Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

Just One Person Can Make a Difference

Just One Person can Make a Difference

This must be the “Year of the Grouch.” I have been involved in Homeowner Association Lawsuits, Mediations, and Consulting about “Out of Control” homeowners reeking havoc in lovely communities from LA to South Orange County.

It may just be the weather, the water or the happenstance of my consulting business but it seems I have been asked to work with very angry people in these first few months of this year. Boards are changing management, homeowners are recalling and changing Boards, members are fighting amongst themselves and lawyers are working day and night trying to calm down homeowner associations in turmoil.

Usually, my business is a mixture of different types of projects. I get a wide variety of requests for different types of assistance. It would have been a good idea for me to have gotten an “Anger Management Degree” in order to work with the clients I have been asked to help in these last few months.

There are over 40,000 community associations in California. Most of those associations are doing just fine. Studies have shown that the majority of people living in a common interest development are pleased with the concept and enjoy sharing their amenities and having rules and regulations enforced. It is just those few associations that seem to crop up again and again in the newspaper or on the court house steps.

Sometimes it is because of just one person. That one angry or unreasonable person that runs amok through a community can be responsible for a lot of distressed and tired Board members. If the person cannot be satisfied by either joining the Board and trying to change the way things are done or convincing the Board to change, legal counsel is usually engaged. Management companies are oftentimes caught up in the conflict and it results in the Management Company canceling the account or losing the account.

As an experienced Manager and someone who likes things to run smoothly, I offer this advice to Boards facing an upset or active resident who seems to enjoy stirring things up:

Listen to the person and really try to understand what the person wants. Sometimes it is difficult, confusing and misleading.
Try and get the person to join you in solving the problem. Ask the person what they would like you to do?
Set parameters for contact. Telephone calls only during the day. Only one call per day, only in writing, etc.
Ask a Mediator to help you interact with the person. Sometimes a neutral party is helpful in gaining trust and suggesting alternatives.
Stay calm. Don’t debate. Adjourn the meeting if it gets too heated.
Realize that sometimes the individual is not interested in solving the problem.
Communicate simply, often and with a positive approach. Let the other residents know what the Board’s positive goals and achievements are.
Keep your meetings shorter rather than longer. Prioritize your goals. Don’t try and discuss and make decisions on every issue known to man.
Praise your fellow Board members. Thank them for their service. Don’t wear them out.
Be realistic and fair with Management. They are in a business to serve the Board and every owner and resident. It’s a tough job.

I hope your association is running smoothly. I hope your community looks well-maintained, is well-managed and most residents are pleased. Most communities are -- it is just that one person….. this too shall pass.

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®

Community Association Consulting

www.CIDexpert.com

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Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

Living in a Community Association I

Living in a Community Association – A Professional’s View

Fall is a busy time for Common Interest Developments. Volunteer homeowner Boards return from vacations ready to make decisions before the end of the year. Budgets and Reserve Studies are due to be mailed to the membership before fiscal years that end on December 31. It seems that time accelerates with Halloween coming up, then Thanksgiving and before you know it decorations begin appearing for Christmas. Pools and pool furniture are sometimes refurbished during the down time before spring. Hopefully, roofs have been inspected and repairs made before the winter rains. It is a good time to volunteer to help the Board or to watch what the Board is doing by attending your monthly community association meeting.

Most of what we read about homeowner associations in the newspapers is negative and sensationalistic. We all remember the articles about the poor homeowner who is picked on by his association. The homeowner who doesn’t feel he is being treated fairly when his architectural application is turned down or the owner who doesn’t like the way the rules are being enforced or not enforced. Certainly there are exceptions to the norm and there are Boards who act irresponsibly, but oftentimes the reason homeowners feel they have been treated unfairly by their association, is because they failed to understand the policies and procedures. Living in an association means being a good neighbor and making compromises and considerations for the good of the whole.

Reasonableness is a big word that is used when judging whether an association decision or a resident action is wrong. Using common sense and considering what the ramifications of your actions are is sometimes overlooked in our rush to solve conflicts. The Courts in judging homeowners and their associations often refers to whether or not the action taken or not taken was reasonable. Boards should always keep that in mind when they are establishing or revising the rules that the residents must follow.

Rules – The Board has the right and duty to establish the rules but recent changes in the laws governing the rules revised by the association, must first be accepted by the homeowners. If a certain number of homeowners object to the way a rule is written then the Board must meet to listen and revise the rule until it is acceptable or submit the rule to the membership for a vote. This only applies to changes in the rules. Boards may also make emergency rule changes with no notice if there is an immediate threat to public health or safety or an imminent risk of economic loss to the association.

Who Enforces the Rules? The Board writes the rules and then enforces the rules. The rules must be reasonable and within the guidelines of the CC&R’s. However, most of us receive letters reminding us of rule violations from the Management Company. Why is that? The Board has authorized the Management Company to check for rule violations, accept written complaints about rule violations, send letters about the rule violations and keep track of compliance with violation logs. If rule violators ignore the letters then, hearings are scheduled and owners are invited to attend and defend or explain their actions before the Board. Owners that ignore their opportunity to appear before the Board and the violation continues will oftentimes be assessed a fine which is added to their homeowner assessment account. Violators that continue to ignore the Board’s decision will then risk legal action. The cost of litigation is very expensive for everyone. I often think that owners that sue their association or get sued by their association forget that they are suing themselves. Everyone in the association shares in the cost of the litigation.

Why does solving a rule violation take so long? Everything seems to take too long in association governance. The Board is all volunteers and they typically meet once a month to make decisions in front of the association members. If a rule violator is ignorant of the power of the association or just doesn’t care, the conclusion of the situation can be very time consuming and costly. Other owners, who observe that the rule violation continues, will sometimes complain that the Board or Management is doing nothing to resolve the infraction when indeed they are doing their best. Court time is precious and very overburdened so it is best to try and settle homeowner disputes long before it gets into the courtroom.

Meetings behind Closed Doors! - A process that is closely associated with litigation and homeowner violations or homeowner delinquencies is often discussed in private with only the Board, the persons involved and maybe attorneys. This is called an Executive Session of the Board. Management attends to take the minutes. This adjournment to a private meeting is sometimes mysterious to those in the audience observing the Board meeting but it is understandable and necessary to not embarrass and discuss personal issues before an audience. The Civil Code governing Common Interest Developments allows the Board to adjourn into Executive Session to discuss litigation, formation of contracts with third parties, member discipline, personnel matters, and member delinquencies. The matters discussed in Executive Session should be generally noted in the minutes of the meeting immediately following the adjournment of the Executive Session.

Living in an association usually results in higher property values. We all are reminded to maintain our yards, our driveways our pets and our children. We all must agree that following rules that provide a cleaner, more maintained community will be better for all of us in the long run.

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®

Community Association Consulting

www.CIDexpert.com

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Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

Living in a Community Association II a Professional's View

Living in a Community Association II - A Professional's View

As the holidays approach, community associations tend to take a back burner and slow down. Sure, board meetings are held, annual meetings are held, budgets are mailed, but residents and board members oftentimes put off agenda items for a later decision.

Everyone gets busier, the days are shorter and rule violations are not as noticeable in the dark. The landscaping stops growing so fast and the pool area is no longer a problem. Holiday decorations go up and associations seem to just settle down.

It is a good time for reflection. If you have an annual meeting in December that is a perfect time to create a festive mood by decorating the clubhouse, bringing in cookies to share and maybe asking a choral group to perform. Large associations have a flurry of clubhouse use as the clubs all celebrate the end of the year.

Boards can use this time to list all of their accomplishments of the past year. It gives the board an opportunity to solicit members for committees, ask for volunteers to handle a specific project and let the residents know what the new year might bring. Boards never seem to “sell” what they do. Inactive members might have no idea what it takes to create a successful association of volunteers. A fresh group of volunteers is always welcome and necessary for successful programs to flourish and evolve. Using the same group of volunteers over and over tends to discourage review and change. Volunteers need to be thanked and not just taken for granted. Programs should always be fresh and inviting. New members on a committee should be encouraged.

I believe it is important to explain what you did and to ask for help in continuing the service or the program. Successful programs are not guaranteed to go on if the volunteers resign or tire of the work involved. It is always helpful to notice people who might be unaware that they could really help and make a difference. Boards should seek out their replacements and encourage new volunteers to get active in the community. It is quite an honor to be singled out and invited to become a committee member or to head a task force.

The cost for management and services in general will naturally increase in cost due to the increase in the cost of doing business. Volunteers are needed for training and replacement. Most residents who don’t become involved in community projects might not know where to begin. Watch for those people, invite them in and encourage their participation. Keep your community active and inviting. Enjoy your holidays. Stay safe and warm.

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®

Community Association Consulting

www.CIDexpert.com

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Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

Motivating Boards to Make Sound Financial Decisions

MOTIVATING BOARDS TO MAKE SOUND FINANCIAL DECISIONS

10 tips for working with boards on financial issues.

Always plan enough time on the Agenda to review the monthly financial statement.
Make sure each board member understands the monthly variables between the budgeted numbers and the actual numbers. Record the information in the minutes.
When reviewing the annual Reserve Study, make sure all the members of the board understand and discuss the report. Are all components included? Is the life expectancy realistic?
When reviewing the Audit Draft point out any “interesting points” that the Auditor has made. Consider hiring a different Auditor about every 5 years to get a “second opinion” and feel confident that another Auditor is looking at the books.
Recommend experts to create specifications for large reserve projects. Then, create a matrix to clearly show the board the differences in the bids. Make sure enough is budgeted so that the expert can supervise to make sure that his specifications are being followed.
When comparing bids be thorough and able to determine the quality of each product that is used. What is the life expectancy of the application?
Collect assessments fairly. Review cost of living increases, completeness of reserve allocations, adequacy of reserve accounts and community expectations, each year. Homeowners should expect assessments to go up most years. Homeowners that “live” in the community should be setting aside money to pay for their fair share of the replacement of the assets.
Asking homeowners to pay for a special assessment shouldn’t come as a surprise if the board has been monitoring expenses, planning for the future, setting adequate budgets and making reasonable decisions.
Communication with owners is a large part of the board’s duty. Share the information. Invite owner participation in solving the problems. Create ad hoc committees to research and advise the board.
With the cost of housing increasing every year, it is in everyone’s best interest to invest in maintenance, refurbishment and revitalization of homes and community centers. Hiring architects and landscapers to re-design and create newer looking facilities is exciting and rewarding for all the owners that live in the community. Keeping existing communities repaired, clean and well-funded adds to the value for every owner.

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®
Community Association Consulting
www.CIDexpert.com

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Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

Ten Tips for Better Board Meetings

Better board meetings through planning and time management.

10 Tips for Better Board Meetings

Time is a gift given by volunteer Board members. Cut down on paperwork. Use Executive Summaries, written Manager Recommendations, Detailed Reports in place of actual correspondence, Timed Agendas and Consent Calendars.
Hold the meetings in a businesslike setting. Don’t meet at the pool or in a room with other activities and distractions. Have adequate space and seating for everyone.
Set up the room so the Board can easily talk to one another but not above or separated from the membership.
Always bring Agendas to hand out to meeting attendees. Let the audience follow along.
Start meetings earlier. Have refreshments delivered so hungry Board members will arrive earlier, be alert and stay until the end of the meeting.
Have committees submit executive summaries for inclusion in the Board package and be available for questions only. Reward and praise committees in the Newsletter, Award Ceremony or at the Annual Meeting, not at the monthly Board meeting.
Stick to the Agenda. Don’t allow business to be discussed without a prior motion and a second.
Make it a Board policy to have experts create specifications prior to going out to bid.
Provide annual Board updates for training and educating each Board. Be creative and make it mandatory that Boards will attend at least one training session each contract year.
Adjourn each meeting before 10 pm. No one is at their best making decisions late at night.

Excerpted from a speech entitled, “The Psychology of Successful Board Meetings & Board Liability.” September 2003

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®

Community Association Consulting

www.CIDexpert.com

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Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

Introduction to Living in a Community Association

Many of us live in Homeowner Associations, also known as Condo Associations, Townhome Communities, Community Associations or Planned Unit Developments. An all encompassing term used to describe all of the associations is Common Interest Development or CID’s.

First time homeowners that move into a CID will oftentimes be puzzled at the rules or the meetings or the letters that might be sent out from the management company. Everyone gets an opportunity to read their association governing documents called CC&R’s as they are closing escrow. It is a large, stapled, ream of paper looking very ominous. Your escrow officer will ask you to sign that you agree with the terms included in the document but you can read it later. You will also get By Laws and Articles of Incorporation. All of the documents tell you something about your community and are really important to read if you plan to invest in the community. Most people file the papers away and don’t think anymore about them until something comes up.

What you should look for in your CC&R’s - If you want to streamline your reading you should refer to the detailed Table of Contents. Most owners want to know, “Who maintains what?” You should be able to find Owner Maintenance Responsibilities and Common Area Maintenance. A few paragraphs in each section will explain what you must take care of and repair and replace and what the association funds will keep repaired and replaced. Common Area Assessments are the monthly fees that you and your neighbors pay for common area upkeep, administration of the community, utilities, and reserves for future replacements. Oftentimes the management company is accused of collecting the entire monthly assessment as their fee. That is not the case and you will see that only a small portion is allocated to the administration of the community in your Annual Budget.

Another really interesting section is titled, Use Restrictions. These are the rules and regulations that you must agree to abide by when you move into a community. It is a sad new owner that finds out that he can’t park his boat, RV or large commercial truck within the community streets. Pet restrictions, antennae, noise, window coverings and parking regulations are usually mentioned in Use Restrictions and become the basis for specific Rules and Regulations that are written, amended and adopted by the association.

A really important section is titled Architectural Guidelines. This section is written in the governing documents to notify you that you must go through the architectural review process before you do most anything outside your front door. Some associations include front yard landscaping in their monthly association fees and the installation and choices are decided before you move in. Other associations expect the new owner to landscape their front and rear yards soon after move-in. Detailed plans and architectural guidelines, based on the Architectural Guidelines in the CC&R’s must be followed to gain approval to landscape or add a patio, new fence, bar-be-que, pool/spa, or trellis. Not knowing the process is necessary and starting construction before gaining approval can be very costly.

Why it is important to attend Board of Director Meetings? - New owners should attend board meetings to see what is being discussed, to meet community leaders and to consider adding your expertise to the association in some way. Our homes are usually our biggest asset. Maintaining and enhancing the asset will help increase the value and add to the enjoyment of community living. Boards of Directors are volunteers who agree to serve for a period of time. It can be time well spent if the board is productive, responsive and works in the best interest of the entire community. Your attendance at board meetings assures that your board is working in your community’s best interest. Most communities have committees that assist the board. It is an excellent training ground for new board members.

What does the Management Company do for their fee? – Many residents are critical of the management company for what they do and what they do not do. Each management company and each association enter into a contract for services. We will discuss, in general, what a “typical” contract entails. However, your association may have specifics that are deleted or added because of board decisions and some associations only contract for financial management.

A typical association management contract includes Financial Management – Collecting assessments, paying bills, creating a monthly financial report, monitoring a collection policy for delinquent assessments and providing escrow/refinance services. Administrative Management– customer service, board support – monthly board reports, minutes, walk throughs, committee oversight, architectural oversight, annual calendar, board education, etc. The management company maintains all of your association’s files, both administrative and financial. All month long, between meetings, your manager and support staff, both administrative and financial, are answering the needs of your residents and preparing information for the board. The success of the manager in providing clear, concise and useful information allows your board to make decisions for your association in a timely manner. It is a very important contract and the success of the association often depends on the cooperation and coordination between management and the board.

Why are there so many CID’s? Is it a Good Thing? – Cities make developers enclose their communities within an association. Nobody wants to pay more taxes. People need someone to take their trash, clean their streets, and provide Police and Fire Protection. To divide up some of those tasks and to create a system to more efficiently handle the direct costs, community associations were created. Each developer pays for attorneys to create CC&R’s that define what the community will provide and what the homeowner must budget for and maintain himself. By using volunteer boards to manage budgets and decide what is best for their communities, the homeowner gets a more direct voice in decision making. Well educated boards with professional management can be very effective in solving community issues. The most effective communities are active with a constantly evolving committee system that will eventually become future board members.

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®

Community Association Consulting

www.CIDexpert.com

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Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

Management Search

Management Search Q&A

Q. Our board has always called or sent requests for proposals to a few management companies. Is there a better way to solicit bids?

A. Benchmarking your current service and defining a more satisfactory level of service expectations will enable your board to make a reasonable business decision. Why change companies and disrupt your residents and owners without first establishing your requirements so that you can compare “apples-to-apples”?

Q. In the past, when we have gone out to bid for a new management company we have been bombarded with questions that we can’t answer. Why do management companies have so many questions?

A. A management company will need to understand your association before they can present a fair and complete proposal. A board can jump from the frying pan into the fire when making a change based on incomplete or erroneous information. Community Association Consulting can liaison with the management companies that are pre-screened to submit a proposal.

By creating detailed specifications for bidding and being able to anticipate and find the answers to the management company’s questions, the proposals will be complete and easy to compare.

Q. We are all busy business and professional people who need to make sound decisions for our owners. What can you do for us?

A. As volunteers who agree to make good business decisions, you must consider the most effective means to accomplish your annual goals. If deciding to change management is a goal of your board, it should be your most important contract decision. You hire experts to advise you on your finances and your legal issues; therefore you should also hire an expert in the

community management field to help you find the best manager or management company for your unique community.

Q. Our community is concerned about costs. Why should we spend money with your company to find a new manager?

A. You can’t afford to make a wrong decision. Choosing a management company or manager is your most important contract. Evaluation of the reputation of the companies, verifying satisfaction with similar communities managed, company stability, supervision of the manager, record keeping quality, philosophy of company and educational level of manager assigned are all considered and evaluated in helping you make your decision.

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®

Community Association Consulting

www.CIDexpert.com

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Tuesday, 03 May 2011 17:00

Timing

Time always affects us even though we may not be paying attention. we need to keep in mind that time is manageable and predictable and we have time for most everything. But, let’s take the idea of time as it relates to homeowner associations from the perspective of the different characters that interact each month.

Time is measured by each person’s personal time clock. Time means different things to different people. There is the impatient person cuing through a line that never seems to move. There is the person in love where time flies and the concept of time seems to stand still, all in the same day. The employee who gets up late and gets to work late and never seems to catch up. The Grandma who plans way in advance to be on time and then always has to wait.

Because time always affects us even though we may not be paying attention, we need to keep in mind that time is manageable and predictable and we have time for most everything. But, let’s take the idea of time as it relates to homeowner associations from the perspective of the different characters that interact each month.

The Board of Directors -

For the board, time starts at the board meeting. A meeting is called to order by the President. The agendas of most association meetings are very similar and should flow from the announcement of quorum and the call to order to Old Business and any ending remarks with the announcement of the next scheduled meeting.

Right after the meeting the pending action and work for the next month’s meeting starts right away. The meeting place must be confirmed, the minutes and action list created. The most time consuming requests need to go out so that the vendors and others will have time to start gathering the information for their responses.

The unknown factor is the requests for information and action that occurs between the board meetings between the board and the manager. Usually, the President of the board contacts the manager and asks for updates or additional information. This time needed to do the work of the association for the next month can be greatly impacted by the additional time to respond and perhaps redo action given at the board meeting. The board is one of the manager’s bosses and cannot be ignored.

The Manager –

The Manager works for many bosses. The boss of the Management Company or the Supervisor assigned to manage the Manager, the boards of each of the Manager’s associations, and finally, the homeowners and residents who live in the associations.

The Manager will always want to please and take care of the requests of all of the parties described above. Therein lays the problem. Prioritizing time and available hours in the day.

If the boards are generally happy the Management Company bosses will usually leave the Manager alone. If the Board trusts the Manager, the boards will usually allow the Manager time to fulfill her duties as they are typically done on time. The board that constantly requests updates and additional information obviously does not trust the Manager to get the job done in a timely and complete fashion. It behooves the Manager to keep the board informed on a mutually agreeable timetable as to the progress and information they will need to make their upcoming decisions. The Manager has approximately “one month,” to gather and organize the data to send to the board prior to their next monthly board meeting.

The Homeowner –

The resident or homeowner usually sees time through a very different prism. The homeowner will report something that needs attention and assume it will be done by day’s end. Sometimes that doesn’t happen. Sending an e-mail at any time of day or night, will accumulate times the number of associations and responsibilities of each manager. Oftentimes, the customer service desk can handle straightforward repairs or requests for service. Other times those requests are passed on for the Manager to handle.

The organization, communication ability and support staff will greatly improve the time needed to complete a request for service. While the time needed may seem to take too long to solve, the best results are handled by good communication and follow through. An e-mail or telephone message can explain a time delay and lead to more time to resolve the issue. Most residents can appreciate and understand the time it takes to fix something as long as we take the time to tell them.

You see, timing is everything ~

Karen Bennett, PCAM, CCAM

Community Association Consulting

www.cidexpert.com

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Thursday, 09 September 2010 17:00

How Come I Got Sued?

Managers are usually surprised when they get named in a lawsuit. Managers are service providers who work hard to juggle all of the demands placed upon them by the contract, the management company, the board, the homeowners and residents and the visitors to the community.

Lawsuits naming managers usually involves a lack of communication or an action that results in someone getting hurt, being inconvenienced or losing money. Managers are intimately tied to the decisions made by their boards. The manager may advise the board that making a decision one way or the other might result in litigation. The manager may strongly suggest that the association seek and take the advice of counsel. But, the board that feels strongly that their decision is correct and justified even with the warnings by management, may proceed and ultimately involve the association and management in a lawsuit.

A Case involving a Management Company

A recent case that I testified in, involved the owner of a condominium suing the board and the management company for repairs that were not completed properly. The owner contended that the repairs were not made according to the association expert’s recommendations and that the unit was uninhabitable. The board had taken two years to make the repairs and the management company was included in the lawsuit because the management company did nothing to resolve the issue, in the eyes of the owner. The management company was seen as helping to cause the delays and allowing sub-standard work to be performed.

As an Expert Witness, I was called in by the insurance company representing the association and management company to review the association records and minutes and testify as to their good business judgment and use of reasonable care in making their decisions.

I was able to follow the progress of the initial report of problems, the research and the repair recommendation. The management company had kept excellent records. The board however, had decided to not repair the unit according to the expert’s recommendations. The board had decided to repair the unit by using the association handyman. The repair was not up to code and the repairs were not sufficient to stop the initial complaint, water intrusion.

The board’s decision to hire the handyman to repair the unit was not documented in the minutes. The reasons that the board accepted this repair choice was not explained to the unit owner or recorded in the minutes. The manager was told of the board’s decision outside of a meeting and the decision was never formalized or explained.

The manager was not a part of the decision to give the job to the handyman and when confronted with the information, chose to accept the board’s decision by not pursuing the issue with the board or mentioning it to his management company.

The issue escalated into a lawsuit when the owners recognized that the repairs did not match the repair recommendations. The management company had done nothing to help get the repairs made correctly and the unit was not repaired. The board was told of the owner’s threat to go to an attorney but the board chose to stand by their original decision and possibly try additional remedies as suggested by the handyman.

This matter was eventually settled out of court and the owners had their unit repaired properly. The association’s insurance company settled the lawsuit and paid all attorney’s fees.

This case is probably a simple one by most standards. The manager could have strongly urged the board to reconsider their decision on not following the expert’s guidelines. The manager could have documented this recommendation. The manager should have notified the management company that this issue was being decided and could have consequences to the management company. Hopefully, the manager’s superiors would have stepped in and helped to resolve the issue. If the board still chose to proceed and it was against the best judgment of the management company, the management company could have canceled their contract with the association. Irresponsible acts by a board that does not rely on the professional manager or management company deserves to stand alone in their decision.

Types of Claims made against Managers

Managers can be sued for appearing to side with the board and not rely on good business judgment.

Managers can be sued if they authorize the release of association funds before all contractual terms are met i.e. lien releases are received, progress is made, quality is assured.

Managers can be sued because poor management is seen as a reason that the association buildings or common area is not repaired and is deteriorating.

Managers can be sued if it appears that association funds are missing due to the manager’s negligence.

As we all know, anyone can sue anyone so this list could be much longer. I have listed claims that are common in the industry.

What you can do about reducing your liability as a manager:

You can insist on being well trained before you are assigned a project to manage.

You can rely on your association attorney to help you guide the board.

You can involve your supervisor in issues that you think might become troublesome.

You can document incidents or issues that you have an indication might result in litigation.

You can conduct yourself like a professional. Expect to be considered and consulted. Be prepared to make recommendations and pro-actively seek out solutions to issues that might someday become problems.

Community Managers are professionals that are given a great deal of responsibility with few industry guidelines and restrictions. Becoming a manager today involves a big commitment to continuing education. Managers are at risk in being named in lawsuits so they need to be especially personally vigilant in protecting their professional careers. Managers need to be alert and responsive to the continuously changing communities that they manage.

Karen Bennett, PCAM®, CCAM®

Community Association Consulting

www.CIDexpert.com

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