Search

New York City's elderly resident population is growing rapidly, and is projected to increase by an additional 35% over the next 15 years. FirstService Residential Managing Director Marni J. Berk, general manager of the Lincoln Towers complex, is one of the property management experts feautured in a recent New York Times article that describes the challenges of accomodating aging building residents.

No board ever wants to find itself in the midst of an emergency, but they happen. Whether you face an outbreak of illness, an earthquake, a hurricane, a fire, the impact of any devastating event can be minimized by good emergency preparedness planning.

If you live in a pet-friendly community, it’s essential that your association board set boundaries to keep order within your community. Many of the issues that become problems in pet-friendly communities have very little to do with the pets – after all, they can’t clean up after themselves.

Homebuyers are motivated to buy a new home and move to a new community for a wide variety of reasons – perhaps a desire to downsize, upsize, relocate closer to family and friends, or enhance their quality of life. And when it comes to which new home and community to choose, there are nearly as many variables to consider, such as cost of living, location, layout and the quality of the community association and professional management company, to name a few. But while those factors will always be important, there are two additional considerations that, for many people, are even more compelling – community amenities and programs for lifestyle communities.

On October 28, the eve of Superstorm Sandy’s one-year anniversary, Fox Business News aired a powerful segment featuring Chuck Fallon, FirstService Residential CEO.

Living in a high-rise, condominium or co-op certainly has its perks. You get the convenient location, the dramatic views, attentive concierge services and a range of amenities. However, vertical living also means added challenges when it comes to fire safety. Fortunately, there are measures that both your association board and residents can take to improve safety.

You’ve just been elected to your HOA or condo association board. Congratulations! Now you can celebrate...with some time back in the classroom.

Every board of directors, whether for a Fortune 500 company or your community association, needs a great secretary. The secretary is responsible for maintaining those records accurately, including meeting minutes, bylaws and membership records.

You are serving on a homeowner association (HOA) or community association board and discussing hiring a new lawn care provider. Seems simple enough, right? Oh, except that there is a bitter divide between several members arguing about two competing companies.

Parking is one of the most common challenges for homeowners associations (HOAs). It seems, regardless of the type of community, the same parking situations happen to us all. To help keep misunderstandings and violations to a minimum, follow these five tips to manage your HOA’s parking policy.

There are many types, sizes and varieties of lifestyle communities to choose from, and as interest from homebuyers grows, developers and home builders are creating new ones to meet the demand. If you’re a prospective buyer and don’t know where to begin, we can help. We’ve compiled five important factors to consider to help you narrow down your choices and find the right lifestyle community to meet your needs.

The greatest strength of your board is the diverse perspectives of all of its members. Unfortunately, sometimes this can also present the biggest challenges.

It’s no secret that active adult communities are changing. With shifting demographics and lifestyles, gone are the days of sequestered neighborhoods in the far-flung suburbs dominated by golf culture.

A health inspector is coming to assess your community pool. Are you prepared? If not, a pool inspection can be a major source of anxiety for your board members and residents. But don’t throw in the towel – there are steps you can take to make sure your inspection goes...well, swimmingly.

High-rise living often appeals to many people for the wealth of amenities, concierge-level services and unique culture. But with this lifestyle comes challenges. Close quarters and the need for residents to exercise mutual respect can sometimes lead to friction and conflict – this is when formal policies need to come into play. These policies, rather than being hindrances, are a tool for creating harmony among residents. The challenge is getting there – many of the major issues residents face are complex and require the help of a property management company. A great company not only has experience, but also a vast knowledge of the law and a sense for what works best for residents.

Thriving business organizations plan for succession. It’s built into their corporate strategy – team members with potential are identified early on, and then groomed for the leadership positions they’ll someday hold.

Learning from other board members’ experiences is a great way to avoid making some of the more common mistakes. Here, we discuss four of the common mistakes that board members make and offer recommendations for handling the issues differently.

Mention the phrase “active adult communities” and a few images probably spring to mind. But whatever you’re thinking (and we’re guessing it involves golf carts), the reality is actually a lot more diverse.

People decorate for everything these days – from Valentine’s Day to the patriotic celebrations of summer and on to the fall festivities and winter wonderlands. Many people derive a sense of community and comfort from seeing familiar decorations at the same time each year.

The growing population of baby boomers in the U.S. is driving an increase in the popularity of age restricted communities. Learn how existing "55 and better" communities are adapting their facilities and programming to retain a competitive edge in this evolving marketplace.

According to Community Associations Institute , more than 68 million Americans live in 338,000 managed communities. In Canada, approximately one in eight people live in a condominium or strata corporation of some kind, totaling about 1.2 million owner-occupied dwellings as reported by Statistics Canada . Collectively, these homeowners spend tens of billions of dollars to maintain their communities. Each community is governed by an elected board of volunteer homeowners selected through an HOA elections process. Proactive involvement in your community begins with voting for board membership.

It’s important to make sure that your high-rise building’s amenities are desirable and reflect the latest needs and wants of current residents, as well as potential buyers. Investing in amenities will have a twofold effect: it will enrich the lifestyles of your homeowners and residents, and it will make your high-rise more marketable and enhance property values. Updating your amenities doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Read on for some of the hottest trends in high-rise amenities and suggestions for staying current with any budget.

Ready for more happiness? Last week, we described how when residents understand their rights and responsibilities, it goes a long way to creating a happy community. Well, in our never-ending quest to build and enhance community happiness, we’re back with Part 2 for homeowners association leaders. Here’s the scoop – when Board members (and property managers, if the community is professionally managed) have a thorough understanding of their rights and responsibilities, it helps to create an inviting community that is effectively managed, well-maintained and pretty darn happy.