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How to Enjoy HOA Living
Living in a homeowners association has many benefits. But what about all those rules? Yes, they might seem restrictive at first glance but they protect your interests, investment, and quality of life. Read this article on HOA living for more information. -
Making Your HOA Community More Pet Friendly
Amenities play a large role in differentiating your community, enhancing its brand, and drawing in potential buyers. Pet amenities have risen in popularity and range from simple touches such as having dog-friendly treats like biscuits and bowls of water available in the main office, to providing on-site pet services such as grooming. Here are five suggestions for making your community more pet friendly. -
Reserve Funds, Assessment or Loan: 3 Ways to Pay for Capital Improvements
Strategic capital improvements lead to better property values. Read on to see the three ways to pay for them and their pros and cons. -
The Four Fundamentals of Effective Community Landscaping
Landscaping makes an immediate statement about the brand of your community. The right landscaping can set your community apart from others and enhance property values. Here our four landscaping considerations. -
3 Strategies to Keep HOA Assessments Stable and Add Value
There are often good reasons to raise assessments, but in some cases, you may be able to take a different route. Here are three strategies to help save your HOA money and keep assessments stable. -
Want to Start a Neighborhood Watch? Consider this.
Is your building or community considering establishing a Neighborhood Watch program? These crime watch programs – joint efforts between homeowners and local police departments – are gaining traction in many communities by helping to deter unusual or criminal behavior. Here are some tips to consider. -
Ten steps on how to plan a community event
You’re planning an event for your homeowner (HOA) or community association. Congratulations! After the initial excitement comes growing panic, right? Well, not necessarily. -
Twenty-five ways to prevent household poisonings
Poisoning is the leading cause of death from injury in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control. But fortunately, poisonings are also highly preventable. -
Back to school tips for parents and kids
As a parent, you know what back to school means. It’s more than a change in your schedule -- it’s a change in your whole reality. Rushing out the door. Blasting through the homework. Making second trips back to the house for forgotten lunch boxes, book order money or scarves. -
Four home safety tips for the holidays
It's the most wonderful time of the year but not if your holidays are cut short by a fire, an accident or a theft. Taking these 4 safety precautions can prevent such misfortunes. -
House Remodeling: How to select your contractor
You’ve heard the horror stories. The homeowner association (HOA) board hires a contractor to remodel the clubhouse, the fitness room, or one of the other amenities within the community. The contractor talks a good game, but when the actual work begins, it’s a whole other story. -
Four steps to creating building maintenance schedules
Creating and executing a comprehensive building maintenance plan for your high-rise community should be a top priority for your board and property management company. -
“Be Genuinely Helpful": Giving Back to Our Communities
Learn how associates and residents are making a difference in their communities, providing grocery delivery and food delivery, during the COVID-19 pandemic. -
Budget-friendly tips to transform your nursery into a toddler’s room
Somehow, in the blink of an eye, your sweet and cuddly baby has turned into an active and independent toddler – curious about everything and always on the move. She’s outgrown her crib and baby furniture, and now that she can speak up, she’s quite vocal about her desire to change the nursery into a big kid’s room – and has some definite ideas about how to get there. We know you may not agree with her tastes – or how much they might cost to implement – so here are six budget-friendly, easy-to-do tips to transform your nursery into a toddler’s room the whole family will love. -
Dispelling common homeowners association horror stories
As a buyer, you may wonder whether moving into a community with an HOA is right for you. Perhaps you have heard horror stories from unhappy homeowners or have read about unreasonable boards that bully residents. How common are these events? And are the stories even true? -
Buying in an HOA community: Evaluating HOA financials & more
So your diligent search for that home of your dreams has finally led you to one that fits all your criteria. However, it is in an association, and you have known people who belonged to condo or homeowners associations (HOAs) that were poorly run or financially mismanaged. -
Moving out checklist: Essential things to do when moving
You’re moving! That means an exciting new beginning. It also means a lot of work. But no need to stress out – following a simple checklist can prevent those moving migraines. One thing you’ll want to keep in mind: starting as soon as possible is the best policy. Good planning early on will save you some real heartache later. And though we’ve created a timeline that starts at two months out, your home closing may happen in as little as 45 days – just be sure to start the first items on the checklist as soon as you possibly can. -
Managing HOA disputes: HOA mediation vs arbitration
While it’s always best that all parties in an HOA, community association, condo association or other deed-restricted community agree and cooperate, it’s a fact of life that conflicts or disputes may arise. In many cases, the parties can settle their differences amicably and directly through frank and open discussion or negotiation. In other instances you may need mediation or arbitration to find a resolution. -
5 steps to create your preventative maintenance schedule
While community preventative maintenance keeps systems running in a way that keeps future problems from happening, predictive maintenance entails using existing data to determine when systems might fail. Creating your community preventative maintenance schedule will help you budget for these occurrences – and eliminate most of those nasty surprises. Here’s how you can do it. -
A guide to community swimming pool resurfacing options
Your pool is a source of fun for all of your community’s residents. Yet when it comes time to resurface it, it can quickly become a source of headaches. Knowing the facts about your pool resurfacing options can help minimize the hassle – and ensure your community enjoys a quality pool experience for years to come. The best decision is an informed decision. An excellent community association management company will be experienced in this area and can weigh in with some really good insight – and make a recommendation for a reliable pool specialist, too. But before you get to that point, you can start with these pros and cons. -
6 essential HOA pool rules to enforce in your community
Summertime is swim time, and for the most part, it’s a plunge into carefree fun. But without the right swimming pool safety practices, your residents and association could be at risk. -
Consider a Vacation Away From Your Pets
Vacation season has arrived, and with it, the need to pack, plan and in many cases, make arrangements for our four-legged family members. Many hotels and other accommodations are not pet-friendly, so pet owners must decide where, and with whom, to leave Muffy or Max when heading out of town. From kennels to in-home pet sitters, there are various options to fit your lifestyle and budget. -
Eight tips and tricks to pass home inspection
Selling a home in a competitive market can be challenging, and your home still must pass inspection – a critical step to help prospective buyers make an informed decision about your home’s current condition, as well as any repairs and maintenance it may need. -
Getting involved in the community: Participating in your association
When you purchase a home or unit within a deed-restricted community or building, your new residence comes complete with an added bonus – membership in your association. Whether your association is an HOA, community association or condo association, it’s comprised of fellow homeowners and stakeholders who, like you, want to protect the community’s property values, enhance its quality of life and make it a desirable place to live, both now and in the future.But an association can’t achieve these goals without homeowner involvement – after all, how can you have a say in what happens in your community if you don’t participate?