shamrockcommunity-blog - Tumblr blog

shamrockcommunity-blog · 7 years ago

Text

Don’t Wait to Start Budget Preparation; Start Preparing Them Now

For many community and property managers, you are probably just finally getting over the trauma of completing your 2018 budgets. The very thought of having to do it all over again is terrifying and overwhelming. But we all know that in just a few short months, you are going to have to start the process all over again. No one wants to think about budgets, but you need to get a jump on it now! Whether you are a manager, owner, or Board member, take a few minutes and think back to last year. What went badly? What do you wish had happened during that process? Start thinking about it now so that when you start putting that budget together, you don’t fall into the same trap that you fell into last time.

For example, during my first few years of management, I would start to prepare my budgets in August or September and have all of my information ready for budget meetings in October. Inevitably, though, schedules would change, and all of my budget meetings would be rescheduled for late November or early December. For many of you that manage community associations and have to send out the budget to owners by a certain date prior to it taking effect, this can become a big problem. It can sometimes mean having to hold back a necessary fee increase until February or later.

Be sure to schedule your budget meetings with your Boards well ahead of time, as well as scheduling when you will have preliminary drafts of your budget to the Board. Give your Boards or property owners lots of time to review the budget and ask questions; as managers, we get into the habit of sending our Boards or owners draft budgets just a few days or weeks prior to the budget meeting. What kind of fiduciary responsibility is a Board member exercising if they only have a few days to review a budget (and probably little opportunity to ask questions)? Get that budget out early!

More importantly, be sure that you are scheduling time to review the budget with your boards prior to the budget meeting. This allows them to ask questions and understand the budget so that they can help you present it to the homeowners. In fact, if they are willing, have the Board present the budget to the homeowners and answer their questions. This will help educate your Board and your homeowners, and make passing that budget a much more pleasant experience.

#shamrockcommunity budgets communityassociations propertymanagement HOAmanagement budgets

1 note · View note

shamrockcommunity-blog · 7 years ago

Text

Please...Get Renter’s Insurance!

I have been managing for a long time, and I have my share of horror stories from it (all property and community managers think that they have the makings of the most interesting book if they only had the time to sit down and write about all of the funny, sad, and extraordinary situations they face).

The hardest conversations that I have had to have is with tenants that didn’t feel the need to have rental insurance. It’s always tough to tell someone that a small mistake they made is going to cost them $10,000 or more.

When I was a renter (and I’m going out on a limb and thinking that most tenants think this same way as well), I honestly did not think any bad situation would happen to me. “What are the chances that I could start a fire...or one would start near me?” It never occurred to me that the chances were good enough that renter’s insurance was totally worth it.

Inevitably, though, every year, I have to have that conversation with one of my tenants or condo owners and let them know that they are responsible for the deductible on the property insurance policy because of there mistake (whether it be starting a fire, causing a flood, or not caring for their home).

I think that there is a general sense that landlord or HOA insurance will cover things. And yes, they often will cover the bulk of damages; but there is that pesky deductible that they are responsible for...and I can’t tell you how many people have fallen out of their chair when I tell them that deductible that they are responsible for is $10,000, $20,000, or even (in some situations) $50,000.

But the worst part is the fight (that every tenant) puts up. I’m not saying that to be rude; its a natural reaction when faced with a horrible situation. I would also fight back on those charges because I wouldn’t want to be responsible for that either! And do they fight it! Inevitably, though, they have to concede that there is no other solution, and they are left trying to figure out how they are going to find the money to make those $300, $400, $500+ monthly settlement agreement payments for the next ten years. It truly is an awful situation and one that every property manager should be talking to every new tenant or community member about...because, there is no reason that the tenant, the HOA member, or the property manager should be in that situation.

Renters insurance is ridiculously cheap. Like $15 a month cheap for most people. And to avoid that headache...trust me, its a bargain!

There isn’t a ton of resources out there in terms of articles about why you should get renter’s insurance. Most of them are 50% sales pitch. I’ve linked to one article below that, despite it being another sales pitch, does explain the reasoning behind why to get renter’s insurance fairly well, and without an overly complicated feel.

Renters: Do yourself a favor and get insurance!

https://getpocket.com/a/read/584783730

#rentersinsurance shamrockcommunity renterspolicy condopolicy

0 notes

shamrockcommunity-blog · 7 years ago

Text

A Brief Interlude into Fair Housing (with Examples)

Below is an article that I wrote for the CAI Oregon Community Bulletin in April 2016. It dives, very superficially, into Fair Housing: why it came about, why it’s important for Community Association Boards, and responsibilities that it puts on Community Associations. If you’d like to read it in its original format, you can view it here. As always, we encourage you to check out more about CAI and the local chapter here.

A Brief Interlude into Fair Housing (with Examples)

by Jed Spera

As this title suggests, this article may be a bit sporadic... In that vein, I am not an attorney, so before you read any further, I need to make it really clear that THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE and shouldn’t be used as such.

So now that I have cleared myself of liability, I want, rather ironically, to tell you the one thing you should take away from this article…Fair Housing is not about covering your butt…it’s about equality. This article isn’t about best practices for Fair Housing…CAI Oregon has lots of opportunities for you to get that education. This article is intended to help you understand why your association needs to follow these rules and give you a different perspective of Fair Housing laws.

To understand Fair Housing, we’ll need to take a brief detour into psychology. In 1943, Psychologist Abraham Maslow posited that there is a hierarchy of basic human needs that people fulfill. The most basic of needs in this theory was, of course, the physiological (i.e. food, water, sleep, etc.). Next on this hierarchy was Safety, which includes housing. To boil this down to its basics, Maslow believed that before any other needs could be met, such as social or esteem needs, basic needs would require attention, including the need of safe housing.

Housing is a basic need of all humans. Think of Fair Housing as an attempt to meet this basic need of the citizenry. More important, it is helpful to remember this as you approach difficulties with Fair Housing law…remember that it is intended to ensure that all people have access to safe housing.

There are a lot of protected classes, right? Just so we are on the same page, the list of federal and state (Oregon) protected classes are:

Race

Color

Religion

National Origin

Sex

Familial Status

Disability

Source of Income

Marital Status

Age

Sexual Orientation

Gender Identity

Additionally, certain municipalities in Oregon also recognize the following as protected classes:

Occupation/Source of Income

Ethnicity

Ancestry

Domestic Partnership

Section 8 Voucher

That starts to get pretty lengthy. But these are not the limits of possible protected classes. While the following are not protected in Oregon, many states are starting to recognize other classes that include:

Conviction/Arrest Record

Less Than Honorable Discharge

Physical Appearance

Political beliefs

Retaliation

Citizenship Status

Gender Identity

Domestic Abuse Victims

That’s a whole lot of protected classes, right? In fact, you may be hard-pressed to find someone that doesn’t fit into some sort of protected class…

But that’s the point isn’t it? The whole idea behind fair housing is that everyone has an equal shot at access to housing. So as you are thinking about creating policies to protect your association against fair housing claims, your general rule of thumb should be whether you are ensuring that any person that lives in your community has equal access to housing and the common elements that your community shares. In a broader sense, be sure that every action you take does not impact any particular group of people in any way.

As you are considering rules for community, consider how any of the above classes might perceive that rule. For example, let’s say you have a pool in your community and you are adopting rules on what is acceptable pool clothing. You have consulted with your attorney and you are avoiding terms such as“diapers” and “yoga pants” and have decided to say, “Only swimwear should be worn when using the pool.” That’s fairly innocuous, right?

Well, actually, no, it’s not. For a minute, imagine that I follow a religion that requires I wear a hijab. Hijabs are not swimwear, yet I need to wear it when I am outdoors. Your rule, which you thought would not violate anyone’s equal access to the common elements, actually has an effect on this particular group of individuals. This is called disparate impact; a seemingly neutral rule that disproportionately impacts a particular group. So how could this have been worded? How about, “Only clothing that does not bleed in water”? Now you have created a rule that does not have a negative impact on any group and meets your community’s need.

As your community considers rules, always start by asking yourself the question, “What is the purpose of the rule?” Often, communities try to create rules that only address the particular people breaking the rule, and not the actual need for the rule. For example, say a community just adopted a rule that states, “Children are not allowed on the grass.” Ignoring the terrible fair housing violations of that sentence, what is the purpose of this rule? Is it to stop children from playing on the grass? Is it to keep the grass clear? My guess is that the purpose is to protect the grass from damage. How about, “No rough play on the grass.” This addresses the need of the community, without disproportionately affecting any particular group of residents. Again, when considering rules for your community, address the actual need.

If the protected classes noted above confuse you in any way, there are lots of resources that can help you understand them. Community Associations often find themselves in trouble because they didn’t understand what groups of people are actually protected.

Holidays can be a particularly tricky issue for some associations and it’s a question that comes up again and again during the holiday season. In the context of viewing Fair Housing as a human right, how you allow your residents to display their celebrations of faith makes for an interesting study.

Fair Housing actually provides some guidance in this area and it speaks to how religion is handled by Fair Housing. In 1995, HUD issued a memo entitled “Guidance Regarding Advertisements Under §804(c) for the Fair Housing Act” which clarified the agency’s position on this topic (and several other related issues), and has not been altered or further defined since that time. Without boring you with the exact wording (go ahead and google the memo if you are interested), the long and short is that many of our holiday traditions have become secularized enough that their religious connotation is nominal. These include symbols and decorations such as Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and St. Valentines Day images, as well as menorah, Diwali candles and several other commonly referred to celebration images. Additionally, such phrases as ‘Merry Christmas’, ‘Happy Easter’, and ‘Happy Hanukkah’ carry the same secularized meaning. Regardless of whether you feel these have made the leap to secularized phrases or not, the point is that HUD says they are, so using them is not a Fair Housing violation.

That was just a little taste of concerns addressed by fair housing. AND, there is no easy answer when it comes to fair housing, either. The best rule of thumb is to ask questions of your attorney, do research, and remember that the purpose of fair housing is to make sure that everyone has a right to feel safe and comfortable in their home and in their community. It is always good practice to govern your community from the perspective of meeting the basic human rights of your residents!

#shamrockcommunity HOA communityassociations CAI caioregon fairhousing

0 notes

shamrockcommunity-blog · 7 years ago

Text

Fair Housing is our Friend

At Shamrock Community & Property Management, we are a little obsessed with Fair Housing. Not only is it great for managing properties and ensuring that all of your processes remain consistent and effectual, but it also is good for housing...whether it be community associations or rental properties. Having a firm grasp on fair housing is very important and something that every community association board member should be familiar with, and every property manager should have (practically) memorized.

We wanted to post two quick resources for our readers on Fair Housing. The first is a link to the Fair Housing Council of Oregon. If you haven’t already, this is a great resource for anyone involved in property management. The second link is a link to the Fair Housing Council of Oregon’s Landlord Guidebook. If you are a property owner, association manager or property manager, you should print this out and keep it very close to your computer...and definitely refer to it often!

The third link is a link to the CAI Advocacy Blog and a recent post by Dawn Bauman. Dawn, apart from being one of the smartest and most amazing people in the Community Association industry, has written a great little piece on Fair Housing in Community Associations, as well as provided several useful links to check out.

Fair Housing Council of Oregon

Fair Housing Guidebook for Landlords

CAI AdvocacyBlog: Commemorating 50 Years of the Fair Housing Act

#shamrock shamrockcommunity communityassociations propertymanagement fairhousing caiadvocacy fhco

0 notes

shamrockcommunity-blog · 7 years ago

Text

Defining the Successful Community

Below is the text of an article that I wrote for Community Bulletin, CAI Oregon’s online magazine, in 2015. A successful community can be defined in many ways, and the leadership of each must define what success looks like for them. This article explains some ways to go about that and things to ask yourself as a leader/manager of a HOA community.

Here is the link to the online version of the magazine, which I encourage you to read through all of the great material found in the Community Bulletin. If you aren’t familiar with CAI Oregon, you can find more information about this organization at www.caioregon.org.

Jed Spera

Defining the Successful Community

by Jed Spera

As appears in the CAI Oregon Community Bulletin (October 2015)

If you have sat on a homeowners’ association board, you are well aware of the (hopefully only occasional) frustration that comes with a Board meeting where two of your fellow board volunteers are having a verbal knife-fight over a decision. Having made up your mind long before the meeting ever started, you are only half paying attention to the discussion, likely doodling something on the inch-thick mound of paper that you have in front of you, or discreetly trying to signal your community manager or Board Chair to make this tedious exchange end…

As you sit there waiting, you wonder why you volunteered to be on the Board anyway…was it for the excitement of the Board meetings or the glory that comes with being on the Board? Obviously not. You wanted to make a difference, right? You thought maybe, just maybe, the great ideas you had for your community would have a place to take root and grow when you joined the Board of Directors.

And has that happened? Despite the tedious meetings and struggle to be heard, your participation has improved your Association; made it better for everyone!

….Maybe?...

…even just a little…

How do we know that the decisions we have made by being on a Board has had a positive impact on the community? Or rather, how do we know that what we have done has made our community a success? Is your community successful because everyone knows all their neighbors, has great block parties, and everyone’s children are best friends?

And that is the ideal we all strive for, correct? We all want a quiet little community, where the buildings look brand new, the landscaping mimics the gardens at Versailles, and there are absolutely no rules violations because everyone follows every rule without question. We’ve all imagined that if we just had that, everything would be great and those Board meetings would be a half hour long and would primarily involve the consumption of wine and good conversation.

And that’s probably not a realistic way to look at success.

So what does a successful community look like and how does it get there? Does a successful community have a look, or is it defined another way? Cautionary anecdote says to never judge a book by its cover; is anyone able to attribute success solely on a drive through the community and a glimpse at the interactions between its community members?

In his articles entitledThe Secrets of Successful Communities, Ed McMahon (not the guy that brings giant paper checks to your door) has a list of seven characteristics a successful community should hold:

1. Have a vision of the future

2. Inventory community assets

3. Build plans on the enhancement of existing assets

4. Use education and incentives, not just

regulation

5. Pick and choose among development projects

6. Pay attention to community aesthetics

7. Have strong leaders and committed citizens

Let’s look at each of these individually and mull over them a bit more. Mr. McMahon was writing about communities in a larger sense (towns, boroughs, etc.), so we can exam how a community association Board might attempt to evaluate its success on these terms.

A Vision of the Future

What would you expect your community to look like 5, 10, or 20 years from now? If you continue on the path you have with maintenance, how will your buildings appear? What type of ownership do you have? Families? Young couples? Retirees? What new facilities will you have, if any? What improvements are needed?

As a Board, have a plan for what your community will look like in the future, both in terms of the facilities and your community’s demographics. This will help you plan your community’s long term goals. What facilities need to be improved in these time frames? Does your community require additional facilities like a club house, pool, or fence?

And as you consider your strategic goals, don’t forget to consider your Board of Directors; recruitment is a huge issue for most Association’s and its one that most Association’s do not think about until a crisis occurs (e.g. that Board President of ten years has just sold his condo, or you are losing two of your three Board members and no one wants to be on the Board).

Strategic Planning is a tool that absolutely every community should be using to create a policy about long term planning.

Inventory Your Community Assets

If you don’t have a reserve study and maintenance plan that includes a list of the common area and limited common area components of your association, you have already failed. There is a reason that most states are requiring reserve studies for homeowner’s associations; if you don’t know what you have, how can you possibly make informed decisions about what you need to do to maintain it?

Additionally, know who lives in your community. Your community’s population is another asset, and if you don’t know how many people actually live there and what needs they have, you will never be able to make a decision about the needs of the community in an informed way.

Build Plans on the Enhancement of Existing Assets

How often have you heard someone in a Board meeting lament about the lack of initial planning and foresight by the developer of your community? “They should have known we would need more parking spaces!” “What were they thinking when they planted so many trees in this small area?!?” This list likely goes on and on for your community.

And while those laments may be valid, they also don’t help solve the problem. If you have too little parking, find ways of using what you do have to its maximum potential. If you lack usable common spaces, find resources for your community to use other spaces. No community was planned perfectly; part of the responsibility of the Board is to find ways to maximize the resources the community already has. If you don’t know how to do that as a Board, hire consultants that can assist you so that you can tell your community members that you made informed, well-researched decisions to address their concerns in a way that doesn’t over-extend your Association’s budget or resources.

Use Education and Incentives, Not Just Regulation

You have all heard it before… “You catch more flies with honey.” So why do we forget this when it comes to our communities? If you have a rule that is being broken on a regular basis, or one that seems to particularly upset your community members, consider how you can meet the needs of the Board while also meeting the needs of your owners. Did your Board clearly and concisely delineate the reasons for the rules? Is your Board communicating regularly with its members about the consequences of rules violations? Has your Board followed the procedures for the violation process and have you communicated that process in a clear and concise manner?

And don’t forget to reiterate why it’s a good thing to follow the rules. Most people will respond positively when they feel their needs are being heard; clearly communicate with violators how having these rules meets the needs of the community (and what that need is), and why breaking rules impedes meeting those needs.

Reciprocally, evaluate the need of the violator and what needs they met by committing the violation. This may be an opportunity for your Board of Directors to consider changing a policy that can ensure both needs are met.

And don’t be afraid to incentivize sticking to the rules of your association. Consider providing a rules violator with lowered rules violation assessments if they correct an action in a timely fashion. But don’t forget that whatever incentives you provide, they should be delineated in a policy so that it is done in an equitable fashion and in a manner consistent with the legal requirements for the rules violation process.

Pick and Choose Among Development Projects

Your community is never going to be successful if it caters to every request from a homeowner or goes bankrupt doing every project it wishes to do. You probably can’t replace the roof, paint every building, overhaul the landscaping, and have a community barbeque all in the same year, even if that is what your community members want.

Prioritize projects by having set criteria for evaluating requests and needs. Maybe you utilize a system that gives priority to the projects with the highest impact. Or you may prioritize by cost. Whatever criteria you choose, be sure that you clearly define the criteria and follow it so that community members do not feel like a decision was made subjectively. And most important of all, be sure that the criteria you use is communicated to your community clearly.

Pay attention to Community Aesthetics

This is another no-brainer. No one wants to live in an ugly community. In fact, its likely that a major factor in a person’s decision to move to your community was based on how the community looked. Your Board may want to prioritize the aesthetics of your community by allocating additional time and funding to facility upkeep (especially projects that increase the beauty of your common areas and facilities), landscaping, and cleanliness.

Part of your community’s success will be defined by how quickly its members can sell their homes, so give proper consideration to requests of homeowners that are selling. Your community may even go so far as hiring a consultant or realtor to share their thoughts about the potential roadblocks your community may have to attracting new homebuyers.

Have Strong Leaders and Committed Citizens

This is perhaps the most important characteristic. Your Board should prioritize recruitment and retention of volunteers for committees and the Board. Burn-out is a big problem with associations that rely on volunteers to govern and handle aspects of the day to day operations of your community (this is especially true for self-managed associations). Be sure that you are not over-extending any single volunteer or relying too heavily on their participation. Additionally, always be thinking about recruitment and how you can encourage new participation.

Part of your Association’s success in this area will come from having proper policies and procedures, and be sure your Board is in alignment (i.e. be sure your Board has strategic goals that everyone has agreed to, even if individual members do not always agree on the decisions).

These tools help set goals so that as a Board, you can plan for the continued success of the community you represent. Maybe you have additional characteristics you judge your community by; there is no right or wrong here. As a Board, you should come together to decide how you will define your success and by what factors you will measure that success. And once you have decided, don’t forget to continue to look at your goals on a regular basis, or set a policy for measuring your success that is reviewed frequently. This will guide your daily operating decisions, as well as your long terms goals and strategies to ensure you remain successful.

For more information about Ed McMahon, and to download his full article on the Secrets to Successful Communities, follow this link: http://plannersweb.com/2013/07/the-secrets-of-successful-communities-part-1/

0 notes