A Day in the Life of an Association Manager

A Day in the Life of an Association Manager

Don’t you hate having to argue with your neighbors?

You’re lucky you don’t have to do it professionally. 

The main task of the association manager of a community management company is to resolve community conflicts. From taking complaint calls to replying to angry emails, they often deal with their resident issues daily. 

Who is an Association Manager?

When neighborhood associations face problems or wish to improve the conditions, they hire a professional community management company. They call in businesses like the Community Management Associates to aid the community volunteers and board of directors in matters of finance and administration.  As a result, the community association management company sends an association manager to survey the respective neighborhood. Agents with high experience and well-honed communication skills represent the firm. They are the mediators between the residents/board and their parent company.

Community Management Company Associate Manager: A Day in the Life

Associate managers have a broad spectrum of roles to fulfill in the community neighborhood. They take care of everything from solving petty misunderstandings to formulating the budget for the entire community. Residents and the community welfare take central focus for these managers. Any feedback or complaints is quickly brought into consideration or resolved. But among their roles, community finance and neighborhood management are their primary areas of work.

Management Work

The maintenance and renovation within the community fall under the responsibility of the associate manager. If a roof leaks or a pipe break, he is the first individual the resident contacts. The manager is always patient and actively work towards solving the problem in such cases.

Their service also includes acting as a mediator between residents and service vendors. The manager also has to resolve any conflict that may arise between them. Bill delivery, repair of communal areas, health inspections and venue organization are the other areas they must handle.

Financial Work

The essential financial roles that the associate manager must fulfil are maintaining community funds, registering bills, and sharing tax histories. Sometimes, the boards of directors involve them in brainstorming the annual community budget. In such cases, the manager may assist in formulating loan applications to meet the financial needs. Regarding accidents with the residents in the community, the insurance company usually contacts the company manager for deeper insight.

Tough Love

Juggling bills and answering phone complaints are not the only thing an associate manager handles. Maybe it’s that guy from B-3 who plays rock at the oddest hours, or perhaps it’s the gentleman who always keeps the gate unlocked- there are times when the residents need a bit of tough love. These are the moments when associate managers come in most handy. For the community directors and the board, these people are neighbors and acquaintances. These community association members live next door to these people. Any harsh language and chastisement can lead to a detriment in the relationships. Therefore associate managers from companies like Community Management Associates are hired to do the tricky bits.

Simply informing residents about the rules or scolding them is not professional. All good managers have excellent interpersonal skills that open up communication. They must make residents aware of their mistakes while still maintaining a good relationship for the sake of the future.

End of Day 

As a result, an ordinary day of an associate manager is anything but boring.  Things don’t get slow in the block, from meeting contractors for repairs to putting out sudden fires to simply having a stimulating conversation.

What to Look for When Selecting an Association Management Partner

What to Look for When Selecting an Association Management Partner

Managing a community is hard work. From maintenance issues to complaint resolution, it is easy for untrained local volunteers and homeowners to get overwhelmed.

Why Do You Need an Association Management Partner?

In many community bodies, the board mainly consist of homemakers who volunteer for the role. They lack proper training in accounting and conflict management. 

As a result, their community associations responsibilities are not executed efficient. In such cases, a third party enters to guide them and provide necessary assistance.

Many homeowners’ associations hire community management firms to improve, maintain and resolve community management. 

After signing a contract, companies like Company Management Associates send a representative as a point of contact to advise and guide them. These are experienced agents excelling in finance as well as interpersonal skills.

With over 345,000 community associations in the country, there is plenty of demand for partners. 

Homeowner associations must pay careful attention to these traits in management companies to bag the best of the lot.

The Business Model

Some companies have a fit-all approach to community management. They apply the same model to all localities and locations. 

A model customized for a large community will not work for a minor association. The governing bodies in these communities are usually volunteers. They cannot dedicate the same amount of time to their responsibilities as their more formal counterparts in more prominent associations.

Small communities tend to be civic-oriented, while prominent neighborhoods focus more on finance and administration. 

To get the best results, it is vital to choose a partner whose values align with those of the community.


Work History/Experience

Reviews from past customers are key to getting a ground-level knowledge of the company. A comprehensive of their daily workings can be unearthed with a bit of research.

Experienced companies like Community Management Associates are always more likely to be more efficient partners. With 32 years of professional management work, they know the little quirks acquired only with experience.

Larger, more established companies also have more employees. As a result, they have more varied talents and can provide a broader range of services. 


Connections

From drain cleanings to gas leak repair, local service providers are crucial for every community. Almost every maintenance issue requires their service. So, a good association management partner must have a wide range of such connections. 

Besides this, the service providers must be reliable and trustworthy. Sometimes these workers may get injured during work. If they are not appropriately insured, hefty charges may be incurred by the homeowners’ associations.  

Therefore, it is essential to validate the certification, license and insurance of these service providers.


Relevant Certifications/Credentials

A partner must possess relevant documentation and certificates to back up their years of experience.

It is crucial to verify the company’s trade associations certifications. The Community Associations Institute (CAI) is a leading international trade organization focusing on developments. 

The Professional Community Association Manager is a prestigious title that the CAI grants only select partners. If you find this tag on the company, their partner service is a cut above the rest.

Other noteworthy designations include Association Management Specialists (ACM) and Certified Manager of Community Associations (CMCA).


Latest Technology

Often, stagnation in technology goes hand in hand with the years in the industry. A working website and dedicated social media presence are the norms for most companies these days.

But only a few provide the best in the membership registration technology, emergency response and billing systems. 

Keep your eyes peeled for these firms.

Are You Unhappy With Your Community Management Company?

Working and living with a management company is a complex matter. It can bring peace of mind because you can forget about complex administrative duties. However, it can also cause more stress than it should.

The main reason why the latter is a common occurrence is improper practices. A bad management firm will create more problems than it solves. Thankfully, you’re not alone, and there are a few things you can do to solve that.

What are the most common complaints about community management companies?

There are many articles going through the staple complaints people have toward their management company. A simple Google search yields several results, but some are definitely more common than others.

If you’re unhappy with your association, chances are it’s because one or more of these reasons. If that’s the case, then we have good news for you; they’re easier to solve than you might think.

Lack of communications

The most common complaint people have from their management company is that they feel like they don’t care about them. That’s easy when the company doesn’t respond to inquiries and requests in a timely manner.

Delays in problem resolution

Property management is complicated, as you need to keep many variables and services in mind. Bad tactics result in problems going unresolved and homeowners feeling neglected. Most commonly these problems are quick to fix, but inefficiency prevents that.

Lack of respect toward homeowners

Dealing with a community is difficult, and management companies can deplete their patience quickly. The result is that they tend to treat everyone rudely, even those who didn’t present any issues before.

Maintenance inefficiency

Maintenance problems are the easiest way to make an unhappy community. Not only does it feel like neglect, but it also makes the entire residence look deteriorated. Even smaller problems add up quickly.

Bad vendor selection

Finally, not hiring the right vendors breeds a plethora of other issues. Poor results and sketchy staff makes the board lose the community’s trust, so having a good contacts database is vital.

What can you do about it?

We’ve helped several clients resolve their issues with their management company. Most of these cases came from the same roots: choosing the wrong company and a lack of communication.

The latter is easily the most important, as it can also exacerbate other problems unnecessarily. Therefore, we have three tips from our own experience for how you can rid yourself of that stress.

Screen your management company

Make sure you ask for previous references and evaluate the company in the areas that you care about the most. That’s the first step to guarantee community satisfaction from your management company.

Communicate with everyone

Any good company has the right communications channels set up. Going for a firm with plenty of options to get in touch with them should be a priority if you want to avoid issues.

Set clear rules

Make sure everyone knows what they’re supposed to do, both the company and homeowners. Transparency and compliance helps in keeping everyone happy.

Rental Property Investment Tips for Nashville

Why keep money in banks when you can invest the smart way? Investing in rental property can be a good economic decision that can help you save more. It’s easy to find experts recommending rental property investment with the benefits including financial leverage, easy property management, and demand.

Are you thinking of stepping on the pedal too to save more money?

Property management in Nashville continues to look promising. According to the Nashville Business Journal, Nashville is a great real estate market to consider right now due to its popularity peak.

That said, rental property is a significant first-time investment, even if you’ve done it in another city already. Therefore, we’ve compiled several tips to make property management for Nashville easier.

Assess your finances before trying anything

Even Investopedia’s tip list mentions this within its first entries. You need to make sure your financial stability can support this investment. First, ensure you pay off all debts.

Then, evaluate your responsibilities as a landlord. That doesn’t mean just focusing on the right mindset and nothing else. You need to understand the expenses required for property management in Nashville, like CAM (common area maintenance) and HOA fees.

Identify your target investment

After you’re sure you can do it, you must recognize what to invest in. That means picking a neighborhood and the type of property you want to buy. Thinking about the kind of tenants you’d prefer is also useful.

However, it’s not just picking between apartments and houses. You should assess the entire space: number of rooms, construction materials, parking, size, and more.

Research the market to find opportunities

The most important part of making any investment is to assess trends and chances. Forecasts related to property management in Nashville are vital to help you make your final choice.

Right now, Nashville is expected to increase in home prices for over 5%, totalling more than 9% after last year’s rise.

Calculate your cap rate

Your capitalization rate is your possible profits from your property’s next income. The Balance defines it as the return rate you can make from a cash-bought house.

To calculate it, you must compare your renting price, expenses, and its purchase price. After subtracting your expenses from its rent, divide the result by your purchase price. The result is your cap rate percentage.

A word of caution though – there’s no “right or wrong” cap rate. It’s up to you to decide what makes an attractive return.

The 1% rule

As a side note, the same article from The Balance also mentions the 1% rule. It basically says that, if your monthly rent makes up (sans expenses) is at least 1% of its price, it’s worth looking more into it.