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June 8, 2005
Is it Good To Be A "Self-Managed" HOA in California
Boards come to me with the question - should we have professional management? And I always respond that someone once said (not me of course): "A self-managed association is an "unmanaged" association". My favorite phrase (based on something a classmate of mine in Law School said many times) is that many "self-managed" associations are "doomed".
That is of course unless the Board members are trained properly in the requirements for HOA management. Some boards have had bad experiences with professional management and some have actually been the victim of fraud, theft of funds, etc., via a crafty manager. However, self managed associations have also been taken for a ride by "cookie-toting" grandmotherly board members no one would ever suspect of deviousness. So the key is?? Implementation of educational training and seeking the benefit of experienced persons including service providers (which can be learned through seminar attendance, reading, sharing stories, brainstorming with other association directors and owners and listening to others, searching websites for information etc.), and sufficient checks and balances in the financial systems to raise a red flag if anything "funny" happens.
Posted by Beth Grimm at June 8, 2005 3:31 PM