Monday, November 26, 2007
HOA boards using relatives to do work for community.
I am 100% against using family members of board directors to any type of work at the community. This action results in unfair expectations on the board member and the vendor. Not to mention the potential for kick backs and special treatment. The hiring of board members relatives or acquaintances to do work should be limited to emergencies only, and even then should be monitored closely.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
HOA Board Battles Good, Bad, or just Ugly?
So you have a board that is constantly at each other, and you think well this must not be a good sign, they must not know what is going on, or they can’t get along so the community must be in trouble.
Beware….not always the case.
Just because a board doesn’t agree, or gets into a heated argument doesn’t necessarily mean there’s trouble. I would be more concerned with a board that always gets along to be honest. A certain amount of “spirited debate” must be present or collusion could be afoot.
Let’s take a look at three scenarios of board arguments…the good, the bad, and the ugly.
1.) A board has your month maintenance at a reasonable rate that at least 68% of the community thinks is reasonable. The property is kept up, the insurance is premium coverage with a reputable company, and your debit load from people not paying dues is less than 12k. Basically a sound business minded BOD. Now this board is constantly arguing over cost of current maintenance, future projects, reserves, etc., and it gets heated, maybe even some yelling occurs. Bottom line with a community in this situation…let them argue and stay deadlocked. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it! The more motions the Board passes in the end by and large the more it costs the community.
2.) This board has maintenance that is considered too high by an overwhelming majority of homeowners. The reserves are depleted; spending and debit are both going up at the same time. First off this board should be arguing with somebody, because there are multiple problems that need immediate attention. The problem in this scenario is usually the board is arguing with each other over small items that don’t matter much, and just flat out ignoring the big issues. This is not considered productive arguing and the board should be pressured by the community to handle the big business.
3.) Finally the ugly… This board has all of the above problems of number 2, but instead of arguing about any issue at all you have what I call “Survivor Series” which is when alliances are formed on the board (like the show Survivor) and Jane votes against Jimmy because she doesn’t like taste in music, or because she is friends with Pat who doesn’t like Jim. Now Jim wanted to make a legitimate motion to help the community but it has become stifled because a member of the board has a personal problem they can’t get over. This board is wasting it’s time and unless they can put personal feelings aside this board is doomed to fail.
Beware….not always the case.
Just because a board doesn’t agree, or gets into a heated argument doesn’t necessarily mean there’s trouble. I would be more concerned with a board that always gets along to be honest. A certain amount of “spirited debate” must be present or collusion could be afoot.
Let’s take a look at three scenarios of board arguments…the good, the bad, and the ugly.
1.) A board has your month maintenance at a reasonable rate that at least 68% of the community thinks is reasonable. The property is kept up, the insurance is premium coverage with a reputable company, and your debit load from people not paying dues is less than 12k. Basically a sound business minded BOD. Now this board is constantly arguing over cost of current maintenance, future projects, reserves, etc., and it gets heated, maybe even some yelling occurs. Bottom line with a community in this situation…let them argue and stay deadlocked. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it! The more motions the Board passes in the end by and large the more it costs the community.
2.) This board has maintenance that is considered too high by an overwhelming majority of homeowners. The reserves are depleted; spending and debit are both going up at the same time. First off this board should be arguing with somebody, because there are multiple problems that need immediate attention. The problem in this scenario is usually the board is arguing with each other over small items that don’t matter much, and just flat out ignoring the big issues. This is not considered productive arguing and the board should be pressured by the community to handle the big business.
3.) Finally the ugly… This board has all of the above problems of number 2, but instead of arguing about any issue at all you have what I call “Survivor Series” which is when alliances are formed on the board (like the show Survivor) and Jane votes against Jimmy because she doesn’t like taste in music, or because she is friends with Pat who doesn’t like Jim. Now Jim wanted to make a legitimate motion to help the community but it has become stifled because a member of the board has a personal problem they can’t get over. This board is wasting it’s time and unless they can put personal feelings aside this board is doomed to fail.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Management Company Qwandry
At this point in South Florida choosing a management company is like choosing a politician for office. They are all bad, it is a matter of choosing the lesser of the available evils. Now understand I am not calling Management companies evil (not all anyway) it is just an expression.
Lets be honest here, management companies are in business to make money. Some sell there soul and some are just inept. The fact of the matter is management companies in South Florida are "entrenched" and have created a flux market by accepting "kick backs" from vendors.
What I mean by "flux market" is there is a built in amount of money that is going to management companies from vendors in order to get work (which is illegal), which in turn raises rates. But since there is no standard for this illegal activity the amount being kicked back fluctuates.
Over the next couple of month I am going to be evaluating management companies in South Florida. This should be interesting
Lets be honest here, management companies are in business to make money. Some sell there soul and some are just inept. The fact of the matter is management companies in South Florida are "entrenched" and have created a flux market by accepting "kick backs" from vendors.
What I mean by "flux market" is there is a built in amount of money that is going to management companies from vendors in order to get work (which is illegal), which in turn raises rates. But since there is no standard for this illegal activity the amount being kicked back fluctuates.
Over the next couple of month I am going to be evaluating management companies in South Florida. This should be interesting
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Help for HOA's in South Florida is here
I am proud to announce the launch of HOA Watch Dog, inc. A free HOA consulting agency. More information at http://www.hoawatchdog.org/
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