Selecting the right Austin HOA or Condo Management Company for your community (Demo)

Well it’s officially the new year.  2011 has come and gone, and 2012 is now here.  Statistically speaking January 3^rd is the day is which the most New Years resolutions are made, but also when the most are broken as well. If one of your resolutions was to help hire a new HOA Management company, there a lot of things to consider before making this very important decision for you and everyone else in your community.  If you are not currently on your HOA or condo association board of directors, you need to peruse running for the board in order to make your voice count.  Your HOA or condo association board members are the only members that have the authority to hire or fire the Association management company. The board of directors should consider many factors when choosing the right company for their community.  Here are some factors to consider when selecting the right company: Qualifications – In the association management field, experience means the world. The City of Austin and surrounding areas are constantly changing.  The Texas State legislation just passed countless new law changes, or law adjustments related to HOA and Condo communities. Only experienced companies with a great support system can properly decipher through the vast amount changes and ensure that your association is properly in compliance.   Look for the proper credentials including CMCA and AMS.  We are fortunate enough to the very first AMS (Association Management Specialist) recipient on our very experienced senior management team.  

    Proposal Price – This of course is a main factor that everyone tends to look at.  Be careful when analyzing this number.  Different HOA management companies obviously have different policies.  Look closely at the “reimbursement” or “additional charges” portion of the proposal or contract.  There are some companies out there charge collection fees that can be very expensive and wasteful.  They will apply these charges regardless if there is anything collected or not. PS Property Management Company has a policy we were split any late fees with the association 50/50 but, only after the late fees have actually collected. (Makes sense huh, we think so too) Office Location(s) – Having your HOA or condo Manager close to your community location is very key.  There is certainly something to be said when you can be on the property in case of emergency or other situation in less than ten minutes.  We certainly don’t think it would be wise to hire a HOA management or condo management company that is more than 30 mins away from your community.  We tend to believe that this factor is just like a lot of things in life, out of site, out of mind.  Hire someone relatively close to you so that your community can receive the service you deserve. Great Vendor Network – One of the main duties of the management company is help advise in the hiring of your necessary vendors (landscapers, pool techs, insurance). As an association board member, you are not expected to know all the vendors in town.  It should be up to your management company to help assist and receive all the necessary bids to help the board make inform decisions.  Another thing to keep in mind, some Management companies try to provide services beyond management (ex insurance, or landscaping).  Be very cautious when dealing with a company of this nature.  Most of the time when they are selling you a “great package deal” their extra services are really are how they are making their money.  Access to our exclusive network of local vendors to help make your community dollars go further. PS Property Management is not in the insurance, landscaping, or banking business so you can be assured that you are getting the best advice and unbiased pricing available in Austin. Choosing the right management company for your HOA or condo association can seem like an overwhelming task, but it doesn’t have to be.  As board members, take your time and don’t make a knee jerk reaction.  You know that you have a company that isn’t getting the job done if you are considering changing, but consider what is best your community.  The HOA management or Condo Management you choose should offer the right amount of services for your community for the right price.  Most importantly they should have some ideas for helping improve and maintaining your property values, because ultimately, that we are paid for.   If you feel your community is ready to make a change, take a few seconds to inform us about your community so we can sit down and explain how we can make your HOA a better place to call home

[fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][maxbutton id=”2″]

[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]