The battle between smokers and non-smokers may be reaching a tipping point in community associations. More boards are introducing master deed or by-law amendments prohibiting smoking completely – in individual units as well as in the common areas of their communities. And those proposals are attracting considerably more support and considerably less opposition than they […]
Neighbor to Neighbor: A Guide to Alternative Dispute Resolution
Can’t we all just get along? It’s a million-dollar question. When people move into a community, they often look for the friendliness and camaraderie that living in an association brings. But with many personalities often butting heads on everyday-living situations, it can often get tense and things can go awry. Read More……
Building a Better Board: Common Traits of Successful Boards
Working in groups can be a challenge. Working in groups when people’s homes—and possibly their life savings—are involved can be a far greater challenge. It’s one faced every day by those brave souls who volunteer to serve on their co-op or condo board. While there is no sure-fire recipe for building a board that is […]
Eco-Friendly Landscaping: Long-Term Savings for Your Condo Community
In the face of rising water costs, maintenance costs, and a continued depressed housing market, many community associations are finding long-term savings through new landscape strategies that also help our environment. Eco-friendly landscaping practices are not just the domain of the nature lover anymore. They can mean significant returns on your investment. Read More……
Chemical Concerns: Organic Approach Reduces Costs and Health Risks
Since the 1950s, American lawns have been “hooked” on petroleum-based and synthetic chemicals. A plethora of pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and fertilizers have been eagerly embraced by both homeowners and landscape professionals, who cannot resist the dramatic results—an almost instantaneous, lush, green lawn Read More……
Treating Trees: Landscape Elements Deserve Some TLC
Months have slipped by, but it’s not easy to forget the damage that last year’s brutal weather brought to the trees in the New England area. In June, severe tornadoes touched down in Massachusetts, leaving total devastation in their wake. Read More……
Feeling Flowerful? Colorful Flowers Add Punch to a Community’s Eye Appeal
The phrase, “April showers bring May flowers” is a classic—but in real-life condo communities, beautiful, abundant flowers are a bit more complicated than merely a little bit of rainfall, and don’t just spring up overnight. Read More……
The Big 10: Top Questions to Ask Your Landscape Pro
Part of the job of a condo board is to keep your association’s grounds or lawn looking healthy and attractive. After all, curb appeal can do wonders when it comes to appraisals and even the morale of your community members. But most condo boards—whether urban or suburban—are populated by volunteers, few of whom are likely […]
The Insurance Puzzle: Making Sense of Premiums and Policies
Insurance sounds like a simple concept: you pay a premium to your insurer, and then when you file a claim, your insurer pays you. Simple. Insuring a condominium or association property shouldn’t be much different than insuring yourself—just on a bigger scale, right? Read More……
Condo tragedy: Sprinkler system a small price to pay
While we mourn the two lives lost in the inferno at the Woodcrest condominiums in Chelmsford Saturday night, we can’t help but wonder if the outcome would have been different had there been a sprinkler system in place. Fire officials have ruled the blaze that killed Susan Astle and Paul Deslauriers accidental, but they also […]
Don’t Do This! How Not to Manage a Construction Project
“Don’t try this at home!” This warning, which scrolls under some television ads and programs, would be equally appropriate advice for the way one community association board managed a major construction project. (This is not actually one specific board but a composite, reflecting the experiences of several different boards.) The trustees obviously didn’t set out […]
Foreclosing Lenders Avoid Disaster and Given More Options To Foreclose In Eaton v. Fannie Mae Case
The Massachusetts real estate community has been waiting 8 long months for a decision from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) in the much anticipated Eaton v. Federal National Mortgage Association (link) case. The decision came down June 22, and now that the dust has settled, I don’t think there is any question that lenders […]
Court Decisions on Pit Bulls Could Make More Community Associations Growl at Dog Owners
Ask condominium managers and trustees about the major headaches in their communities, and pets will invariably be at or near the top of the lists they create. Many issues engender strong feelings in the condominium world, but few equal the passions unleashed when pets are involved, as anyone who has tried to enact pet restrictions […]
What’s in Your Wallet? The Importance of Healthy Reserves
Just as families are encouraged to set aside a portion of the household budget into a savings account, so are community associations advised to maintain a reserve fund for capital improvements—repairs and replacements of major common-owned features, infrastructure and facilities. And just as American families are notoriously lax about saving money, so are condo boards […]
Involved & Invested: Volunteers are Still the Backbone of Community Associations
It’s a problem as old as community associations themselves: How do managers increase interest in the possibility of board service? “You know, it’s very common,” says Lynne Kelly, president of Kelly Property Management in Burlington, Massachusetts. “People who move into condominiums just want to go to their annual meeting, if that, and pay their condo […]
Following the Golden Rule: Drafting Rules and Making Them Stick
Every condo association has its own house rules—rules and regulations (hopefully) based on common sense and aimed at protecting residents’ safety and quality of life without undue disruption or inconvenience. Read More……
Aging In Place: Naturally Occuring Retirement Communitites and Alternatives in New England
Citizens over the age of 65 comprise nearly 13 percent of the U.S. population—just under 40 million seniors. By 2030, it is estimated that 72 million Americans will be over the age of 65, nearly doubling those numbers. Where this volume of seniors will live and how, is a question facing not only the individual […]
A Matter of Style: Manager Personalities Play a Role in Board’s Success
To be considered an effective manager, one must possess a plethora of skills including the ability to inspire, motivate and handle multiple tasks at once. In the end, building managers are only successful when they satisfy, or better yet, exceed expectations—which can be difficult, especially when interpreting the varied personalities that comprise most condominium boards. […]
So Now You’re On the Board
The first steps to superior board performance are clarifying your board’s job and then following through with appropriate plans, actions and evaluation of results. The checklists presented here are intended to assist you in those tasks. They cover a significant number of your responsibilities. The checklists will apply to virtually any association. To use them, […]