eBooks, Articles, & More

Story of the Month The Budget Jam that became a Lawsuit

It all started out so innocently, with a phone call asking if we knew about reserves at condominium Associations. It was the attorney of a Developer. They were being sued by the Association for an outrageous sum, for failure to set aside appropriate Reserves.

Why Contribute to Reserves?

Boardmembers and Managers often get themselves into a situation where they need to “sell” the value of regular Reserve contributions to their homeowners. It’s often a simple matter of fighting for budget dollars… Reserve contributions don’t keep the lights on, they don’t keep the Association properly insured, and they don’t pay the Management company’s bill.

Story of the Month:When to Repair or Replace a Component?

I recently conducted a site inspection at a property with a large air conditioning chiller unit on the roof. The property was about 15 years old, and the chiller was original. A replacement chiller of this type should cost about $50,000 (installed) and last about 20 years.

Complying with the Reserve Study Funding Plan Requirement

Various individuals in California have asked if our company, or other California-based Reserve Study providers, are in the business of creating “Funding Plans” to help associations comply with the January 1, 2009 Reserve Study Funding Plan requirement

Can Painting & Tree Trimming be Paid from Reserves?

We continue to find some reluctance to include major, infrequent common area expenses such as painting and tree trimming in the Reserve Study. This stems from IRS rulings and audit filings which state that these are “maintenance” items and not “contributions to capital”.