Holiday Lights without Casualties in your Condo or HOA

In many families, the December holidays call for decorating houses and yards with bright lights. In some neighborhoods, the homeowners compete in creating showcases of lighting effects that draw a nightly parade of slow-moving cars, filled with people who appropriately "ooh" and "aah" at what they see. 

What may not make the news is the fact that each year about 12,500 people show up in hospital emergency rooms for falls from ladders or cuts and shocks related to the holiday lights and decorations.

Here are some tips for keeping you and your family members off the emergency room registration lists:

• When you purchase indoor or outdoor lights, use only those that have been safety-tested by a recognized testing laboratory. The accompanying tag or label indicates that the lights conform with safety standards.
• Use only lights that have fused plugs.
• When you pull your family lights out of the storage boxes, check each set (even the new ones), for broken or cracked sockets, frayed or bare wires or loose connections. Throw out the damaged sets. A new set of lights will cost less than your emergency room treatment.
• Always replace burned-out bulbs promptly with the same wattage bulbs.
• Use no more than three standard-sized sets of lights per single extension cord. Make sure the extension cord is rated for the intended use (indoor or outdoor).
• Never use electric lights on a metallic tree. The tree can become charged with electricity from faulty lights; any person touching a branch could be electrocuted.
• Before using holiday lights outdoors, check the labels to make sure they have been certified for outdoor use.
• When stringing up the lights on your house or on trees and shrubs, stay away from power or feeder lines that lead from utility poles into older homes.
• Fasten outdoor lights securely to trees, house walls or other firm supports. This will protect the lights from wind damage. Use only insulated staples---not nails or tacks--- to hold strings in place. You can also choose to run strings of lights through hooks (available at your neighborhood hardware store.)
• Turn off all holiday lights when you go to bed or when you leave the house. The lights could short out and start a fire while you're sleeping or while you're away from the house.
• When it's time to remove the lights, never pull or tug on them. They could unravel and inadvertently wrap themselves around power lines.

Outdoor electric lights and decorations should be plugged into circuits that are protected by ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs). Portable outdoor GFCIs can be purchased where electrical supplies are sold. They can be installed permanently to household circuits by a qualified electrician.

Article by Kent Crook, President of Wiremasters Electric, Inc.

3 More Reasons to Volunteer for Your Community Association

We share our CommunityLINK Blog posts with several groups on LinkedIn. Our most recent post, Top 10 Reasons to Volunteer for your Community Association, received an incredible response. One of the comments included the readers own reasons to volunteer for your Community Association. We enjoyed reading his comments so much, we thought it would be great to share them with the rest of our Blog readers.

1. To create a community spirit! - My own HOA all came together and picked up garbage, debris and raked leaves. It saved everyone money and avoided a higher assessment for the forthcoming hear. This will be a bi-monthly event. We had a blast and got to know each other even more.

2. To save postage and exercise! - Posting mailings on each door rather than mailing can save the community on postage and is also great exercise!

3. To protect the community! - Law enforcement can't be everywhere all the time. We all look out for each other, by creating a Neighborhood Watch it is nothing short of a win-win.

Although these may not be the "normal" reasons homeowners volunteer for their Board of Directors, they are certainly some great reasons. Whatever your reason may be, contact your Board of Directors or Management Company and volunteer to give back to your community. Willing volunteers are always needed and appreciated.

So we ask you, what's your reason for volunteering for your Community Association? We look forward to your response and comments.

Top 10 Reasons to Volunteer for your Community Association

There are many reasons why homeowners volunteer to be a part of their Condominium or Homeowners Association Board. Below we've listed the Top 10 Reasons to Volunteer for your Community Association Board of Directors. The Condo's and HOA's we represent throughout Miami Dade, Broward, and Monroe Counties are constantly looking for dedicated and talented homeowners to join their Board of Directors. Give it a shot!

Why volunteer to be on the Board?

1. To protect you property values and maintain the quality of life you expect in your community.

2. To correct a problem within your community. Perhaps parking is an issue, or maintenance has been neglected.

3. To give back to your community and neighbors.

4. To be sociable, meet your neighbors, and make friends.

5. To advance your career and build your personal resume by including your leadership capacity and community volunteer service.

6. To have fun accomplishing things around your community together with your neighbors. Being on the Board doesn’t always have to be negative.

7. To get educated on the many facets of running a community association such as; the many laws and regulations, maintenance and repair, and understanding financials.

8. To express yourself and be creative while offering your opinion on solutions to your communities day to day problems.

9. To earn recognition from your peers for your contributions to the community.

10. To advance the ‘givers gain’ mentality of improving society as a whole while assisting your neighbors throughout the community.

As you can see, joining your Community Association Board of Directors can be rewarding in many ways. We enjoy working with our Board Members in our South Florida Condo and HOA Communities and we encourage you to give it a try!

Modified from Community Association Institute

Think Long Term for Condo and HOA Planning

Association's and their Board's sometimes seem to have ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), and we really mean no offense by that. However, we notice more and more everyday that Association's tend to spend a lot of time juggling a number of projects. This tactic not only makes it more difficult for projects to be completed, but are also signs of a disorganized Board and Manager. This makes both homeowners and board members frustrated. A good Property Manager knows just how to overcome this ADD syndrome.

Board of Directors need to not only have a plan, but they need to work their plan through their manager every single day.

The plan must primarily include major capital expenditures, such as roof replacement, painting, and pavement resurfacing. Without a Capital Improvement Plan most Associations will have no choice but to defer major maintenance issues which will most certainly cost more in the end. Board Members should work with their Property Manager to develop a long term Capital Improvement Plan for adequate reserve funding.

Your plan should also include regular property maintenance from your Associations operating budget. These regular maintenance items include lamp replacement, tree trimming , or elevator upgrades. Repair items should be built into your monthly operating budget in order to avoid costly emergency repairs and to preserve the condition of the property. By performing regular repairs on a monthly basis and avoiding emergency repairs your Association will save in the long term. 

Board Meeeting

The Associations plan should also have a time frame built into it which sets expectations for the Property Manager, the Board, and homeowners as to when items should be paid for and completed. This keeps everyone on track and avoids the unnecessary juggling of uncompleted projects. 

In closing, a Board should always think Long Term. "What's here today is gone tomorrow" is not necessarily true for Community Associations because what's here today will only be a bigger more expensive problem tomorrow.

Our Property Managers in South Florida work closely with Board Members to develop property maintenance plans that focus on long term repairs that help increase property values in the association communities we serve throughout Miami Dade and Broward Counties.

5 Ways to Cut Your Condo or HOA Budget

It's September and before you know it the new year is upon us. Now is the time for your Condominium Association or Homeowners Association to begin working on it's Annual Budget for 2012. As always, Community Associations are looking for ways to reduce their operating budget without affecting Association services. In order to assist you through this process we've created our list of 5 Ways To Cut Your Condo or HOA Budget. 

There are many ways to effectively reduce a Community Associations Budget, however, we've had to narrow our list down to only five (we can't share all of our secrets with you!!). We hope you enjoy this post and if after reading it you have any additional suggestions, please feel free to share those with us and our readers in the comments section of our Blog.

Here are our five ideas for reducing your Community Association costs:

1)   Monitor your utilities... Utilities such as water and electricity are usually an Associations second largest expense item, after insurance. You'd be surprised what you'll find by just monitoring these utility bills on a monthly basis. Unexpected hikes in usage can be a great indicator that there's a leak somewhere and, believe it or not, catching it early may allow you to request an adjustment or credit from your utility provider. Our Property Manager's and Accounting Staff are trained to monitor these types of occurrences.

Switching to light bulbs that use less electricity have also shown to be very effective for Associations looking to reduce their expenses. Although they may be more expensive, their longer useful life coupled with the energy savings you'll see is certainly worth it!

2)   Focus on necessities... Although this may seem like an obvious one, it's a very important one. Many Association Boards have been able to reduce a lot of expenses by focusing only on the communities needs, rather than the wants. By doing so, you can plan accordingly for future items and put aside a few extra dollar's for those unexpected emergencies. For example, in the past, many communities would redecorate their lobby's and common area's on a more frequent basis. By extending the amount of time between upgrades you can really cut back on a lot of truly unnecessary expenses.

3)   Talk to your Insurance Agent... Insurance is an Association's largest expense, but likely it's most important expense and certainly not an area you want to play with. However, it's important that your Board communicate with your Insurance Agent more often than just once a year at renewal time. By opening the lines of communication your Insurance Agent will have your Association in mind when new markets open up or when insurance companies provide special service offerings or programs. You should be honest with your Insurance Agent and let them know that your Community Association is looking to tighten its belt, they may have some suggestions for you.

4)   Don't throw your money in the trash... Did you know that waste service for many communities has increased over 15% for the past 5 years? That's a huge increase when you do the math! Our suggestion is to deal directly with a waste service broker. A broker is able to provide your community the same or better service at wholesale prices, probably even through your current provider. A waste broker can provide an analysis of your service needs to make sure that you're container size is neither too large, nor too small, and that your service days fit your needs. Our clients have experienced savings of up to 25% in the first year. No one likes to throw their money in the trash!

5)    Negotiate... Now is the time to get started on negotiating all of your Associations vendor contracts. This should become an annual routine. If your community has been working with the same gate contractor or landscaper, let them know that you're interested in continuing to do work with them through the coming year, but would like to inquire about possible price reductions. You'd be surprised that many of them would be understanding. You may also want to bid out a lot of the work being done around the community to similar vendors. Competition is tough out there and there is always someone looking to offer the same or better service for a better price!

There is more to it than just these five tips, however. We provide our clients with an annual assessment of their service needs prior to assisting them with budget preparations. This keeps monthly assessments low, service offerings high, and residents smiling!

Cash vs. Accrual Accounting For Community Associations

A Manager's Perspective...

There are two basic general accounting methods. However, there always seems to be some confusion when it comes to these methods and how or when to use them. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. But overall, the main difference between the two systems would be the timing of the transactions and when they are recorded. We will provide a brief review of each accounting method in this article.

Cash Accounting

When using the cash accounting method you record income when it is received by the association and you record expenses at the time you write a check to a vendor.

The disadvantage with the cash method is that the Board or Management is unable to see the amount of assessments that were still owed to the association or the amount of outstanding bills or debt that the association has. Other problems would be if there are quarterly assessments or prepaid assessments, the cash method would typically overstate the income for that month. In cases of quarterly income, it overstates the association’s income by 2 months. Cash accounting does not distinguish between current cash or prepaid cash.

The advantage of this method is that it more accurately represents the amount of cash the association has at that point in time.

Accrual Accounting

When using the accrual accounting method you record the income when it is billed to the owners, regardless of when the income (receivables) is actually received or paid. Expenses are recorded when you receive the goods or services (payables or invoice) even though you may pay at a later date.

The disadvantage with the accrual method, especially when an association is facing a large amount of delinquent units and foreclosures, is that your assessment income (which is recorded at the time it is billed) is overstated and you never quite have a handle on when you may get paid for past due assessments. Therefore with the accrual method there are balance sheet report items that record and account for these amounts that are owed or remain unpaid.

The advantage of this method is that it more accurately reflects the overall financial health of the association from month to month. Income and expenses are matched for that reporting period, thus producing an accurate Net Income or Loss report.

So which method should we use? 

Chapter 718 (Condominium Associations), in most cases, requires accrual based accounting, whereby Chapter 720 (Homeowners Associations) does not specify a required method. Both Chapter 718 and 720 require that financials statements be prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.

Should you have further questions about the two accounting methods do not hesitate to contact us, or speak to a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) who is familiar with Community Association accounting practices to best assist you.

May is Electric Safety Month - Is Your Home or Condo Safe From Electrical Hazards?

May is national Electrical Safety Month, a good time to remind everyone of ways to be safe around and electricity and to treat electricity with respect. We all take electricity for granted because we use it everyday in our homes, businesses, etc. We surely could not be writing this blog, nor could you be reading it without electricity. It’s just simply become a way of life for us, and like many other things, we take electricity for granted. Electric Safety Month is dedicated to educating people on the dangers of electricity.

By being careless in our use of it in our homes and at the work-site we can cause serious injury, possible death, and fires. The majority of electrical accidents and injuries caused by electricity come from unsafe equipment or installation, an unsafe environment, or unsafe work practices. 

Electrical Safety at Home:

• Use only appliances and equipment approved by Underwriters Laboratories. (Look for the UL listing on the label). 
• Keep all radios, hair dryers and other appliances secured or out of bathrooms. Hair dryers should never be used near water-filled tubs and sinks. Teach your children that electricity and water don't mix.
• Don't overload electrical outlets. If your TV picture shrinks or flickers when major appliances are turned on, or if you notice that fuses or circuit breakers blow out frequently, then you should have your circuits and wiring checked.
• Never unplug or carry an appliance by its cord. Don't run cords under carpets or furniture. The cords can overheat and/or become frayed.
• Teach your children not to poke things into electrical outlets, toasters, or any other appliance, whether they're on or off.

Electrical Safety Outdoors:

  

• Keep all ladders and tools at least ten feet away from any power lines. Put up ladders only when you have work to do. Make sure that if the ladder were to fall, it would not contact any power lines or electrical equipment.
• Any outdoor outlets should be on a circuit that is protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI). These are required in newer homes in bathrooms, garages, outdoors and near sinks. GFCIs can be added as a temporary plug-in adapter, added as a replacement outlet or installed as a circuit breaker. Check with your electrician for options.
• Teach your children not to fly kites near power lines or around electrical substations.
• Teach your children not to climb or play in trees if there are power lines nearby or lines touching or growing through the branches.

Electrical Safety at Work:

  

• Train all employees to make them thoroughly familiar with safety procedures for their jobs. 
• Use insulating protective equipment.
• Properly maintain tools that help protect workers against electric hazards. When a defect is found in a tool, it should be removed from service and tagged so that no one will use it until it has been repaired or replaced.
• Where extension cords are used, make sure that they are factory-assembled, 3-wire type cord sets.
• Do not remove cords from receptacles by pulling on the cords themselves.
• Use double-insulated tools and equipment that are distinctively marked.
• Visually inspect all electrical equipment before use. Remove from service tools with frayed cords, missing ground prongs, cracked tool casings, etc.

Although Electrical Safety Month only comes once a year, it's important for you to pay attention to the basic safety rules all year long. Your life depends on it.