Condo Association Management Blog

Here are three more ways that I have done or observed as a board member: 
 
Reduce or eliminate PRINTED communications: The web is becoming more and more commonplace, and most homeowners have a computer with internet access in their home. HOA's with their own website can save hundreds of dollars a year on printing, distribution costs and handling fees to management companies by distributing newsletters, minutes, and other documents entirely online. A good website should be easy for visitors to use, easy for the board/management to update, and many are starting to implement RSS feeds to deliver updates and news to owners and residents without using traditional email newsletters. For those without internet access at home, there is always their work, a friend or neighbor's house, and even the library or internet cafe. HOA's can even charge a small monthly fee for those people who still wish to receive a paper copy in the mail. Boards who deliver a large percentage of their communications through the web should discuss a discount with their management company for the reduction in printing, "envelope-stuffing" and distribution costs if the service is built into the management fee. Considering that most printed condo communications end up in the recycling bin, or worse trash, within a few minutes of being read, an HOA website not only saves money, but it's a green resource. 
 
Can your property make money? A friend of mine lives in a condo building in San Diego's Middletown neighborhood that was smart enough to have a cell tower added to their 5 story, 30 unit building. The cell company paid for and performed the installation, and pays enough each month to cover the entire HOA budget. In fact, they get a $50 per unit, per month dividend. Other ways to make money - solar panels and/or wind power. Collect rain water for sprinklers. The list goes on. 
 
Sell Something Depending on your covenants, you may be able to sell some of your under used guest parking spaces to owners in need of an additional space. Another San Diego/Mission Valley HOA I know of did this by moving their entry gate in their garage over enough to shift six spaces over from guest parking. These six new spaces were sold at a price of $15,000 each. The HOA used the $75,000 to make an emergency retrofit to the community that was required by their insurance company. The great news for the HOA was that the reserves were not touched, and the homeowners did not have to incur a special assessment.