Most management companies claim to perform the “same tasks,” but the approach they take and whether or not they actually perform those functions are another question. Every day we get phone calls and emails from HOA board members who are frustrated with their current management companies. Often, they’ve been with one company for years, and have watched their service deteriorate over time, while their management fee continues to increase.
The number one complaint I hear from Board Members is that they feel like they are handling too much of the work because they are not receiving the support they need from their management company. The best firms offer a variety of services and offer them in a way which makes your life as a board member easier.
These board members are often diagnosed with Chronic Board Fatigue*. How do you know if you are shouldering too much of the work? Here are five leading symptoms of Chronic Board Fatigue:
1. Communication Carelessness
Getting a hold of the right person at your management company should not be a chore for a board member or any community member for that matter. We hear from HOAs all the time who say their community manager fails to return their phone calls or reply to their emails quickly. They leave a message for the community manager, but it takes several days for them to respond, if they respond at all. Homeowners and vendors routinely share the same experience.
When it comes to the management of a homeowner’s or condo association, communication is key. A quality management company will always strive to keep an open line of communication with its clients. Your managers realize you are busy and should offer a variety of options to communicate including phone, email, online chat, board inquiry portal and direct access to your community manager. Communicating with the company you are paying to represent your association should be a breeze. If it’s not, you may be suffering from a major symptom of Chronic Board Fatigue, Communication Carelessness.
2. Prolonged Projects
Nothing is worse than having a neighborhood project in desperate need of attention only to find your management company is not doing anything about it. Whether it’s helping you get the bids, planning the project or seeing it through to completion, your management firm should handle each of these items within a reasonable amount of time. Further, as your manager and agent, this service should be included in your base management fee.
Whether the board has asked for a street light to be replaced, a water leak to be investigated, or bids from a new landscaper, it seems some community managers continually put projects on the back burner. The board ends up feeling the heat as they repeatedly bring up these concerns without making any progress. Unfortunately, these boards often end up handling the project themselves. We routinely work with clients who are shocked by our 10 day bidding turnaround time and they are floored when they find out there are no additional charges for handling their projects. Proactive project planning takes the heat off of the board and prevents Chronic Board Fatigue.
3. Compliance Apathy
Compliance apathy is a symptom fatigued board members regularly deal with. This symptom rears its head in the form of inconsistent compliance visits, failure to spend time reviewing the condition of the property, or a cursory visit where the manager fails to handle compliance in the way that the board has asked. Your management company should collaborate with your board to customize your compliance oversight and then update you regularly with your community’s progress. When a community manager is managing too many communities, one of the first things to fail off their task list is the oversight of the conditions and compliance of your community. In order to avoid Compliance Apathy and to make sure you aren’t tasked with overseeing the maintenance and compliance of the community, your manager should be providing an update detailing everything they’ve done for your community each week.
4. Lacking Guidance
HOA management companies aren’t just there to do the administrative work your board doesn’t want to deal with; they are also there to keep you updated on the current happenings in HOA law, guide you through difficult decisions that you may have to make, and to simply be the expert on all matters pertaining to the management of your association.
Laws are ever changing in the HOA world, and the minutiae that you must be up-to-date on are both almost limitless and difficult to find. In fact, there are hundreds of rules and regulations (outside of your bylaws and CC&Rs) that you must understand if you are to manage your association with any semblance of efficiency and legitimacy. From laws regulating your ability to restrict parking, to guidelines concerning rental agreements, assessment collection procedures, and so much more, it can be hard to keep up for the average board member. And, without access to or knowledge of these rules, you may quickly find yourself in violation of them, setting up your board for possible lawsuits or worse. A solid HOA management company can help you comply with the laws and give you the peace of mind, knowledge, and support needed when making crucial decisions for your HOA.
5. Manager Ineptitude
For most boards the severity of Chronic Board Fatigue stems from the quality of the community manager assigned to your community. Your community manager should be your association’s goal keeper, a skilled expert who gobbles up obstacles and prevents work from slipping through the cracks and onto the board’s plate. Unfortunately, many community managers are under trained, underpaid and overworked. These managers don’t view managing your community as a profession. Rather, an inept manager does as little as possible and is often waiting for something better to come along. They are usually good people who are not setup for success and do not have a team of colleagues sharing the load. Overcoming this symptom is complex, but there are remedies to this symptom and they often greatly reduce Chronic Board Fatigue.
First-rate community managers are always on the lookout for Chronic Board Fatigue and they know that customer service largely comes down to responsiveness. They return emails immediately; they answer their phone and/or return phone calls; they want to get people the answers they need. A great community manager also cares about their communities. They treat the community as if it is their own. Excellent community managers are well trained and can answer common questions from homeowners and board members. This is their profession and they work full time. A part-time schedule is not adequate for a community manager to exceed.
If your community manager is experiencing fatigue themselves then they are unlikely to cure what ails you. Your community manager should enjoy their job. Great community managers work for great companies; companies that offer support, regular training, full benefits and a great culture. If you know several community managers who have left your management company, it’s likely that the employees were fatigued themselves.
Other minor symptoms of Chronic Board Fatigue include: A deficiency of user friendly financials, no online board portal included in your base management fee, failure to provide a 24/7 emergency contact among others.
We hope you aren’t currently suffering through Chronic Board fatigue, but if you are there is help.
* chronic board fatigue is not an official medical diagnosis. However, its’ negative effects are very real and can be hazardous to your health.
