The website is back as of 4:00 pacific time. Again, our apologies for the downtime.
HOAleader.com- How--and When--to Respond to Angry Letters from HOA Owners February 24, 2012In this week's tip, we offer help with your correspondence. By that, we mean we provide guidance on when to respond to owners' letters, and when your board should hold fire.
- HOA Communications: Dos and Don'ts for Responding to Owners' Letters to the Board February 24, 2012Surely, you get letters from owners. The question is how your should HOA Board of Directors respond. Do all letters require a response? If not, which do, and which don't? And who should respond? Your board president, the property manager, or another person? Finally, what should and shouldn't you include in responses to owners' letters? Here we […]
- Your HOA Has Too Much Extra Money--Seriously? February 17, 2012In this week's tip, we help you with an enviable problem: Your HOA is too flush, and you're actually considering slashing the assessments you charge owners.
- Should You Lower HOA Assessments? February 17, 2012Yes, you read that right. There are actually some condo and homeowners associations on such solid financial ground that they're considering lowering assessments. Here's the analysis to consider when your HOA is in that lucky position.
- Employees Using HOA Plastic? 5 Tips Help You Thwart Theft February 10, 2012This week's tip will help you outsmart unscrupulous employees lured to your HOA's hefty bank accounts.
- 5 Tips to Limit HOA Credit and Debit Card Risks February 10, 2012A Durham, N.C., HOA now has a "bare-bones" 2012 budget after discovering $150,000-$200,000 in theft by an employee, according to a November 2011 report in The Herald Sun. The theft from the 1,000-home Parkwood Homeowners Association occurred mostly through the use of HOA debit cards linked to the HOA's checking account. The alleged thief made […]
- FHA Condo Certification Update; What You Need to Know February 3, 2012Condo associations are still struggling to meet Federal Housing Administration certification requirements for mortgages insured by the federal agency. Here's the latest FHA condo certification news.
- Should You Study How Your Homeowners Association Stacks Up to Nearby HOAs? January 30, 2012An owner reports online that her homeowner association commissioned a study to see how it compared to nearby HOAs in terms of amenities, services, costs, and market value. Should your HOA commission such a study? Where do you find a vendor to conduct such a survey? And are the results of such a study open to owners' review, or can you keep them confiden […]
- Can Your HOA Give Owners "Discounts" on Fees? Alternative Ways to Say Thank You January 29, 2012What if you want to motivate your owners to do something--like volunteer on a committee or oversee the lobby redecoration? Is it possible to offer incentives--like reduced HOA fees for a specific period of time--to attract otherwise-apathetic owners? Here, our experts weigh in.
- Getting HOA Owners to Clean Their Property January 28, 2012A Maryland HOA recently got a court order forcing a homeowner to do a laundry list of repairs or to allow the HOA access to the owner's property to complete the work.
- Bedbugs in Your HOA? Really? Yes, Really! January 27, 2012This week's tip may make your skin crawl. I apologize in advance! But it also might help you prevent a real infestation.
- What to Do if Bedbugs Invade Your HOA January 27, 2012Last August, New York legislators passed a law requiring that rental buildings must disclose any bedbug infestation history, and some real estate agents are requiring New York co-ops to make such disclosures in sales, too. Yet no matter where your HOA is located, you should be preparing for a bedbug infestation--but how in heaven's name does an HOA do t […]
- Can Your HOA's Manager Impose Fees on Owners Without Board Approval? Discussion Forum Follow-Up January 22, 2012An HOAleader.com member asks if a management company can impose fees on owners without notifying the board or getting board approval. The short answer is no. But is the owner sure the board hasn't approved the fee?
- What's an HOA Board to Do When It's Been Getting It Wrong? January 20, 2012Our experts say it's common for condo and homeowners association boards to misinterpret, fail to read, or to just plain ignore their governing documents. Here, HOA experts explain the errors they find boards making and how boards can correct the error of their ways.
- "Get Out!" Is that Something You Can Suggest to an Owner? January 13, 2012In this week's tip, we lend some advice to consider before you bellow to an owner, "You obviously don't belong here. Maybe you should get out!"
- Can You Encourage HOA Owners to Get Up and Go? January 13, 2012Some owners just aren't suited for HOA living, and they make their own lives and the lives of their neighbors miserable. Are there things you can do to encourage those owners to sell and move elsewhere? Or would any such efforts be out of line? Here we provide answers.
- Kick Off 2012: Learn from Other HOAs' Best Moves in 2011 January 8, 2012In this week's tip, we give you a jump on smart homeowner association management in 2012 by revealing some of the best moves HOA boards made in 2011.
- Start 2012 Right: Review the Best Moves HOA Boards Made in 2011 January 8, 2012What better way to ring in the new year than to improve the operation of your HOA with ideas from your peers and the experts who advise them?
- Get a Judgment. No, Get a Lien. Which is Better? December 30, 2011In this week's tip, we answer a question vexing an HOAleader.com reader. Our reader reports that his new homeowner association management company wants to change the wording in the HOA's 10-day demand letter so the HOA would get an automatic judgment, not a lien, when a home owner doesn't pay.
- Can Your HOA Get a Judgment Instead of a Lien? December 30, 2011A HOAleader.com reader reports that his new HOA management company wants to change the wording in the HOA's 10-day demand letter so the HOA would get an automatic judgment, not a lien, when a home owner doesn't pay. What's the difference? And do state laws allow that?
- How--and When--to Respond to Angry Letters from HOA Owners February 24, 2012
