The Uncommon Area

The insurance market for HOAs is very volatile right now. Jonathan Naranjo from Newfront Insurance discusses how various kinds of HOAs should think about budgeting for these important premiums.

Jonathan explains the factors driving increases in insurance costs, emphasizing the impact of inflation, geographical location, and historical loss trends. He discusses the challenges faced by HOAs in high-risk areas, such as wildfire zones and regions prone to natural disasters like floods and hurricanes. Jonathan also offers practical advice on how boards can proactively prepare for renewals, collaborate with their broker partners, and communicate effectively with homeowners.

Newfront Insurance

The post Getting Your Insurance Budget Right | Ep. 51 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Attorney Jeff Beaumont discusses the common budget mistakes made by homeowners association (HOA) boards. He dives into topics such as borrowing from reserves and special assessments.

Civil Code 5610 on Emergency Special Assessments

Beaumont Tashjian

The information provided in this podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, medical, or any other type of professional advice. Listeners of this podcast should not rely on the information presented as a substitute for professional advice or services. Listeners should contact their attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular legal matter.

Is My HOAs Money Safe in the Bank?

Insurance Companies May Not Want to Ensure Your HOA

Are HOA Repair Projects Doomed for Failure? Financial Strategies and Opportunities

Is Your HOA Smart about Banking?

The post Common Budget Failures | Ep. 50 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Don’t let your HOA get into a position where homeowners cannot get Fannie Mae re-fi’s and mortgages. Attorney Jeff Kerrane addresses how to avoid this financing pitfall for your HOA.

KerraneStorz

The information provided in this podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, medical, or any other type of professional advice. Listeners of this podcast should not rely on the information presented as a substitute for professional advice or services. Listeners should contact their attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular legal matter.

Insurance Companies May Not Want to Insure Your HOA

Are HOA Repair Projects Doomed for Failure?

The Future of HOAs in California

The post How HOAs Can Prevent Homeowners From Getting Financing | Ep. 49 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Missing something small in a contract can lead to enormous consequences. Attorney Sandra Gottlieb talks about how to avoid big mistakes in a contract.

Dinosaur CC&Rs

Are HOA Repair Projects Doomed for Failure?

Common Budget Failures

The post Avoid Contract Catastrophes | Ep. 48 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Questions don’t have to drag out your board meetings.

Check out Stop Telling Boring Stories on The Uncommon Area podcast!

Too many board meetings go way too long, and one of the main reasons is lack of preparation, and this can be true of both a manager and the board members. Managers, one of the most important things you can do is to find out what information your board members need in order to make decisions at the meeting, so be sure to give them information well ahead of time.

But don’t leave it there. Contact your board members before the meeting and ask them if they have any questions about anything on the agenda or any of the material that you sent to them. Find out ahead of time what they need to know so when you get to the meeting, discussions can be shorter and you can get to votes on the matters faster.

And board members, there’s no value to wait until a meeting to test your manager and see what they know. Let them use the resources at their disposal on their team and ask all of your questions before the time of the meeting. Give the manager time to pull together information or do any needed research.

Bottom line, if managers solicit questions ahead of time from the board, and if the board members proactively ask their questions in advance, the chances are much better that the board will be prepared to make decisions more quickly at the meeting.

The post Hot Take: Shorten Your Board Meetings | Ep. 47 appeared first on Action Property Management.

A practical way to prioritize what really matters in your homeowner association. Check out more helpful insight on The Uncommon Area!

If everything is a priority, then nothing is. Yet many associations and many managers operate as if everything is a priority. The reality is that neither board members nor managers have the bandwidth to pursue every objective in an association has equal priorities. However, too few managers and too few boards ever discuss how to prioritize what is being addressed in the association.

This can be remedied by regularly reviewing the priorities in a ranked order at each board meeting. It’s a good thing to do at the end of a meeting. Having this discussion each month ensures that all board members and management are on the same page regarding what will get the most focus and attention in time.

A manager can set the priority list each month and get pretty accurate at forecasting what the board will prioritize. Ultimately, this discussion can be relatively short each month if the board agrees with the manager’s priority order, but the discipline of discussing this a few minutes at each meeting ensures that everyone is on the same page and gives opportunity for course correction if board members don’t all agree with each other or if the manager does not have the priorities in line with the board’s desires.

Having clarity and agreement with priorities goes a long way to ensuring the right progress is made on the right things at the right time.

The post Hot Take: You Can’t Prioritize Everything | Ep. 46 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Nathan McGuire talks about California’s changing climate and its impact on the future of homeowner associations (HOAs) in the next ten years.

The Industry is Changing . . . How Will You Manage?

Do Homebuyers See HOAs as a Strikeout or Home Run?

A Jerk or a Lawbreaker?

The post The Future of HOAs in California | Ep. 45 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Sarah Morales from Personal Touch Cleaning and Maintenance talks about how the right cleaning and maintenance programs keep your HOA healthy and your assets living longer.

https://www.ptchoa.com/

What Do You Need to Know about California Deck Inspection Requirements?

Seagulls Make Messes—What Should You Do?

H2O for HOAs

Are You Sitting on a Mold Mine?

The post Does Your HOA Have a Clean Bill of Health? | Ep. 44 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Jonathan Naranjo from Newfront Insurance talks with Matthew Holbrook and Matt Davidson about HOAs and earthquake insurance – what you should know and why you might or might not want that coverage for your HOA.

https://www.newfront.com/

The post Does Earthquake Insurance Make Sense? | Ep. 43 appeared first on Action Property Management.

Reasons to ditch the evening board meetings.

[00:00:00] Maybe more HOAs should consider holding their board meetings during the day. Traditionally, most board meetings are in the evenings because of the daytime work schedules of board members and homeowners. So, often board meetings take on a different tone that can be unprofessional and inefficient. What if more board meetings were held during the day and treated as business meetings?

[00:00:22] Yes, HOAs are communities and we never want to forget that reality, but they are also corporations responsible for millions of dollars of assets. Board meetings are the time when decisions are to be made regarding those assets. And in today’s world of Zoom and working from home, more people have more flexibility with board meeting attendance.

[00:00:42] Maybe more HOAs would benefit from daytime board meetings.

The post Hot Take: Daytime Board Meetings | Ep. 42 appeared first on Action Property Management.