2008 Oct
2008 October Vol. 6, No. 10
Focus on...Association Operations
Scheduling, Time Managment, and Avoiding Burnout
During the day, J.R. “Sankarasivam” Jeyaranjan works 40 hours a week as a bank risk manager. At night and on
weekends, and during pretty much any spare time he has, Jeyaranjan is president
of his Jersey City co-op’s board of directors, a position he has held for the last two years.
Read More
Switching Management Companies
Most co-op and condo boards that hire property managers, rather than manage
themselves with in-house staff, are reasonably satisfied with them. After all,
the managers are presumably trained and experienced professionals. Read More
The Importance of Open Board Communications
In any association of two or more parties, clear communication is essential to
ensure a mutually beneficial relationship. In an HOA, there are interlocking
relationships, such as between the board and the manager, and between the
board/management company and the resident shareholders/unit owners. For the
average resident, especially those new to co-op or condo living, it’s not always apparent who in the community is responsible for what, and who they
can turn to turn to for answers to their questions.
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HOAs & the Value of a Web Presence
It’s sometimes hard to grasp how fast technology has evolved in such a short time.
Whether it’s finding cheap plane tickets or finding a date for Saturday night, the Internet
can do it all. Technology has transformed the way we communicate with e-mail,
message boards, and social networking websites, and it comes as no surprise
that community associations are using the web to communicate in-house, as well
as to market themselves to potential residents. Read More
In Your Place, In Their Place
Conventional wisdom holds that if you have to have neighbors, you’re better off living next door to owners than renters. By definition, owners
have a stake in their building, and are supposedly better neighbors. They are
cleaner, quieter, and friendlier. They keep better hours. Their dogs don’t bark. They pay their bills on time. They are wonderful and amazing in every
way. Read More
How Boards Can Best Handle Difficult Decisions
Sometimes, no matter how much it may pain us to do so, we all have to say or do
unpleasant things. That can certainly be the case for co-op and condo board
members, most of whom will one day face the dreary prospect of raising
maintenance fees, instituting assessments or levying flip taxes. Those tasks
may come with the territory but that doesn’t make it any easier for these individuals to have to step forward and break the
news to friends and neighbors alike.
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Q&A: Board Operations and Overspending
We are an adult community consisting of a complex of three separate buildings. Ten directors make up the officers and manage the community with each individual condo building managed by three trustees. The community has no Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee or Covenants Committee and handles all problems through the board of directors. Since this is contrary to the master deed and the State of New Jersey Condominium Law, I would like to know how to correct this situation. Read More
