Member Mistakes
Many condo and co-op board members make the same four mistakes. Find out what they are and what you should do instead -
Email Communication Best Practices for Coronavirus Information
Here are some email communication best practices for your building to use when sending out communications regarding the current pandemic. -
Enforcing Condo and Co-op House Rules the Right Way
How can you ensure that shareholders/unit owners comply with the established rules without your board becoming the "building bad guys"? -
Commercial Observer-Grading Buildings on Energy Consumption
A new law will require residential and commercial buildings to prove their energy efficiency -
How Your Condo or Co-op Can Help with Hoarding Cleaning Services, NYC
Hoarding is a disorder than can be dangerous to everyone in your NYC condo or co-op building. Learn how to handle hoarders in your building today. -
How to Hold Your Next Board Meeting Through Video Conferencing
It goes without saying that how we communicate has drastically switched from in-person contact to user-friendly digital platforms since the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread. -
How to Keep Your Condo and Co-op Meeting on Track
With many meetings moving to telecommunications platforms like Zoom or GoToMeeting, it’s more important than ever to have a fine-tuned system for keeping your meetings organized and on track. There are steps you can take to ensure your upcoming meetings, whether they’re online or in person are effective and concise. -
Technology at Home Part 2: Keeping Boards and Residents Safe Online
As board communications become increasingly reliant on web-based technologies, it’s more important than ever to take proactive steps to safeguard the way you share and save sensitive information. -
Technology at Home Part One – Choosing the Best Internet Package
In an effort to help our clients and their families stay safe during these difficult times, FirstService Residential’s in-house technology experts recently assembled a list of best practices and technology tips for working at home, improving password security, identifying potential scams and selecting personalized internet packages. -
Getting Your Building’s Spring Cleaning Started
As building managers begin property inspection, they note the necessary repairs for winter damage as they make their rounds through the community. The spring season is a time for renewal and a fresh look, so being able to properly landscape around the building is of utmost importance. -
Why Your Condo or High-Rise Needs a Great Front Desk Team
Five seconds. Science tells us that’s how long it takes to form an initial judgement about a person or thing. First impressions are even faster – they happen in an instant. Given this limited time to make a positive impact, the need for a great front desk team is clearer than ever. -
The Six Secrets to Building Your Condo’s Volunteer Pool
As a board member for your condominium corporation, you know that your community depends on volunteers to operate successfully. However, finding residents who are willing to be on your board of directors, join a committee or help at an event can be challenging. -
Ways to Improve Your Condominium’s Lobby
How do you like to say “hello?” No matter what expression you use, chances are you like to take the opportunity to put your best foot forward and make a good first impression. -
Annual Meetings and Special Meetings: FAQs for Homeowners Associations and Shareholders
If you’re looking for comprehensive information about the different types of association meetings, ask a seasoned board member or your property manager for information and guidance. Meanwhile, we’ve put together answers to some of the most common questions about annual and special meetings. -
Ask the Expert: Homeowners and Condo Owners Association Reserve Study
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. -
Corona-Vision: 8 Takeaways We Can Appreciate
Each of us, in our own way, are doing our part to make those in uncomfortable situations feel a little closer to home and a lot closer to love. -
Rules are Rules: How to Enforce Neighborhood Covenants
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. -
EV Charging Event Top Takeaways
Missed the event? Discover our top takeaways for adding or optimizing EV Charging for your high-rise building. -
Fiduciary C.P.R. for COAs - Austin's Key Takeaways for a Condo Association Budget
Discover our top takeaways around the three fiscal duties of Care, Priority, & Responsibility for your condominium association.