APS spent the last few years researching leading software solutions. “We choose Jenark to help automate the more tedious day-to-day processes that are a result of our current system that uses older technology with a separate directory data structure,” said Stephen Jones, manager of APS. “By automating the accounting processes with a centralized database, we are able to save our staff time, automate the bill approval process and accounts receivables as well as export documents faster. What set Jenark apart is their dedication to providing the most advanced property management technology and their partnerships with other leading technology providers. This was key to our decision because we are looking to integrate with some of Jenark’s current partners and form new partnerships,” explained Jones. Another important factor in the decision was the responsive customer service from Jenark’s management, project managers and customer service specialists.

Founded in 1982, APS specializes in serving self-managed communities and provides accounting services to property management companies. “After implementing Jenark, we expect to grow our portfolio more quickly due to the ease of use of the software, the automated processes and the strong accounting solutions that will help facilitate this growth,” said APS owner Neal Chazin.

APS will utilize Jenark’s accounting modules and community association property management database. They will also implement automated lockbox and ACH debit with their present bank, energy management, utility sub metering, Jenark database report and letter writer, the management report job stream for automated board reporting and EZ Image for scanning and document retrieval. “The addition of Jenark’s solutions will greatly enhance operations and help APS achieve their desired business goals,” said Jenark Business Systems Vice President Mark Jennings.

About Jenark Business Systems, Inc. and First Advantage
Jenark Business Systems is part of First Advantage Corporation’s Multifamily Services segment, which assists property owners and managers with resident screening, property performance analytics, property management software and renters insurance services. It was founded in 1987 with the sole mission of providing the most advanced property management technology to the real estate industry. Technological superiority, combined with the most responsive customer service in the industry, has made Jenark the solution of choice for over 250 management companies and self-managed communities nationwide, encompassing over one million units. More than any competitive system, Jenark’s software solutions deliver the performance and functionality that enables communities to maximize customer service, efficiency, productivity and revenue. Additional information is available at www.Jenark.com.

First Advantage Corporation (NASDAQ: FADV) provides innovative products and services that mitigate risk by helping businesses, non-profit organizations and government agencies make more informed decisions. Headquartered in Poway, Calif., the company has more than 4,700 employees in 12 countries that support over 90,000 clients globally. More information about First Advantage is available at www.FADV.com.

Devereaux, who has been general manager of Oro Valley’s Sun City Vistoso Community Association for seven years, has more than 20 years of HOA management experience. He started in SaddleBrooke on Monday, Aug. 25, and a reception for him was held Tuesday evening.

“We are certain he will be a great asset to our association,” HOA 1 board president Jack Jeffery said in a letter to residents. “Scott will bring a new wave of enthusiasm to our management organization and community at SaddleBrooke.”

“As we look to the future, we must remember the past and those qualities that made this community successful,” Devereaux said. “Moving forward will take a coordinated effort by community members and staff to identify services important to the community as a whole.”

Devereaux’s HOA experience has been in New Hampshire, Virginia and Michigan. Earlier in his career, Devereaux was in financial and business management positions in Connecticut and Texas.

The general manager’s search committee received 42 applications from 14 states, Jeffery said in a release. “After many hours of careful screening, checking resumes, and interviews conducted by the committee and the board of directors, the final choice was made and a contract has been signed.”

The dedication ceremony was held in the main area of the Forsyth County Library with Library Director Jon McDaniel and Assistant Director of Materials Linda Kelly accepting the books on behalf of AtHomeNet from company owners Jeff & Susan Sanders (pictured).

CAI which stands for The Community Associations Institute (www.caionline.org), is a national organization dedicated to being the leader in providing education and resources to the volunteer homeowners who govern community associations and the professionals who support them. CAI’s Adopt-A-Library program is a nationwide effort to enhance library resources through private donations from companies. AtHomeNet is celebrating ten years of providing affordable Community Association and Association Management company websites, and invested in this program as part of their anniversary celebration.

“I think these books are going to be a wonderful addition to our library, and especially helpful to all of our homeowners in the community,” stated Forsyth County Library Director of Materials Linda Kelly.

“Without all of the dedicated homeowners, association members, volunteers, and board members who use our service and support AtHomeNet, we would not be celebrating ten years in the industry. CAI’s Adopt-A-Library program presented us with an opportunity to show our appreciation to at least one small part of our nationwide family of clients,” commented Susan Sanders, AtHomeNet’s director of marketing.

The publications will soon be available for checkout at the Forsyth county library located at 585 Dahlonega Road in Cumming Georgia.

About AtHomeNet:
AtHomeNet is the nation's premiere provider of customized, affordable websites for communities and Professional Association Management Firms. The company was founded in 1998 by husband and wife team Jeff & Susan Sanders. With their websites now being used in well over one million homes in several countries, AtHomeNet continues to grow as a company and enhance their services in the ever expanding world of online technology.

For more information on the company, visit www.AtHomeNet.com or contact Susan Sanders at 1-800-556-7852.

"The most exciting aspect about the web for businesses is the emergence of social networking," explained Lauren Davis, LCAM, CMCA, AMS and President of Desired Results Consulting. "Social networking services - like Facebook or MySpace - have created powerful new ways to communicate and share information, but no one has yet applied this powerful application to community management. This is groundbreaking and instrumental towards guiding the industry in a positive direction."

My Condo Coach is a network which provides non-legal management support and information to members, including discussion forums, blogs, email and phone support, networking brunches and discounts on workshops conducted by Desired Results Consulting. Interested members also receive a special offer on an eBook - Tricks of the Trade: How to be a Successful LCAM the First Time Around - also written by Lauren Davis.

Davis attributes her desire to create this network as a direct result of her 18 years experience as a Community Association Manager. Said Davis: "In my personal experience, the most difficult challenge starting out in the industry was the lack of guidance, mentorship, and training for dealing with day-to-day assignments. That's what we want to provide through My Condo Coach - support, consulting, collaboration, training, and mentoring for newly licensed and established managers, or for board members simply grasping to figure out how to oversee the management of their association."

Davis continued: "It's a great thing to be able to act as a team and join forces with colleagues to discuss the real day-to-day problems and solutions we encounter. There really is no comparable resource in the industry, and LCAMs with such a resource are going to be at a real competitive advantage."

To become a My Condo Coach Member or for more information go to www.mycondocoach.com or www.desiredrc.com.

"The availability of the Interaction(TM: 86.45, +0.34, +0.39%) Community System has spurred Interaction(TM: 86.45, +0.34, +0.39%) deployments at HOAs such as at Sentinel Lake in Marietta, Ga., and the availability of v.2 will further drive Interaction(TM: 86.45, +0.34, +0.39%) deployments," said Rainey Shane, President, F3 Technologies.

"Interaction(TM: 86.45, +0.34, +0.39%) allows an HOA Board to properly communicate and share information with its members, decreasing the likelihood of homeowner disputes so common within these organizations" said Ms. Shane. "In addition, it decreases the cost of HOA management by an average of over $1000 per month over the cost of using an outside management company. That money can then be used for more important community needs."

Record Rate of Customer Deployments

Sentinel Lake, a single family residential neighborhood in Marietta, has already benefited from deploying Interaction(TM: 86.45, +0.34, +0.39%) Community System. It committed to deploying Interaction(TM: 86.45, +0.34, +0.39%) Community System over a year ago and this enabled Sentinel Lake to transform its HOA management into an "e-culture," creating a Web-based productivity infrastructure that allows Board members to publish critical information and documents directly to the community intranet. In addition, it allows the homeowners to become more involved in the community through image galleries, email, discussion boards, online dues payment, online facility reservations and shared vendors.

"The Interaction Community System has successfully brought our neighborhood community closer together," said Loren Volk, former Board president at Sentinel Lake. "Using Interaction, our residents are able to create community events, pay dues, reserve facilities, and recommend preferred vendors while simultaneously keeping up to date with our local community and neighbors."

Version 2 Availability

Version 2 is a collection of updates driven by customer feedback and has been deployed across all customers currently using the subscription based service at no additional charge. The addition of a more user-friendly dashboard and interface, an enhanced Accounting module, the ability to broadcast requests for home workers such as babysitters, tutors and pet sitters, and the ability to manage notices and violations are all included in the Version 2 release. A free 30-day trial of the on-demand software is available at http://www.interactioncs.com .

About F3 Technologies

F3 Technologies, Inc. (F3) is an Atlanta-based SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) development company and application service provider created to provide on- demand internet solutions to consumers and small to mid-sized companies. F3 Technologies currently has three distinctive products: FargoTube.com, Ascend Global Systems and Interaction Community Systems. It is the goal of F3 Technologies to provide the necessary systems and tools to help its end users realize personal, professional, social, and business-oriented goals.

About FargoTube: www.fargotube.com is an online video sharing software engine for users seeking to profit from their on-line video content in three different ways. First, FT allows users to upload proprietary video content and sell it to other users resulting in income for the host and video owner. Second, FT will share ad revenue generated by videos offered for sale or for free with the video owner. Lastly, FT will share a portion of any profits made by users they referred to FT as an affiliate commission.

About Ascend Global Business System: www.ascendgbs.com is an online Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) product created specifically to help businesses improve customer relations, track employee performance, and support overall revenue opportunities. The Ascend SaaS solution contains customizable modules for accounting, human resource management, project management, website creation, online store creation (e-commerce), knowledge sharing, survey building, and customer relationship management.

About Interaction Community System: www.interactioncs.com provides neighborhoods, communities, church organizations, homeowner's associations (HOAs) and other similar type groups with a reliable, online solution for valuable services such as residential directories, accounting, voting, website creation, facility management and scheduling, newsletters, announcements, vendor sharing, e-commerce, accounting, classifieds, and message boards. Interaction offers features that allow residents of these communities to stay informed and become involved.

Safe Harbor

The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe harbor for forward-looking information made on the company's behalf. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, which address the company's expectations of sources of capital or which express the company's expectation for the future with respect to financial performance, operating strategies or business plans, can be identified as forward-looking statements. Such statements made by the company are based on knowledge of the environment in which it operates, but because of the factors beyond the control of the company, which include but are not limited to the ability of the company to implement its business plans, the company's ability to successfully compete, market conditions and the ability of the company to raise any necessary working capital financing, actual results may differ materially from the expectations expressed in the forward-looking statements.

Contact: Paul Knopick
E & E Communications Pknopick@eandecommunications.com 949/707-5365 SOURCE F3 Technologies, Inc.

http://www.interactioncs.com

The eBook is the brainchild of Lauren Davis, LCAM, CMCA, AMS and President of Desired Results Consulting. "I wanted managers to feel supported and not intimidated by the field. Many become overwhelmed and stressed because they did not have an opportunity to properly prepare -- I have consistently witnessed those who obtain their LCAM license go right to work with no training, no support, no mentor to guide them along the way, and I see this book as a relief and reliable source for those people," Davis said.

Davis attributes her desire to write this book as a direct result of her 18 years experience as a Community Association Manager; indeed, it is the corollary and distilment of her current consultation firm, Desired Results Consulting - which, alternately, provides the unique service of offering managers and boards practical solutions, by devising customized plans for maximum productivity and time management.

"We act as a support system, giving them the whole of our experience through consulting, training and hands-on evaluation," explained Davis. "What I've put down in Tricks of the Trade are the fundamental tools that I begin with when dealing with all of my clients."

Tricks of the Trade also provides value for more seasoned LCAMs who consistently must deal with the frustration of loss of productivity or pleasing the Board of Directors. "I want to give them the guidebook I never had but wanted."

As an outgrowth of her interest in assisting fellow LCAMs, Davis developed My Condo Coach, an industry resource which provides consulting, support and open blogs and forums for its members who would typically include association managers and board members. "It's a great thing to be able to have discussions with colleagues on the real day-to-day problems and solutions we encounter. There really is no comparable resource in the industry."

Tricks of the Trade can be purchased from the website at Desired Results Consulting or My Condo Coach.

In a letter to clients, Jeff Sanders, Director of Technology stated, “We have had many exciting times over the past 10 years. The best part has been having the chance to talk with and share ideas with many of the thousands and thousands of hard-working volunteer community web site administrators and association management professionals that we work with on a daily basis. Without you we could not have made it this far and we would like to thank you all for giving us the opportunity to work with you and hopefully make some small part of your life a little bit better.”

AtHomeNet was founded in 1998 by husband and wife team, Jeff & Susan Sanders. It began as a small service operating out of their family home, and in late 2007 crossed the milestone of serving over a million homes spread across 48 states. The company is technology based, dealing primarily with building and hosting websites for Homeowner and Condominium communities as well as Association Management companies. AtHomeNet boasts a diverse staff that combines talented support and technology developers with sales and marketing specialists who carry the company mantra of treating every client and every community as they would their own.

For the remainder of the year AtHomeNet is launching a series of events and new innovations to mark the 10 year milestone. First and foremost, AtHomeNet is near completion in the development of “Elite,” which is the latest version of their industry leading community website service. AtHomeNet Elite features web 2.0 technology, highlighting major enhancements in their Association Management website functionality, particularly helpful to managers responsible for multiple websites.

“We are very excited, especially considering how far we’ve come. The first version of our service was a little lean, consisting of perhaps 5 total features. With 10 years of hard work and the help of our fantastic family of staff and clients across the country, we grew that functionality to more than 50 interactive features, with virtually endless adaptability in the new version. Even more importantly, we have also grown the relationship between our company and our clients into a nationwide community,” added Director of Marketing, Susan Sanders.

A host of other events culminating in the annual AtHomeNet Training Camp, to be held in September in Duluth, Georgia at the Gwinnett Convention Center; will round out the remainder of what the company has called “A banner year in community website technology.”
###
For more information on AtHomeNet’s ten year anniversary commemorative activities, please contact Susan Sanders, Director of Marketing for AtHomeNet at 1-800-556-7852 or susans@AtHomeNet.com.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Basin Water, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWTR) announced today that it will install small-scale uranium removal systems treating groundwater wells for three private condominium developments in New Hampshire. The first installation, for the Saco Woods Condominium Association in North Conway, NH, has just come on-line and is operating successfully. The second, for Davis Hill Condominiums in Center, NH, is planned for start-up in mid-July. The third project, for the Saco Forest Condominiums, has had a successful validation study, and a treatment system is currently being constructed for a planned start-up date in August. These projects represent the first activity for Basin Water in its new Northeast region. They are also the first installations that feature Basin Water’s newly acquired technology for smaller flow applications. These small-scale systems, which are designed and built at the Company’s facilities in Memphis, TN, represent a new answer for real estate developers, institutions, commercial entities and private water utilities struggling to achieve compliance with increasingly stringent regulations.

According to Michael Stark, President and Chief Executive Officer of Basin Water, these contracts are a sign of progress in the Company’s planned geographical expansion that was put into motion in mid-2007. “In a relatively short time, Basin Water is beginning to see success in gaining footholds in the new geographical regions we have entered,” Stark said. “In the process, we’ve not only had sales successes but technological successes as well. These small-scale systems provide an efficient solution for small drinking water utilities, a market segment that we feel is not well-served currently and which is quite large. As with all Basin Water installations, these systems combine design and operational efficiencies to produce low lifecycle cost, along with a water services agreement that assures long-term, trouble-free operation. We can now deliver Basin Water’s guaranteed performance on a much smaller scale to communities that need this help,” he added.

The Saco Woods Condominiums’ treatment system features vessels containing uranium-selective ion exchange resin. It currently serves 240 connections and has been designed for flow rates of 43 thousand gallons per day (30 gallons per minute). The Basin Water system is treating groundwater with uranium levels of around 60 micrograms per liter (ug/L) down to non-detectable levels. The U.S. EPA has set the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for uranium in drinking water at 30 ug/L. The compact Basin Water treatment system at this site is housed in the utility’s existing well house. The agreement between Basin Water and Saco Woods covers the sale of the equipment as well as assistance with the disposal of depleted media as necessary. Assistance with system design, installation and testing was performed on Saco Woods’ behalf by Northeast Engineering of Weare, NH.

Uranium is a naturally occurring radioactive element found in rocks, soil and groundwater that breaks down (decays) very slowly into other elements such as radium and radon gas. It is present in many areas throughout the USA and Canada, as well as other parts of the world. The presence of radionuclides – which include uranium, radium-226 and radium-228 – in drinking water has been linked to a number of deleterious effects on human health. Basin Water has uranium treatment systems installed for well flows ranging from 30 gpm to 1,000 gpm.

According to David Caton, Director of Business Development, Northeast and Southeast Regions, Basin Water’s technology and business model represent a straightforward solution for real estate developers and small utilities that are finding it difficult to deal with increasingly stringent water quality regulations. “Since radionuclide MCLs were adopted by the EPA in 2000, it has become a national problem for smaller systems to comply with the new regulations. Meeting these regulations cost effectively requires a range of different types of expertise that are not available to a small water system,” he said. “Basin Water brings treatment technology, engineering and waste disposal expertise together in a cost-effective package that guarantees performance and costs. When you factor in the speed with which we can implement a treatment system like this – sometimes as fast as 90 days – we feel like we have the best solution for delivering ‘worry-free water’ to small water providers on the market today,” he added.

About Basin Water

Basin Water, Inc. is a provider of reliable, long-term process solutions for a range of clients, which includes designing, building and implementing systems for the treatment of contaminated groundwater, the treatment of wastewater, waste reduction and resource recovery. Basin Water employs treatment technologies including its own proprietary, scalable ion-exchange wellhead treatment system, along with a host of other treatment technologies designed to meet customer needs in an efficient, flexible and cost-effective manner. Additional information may be found on the Company's web site: www.basinwater.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements, including expectations relating to future revenues and income, the Company's ability to gain new business and control costs, involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that, if they prove incorrect or never materialize, could cause the results of the Company to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from these expectations due to various risks and uncertainties, including: the Company's limited operating history, significant operating losses associated with certain of the Company's contracts, the Company's ability to identify and consummate other acquisition opportunities that improve the Company's revenues and profitability, significant fluctuations in its revenues from period to period, its ability to effectively manage its growth, the success of the Company's strategic partners, its long sales cycles, market acceptance of its technology, the geographic concentration of its operations and customers, its ability to meet customer demands and compete technologically, the Company's ability to protect its intellectual property, regulatory approvals of the Company's systems, changes in governmental regulation that may affect the water industry, particularly with respect to environmental laws, the Company's ability to attract and retain qualified personnel and management members, the Company's ability to manage its capital to meet future liquidity needs, changes in the Company’s management and board of directors and the timing of the Company's stock repurchases, if any. More detailed information about these risks and uncertainties are contained in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The Company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect any change in future events.

"The thieves were run over by technology and they had no idea what hit them," said Jim Sieminski, Chief Engineer at Rain Master, about the incident. "In this day and age, something that may look passive like an irrigation controller may not be so passive. The thieves didn't realize they were removing equipment that features 2-way wireless communications via the Internet."

Technology tells the stolen controller story

Last November, a Maintenance Supervisor working for The Groundskeeper(TM), a commercial landscape management company, received an error message from one of the 16 Rain Master Eagle-i controllers spread across Continental Ranch, a housing development in the Tucson suburb of Marana, Arizona.

"We're able to do the programming and communicate to the controllers through our laptops or Blackberries," said Glen Killmer, a branch manager for The Groundskeeper(TM) who is in charge of the Continental's acreage. "This particular controller had stopped communicating."

A Groundskeeper irrigation technician sent to the site discovered that the piece of equipment, worth several thousand dollars, had disappeared.

Given the late autumn season, it was not necessary for Killmer to immediately replace the Eagle. He held out hope that perhaps the controller would turn up, even though the Marana Police Department informed him that was highly unlikely.

Three weeks later, the unexpected happened. The Maintenance Supervisor noticed a signal coming in from the stolen controller. "He thought it was kind of odd that it was up and running," said Killmer. "Whoever had stolen it had plugged it back in."

After sending a signal to the controller to go into rain shut-down mode, Killmer contacted Kevin Johnson of John Deere's Green Tech Division, the local Tucson distributor for Rain Master. Killmer asked Johnson if it was possible to locate the controller via the third party wireless carrier that monitors the signals to see if a location for the controller could be found.

Johnson thought it might be possible because the controller was a 2-way system rather than just a 1-way.

"The 2-way is what sets the Rain Master Controller apart from its competitors," explains Johnson. "With the 1-way systems, a message can be sent to the controller, but there's no way for the controller to send a message back. With Rain Master, the unit confirms back that it received the message - that's how we were able to track it."

Johnson contacted Kevin Idukas, a Rain Master Support Supervisor at the company's headquarters in Simi Valley. "He said that's a long-shot, that's crazy," recalls Killmer of Idukas' response. "But then he said there was no harm in trying."

When Idukas subsequently contacted the wireless carrier, they triangulated the controller's signal, pinpointing a relatively small area where the unit had been reinstalled.

Using the GPS coordinates furnished by the wireless carrier, Idukas did a search on Google Earth and came up with an aerial photograph of its location.

"It was one of those America's dumbest criminal things," says Idukas. "If these guys had only known what they had, they would have disabled the communications device and just used the basic controller by itself."

The law closes in

The Google map pinpointed the controller's location to the wall of a building on a ranch just off Interstate 10, approximately 75 to 80 miles away from Marana.

"I went down to the Marana Police Department and showed a detective the print-out of the Google map," said Killmer. "I told them this was a case of grand theft."

Because the ranch in question was in Cochise County, the Marana police contacted the Cochise Sheriff's Department. A Cochise Sheriff's Deputy went out to the location, parking just outside the ranch entrance. Using binoculars, he spotted the Rain Master equipment at work in its new home.

The location of the controller now confirmed, the Marana Police Department sent deputies to the Cochise County ranch, where the ranch owner claimed she had no knowledge of the theft. When the deputies went to the actual site to dismantle the equipment, the controller was gone. Someone had been tipped to the investigation and had removed it.

Why are Smart Controllers so smart?

Smart controller 'internet' technology, first patented in 2003 by Rain Master, automatically adjusts water usage via a 2-way wireless communication system. The controller receives weather information on a daily basis and then sends commands to watering mechanisms to reflect the weather change. The 2-way wireless communication is also utilized to send alarm notification via email to the end user.

The Eagle-i combines an intelligent design with evapotranspiration (ET) technology, providing a variety of ET-based scheduling features that optimize the efficiency of water resource allocation for any irrigation application. When measuring flow, it automatically takes corrective action for station leaks, main line failures, or many other unscheduled events.

In addition to residential housing developments, the Eagle-i is used by municipalities, business parks, state parks and school districts.

And then, a surprise ending...

When the Marana Police reported back to The Groundskeeper(TM) that the controller had not been retrieved, Killmer abandoned his search for the errant device. "I'd spent a lot of resources on this already - I didn't want to spend anymore," he explained. Instead, he presented the Continental Ranch Homeowner's Association with a proposal to replace the unit.

Three weeks later, a Groundskeeper Maintenance Supervisor discovered that the controller had been returned and was back in place. It is assumed that the thieves, worried that the police were still attempting to track them, decided to reverse course.

The incident brings Rain Master's "Visionary Solutions to Water Management through Technology" to a new meaning of the term 'visionary.'

According to Mr. Killmer, not only does this technology work for recovering stolen timers, but "the reliability and communication features that originally sold me on the product have proven themselves in the field," he said. "The daily ET adjustments are saving maintenance time, money and of course water, which is a precious resource out here in the desert."

About Rain Master

For over twenty-five years, Rain Master, based in Simi Valley, CA, has been the recognized innovative leader in the design and manufacture of irrigation controllers, handheld remote controls and central computerized control systems for the landscape and golf irrigation markets. Creator of iCentral(TM), the industry's first Web-based central control system, Rain Master sets the standard for technologically advanced, environmentally sensitive and cost effective irrigation control and water management systems. Rain Master consistently offers new and innovative technologies that exceed irrigation industry quality and performance standards for "SMART" ET- weather based irrigation controls. Visit our website at www.rainmaster.com or e-mail info@rainmaster.com to learn more about our visionary solutions to water management through technology.

Contacts:
Rain Master Steve Springer,
805-527-4498 Senior Marketing Manager steves@rainmaster.com

Donna DiMaggio Berger, executive director of the non-profit Community Advocacy Network (CAN) and a partner in the law firm Katzman Garfinkel, said that condo advocates had been working hard to pass the emergency powers bill for the past several years.

“When we saw the great difficulties some condominium associations had in preparing and repairing their communities during storm season because of the restrictions placed on them by state law, we knew that something had to be done to take some of the legal shackles off their hands,” Berger said.

When the new laws take effect July 1, condominium boards will be able to impose assessments, freely utilize reserve funds and make necessary repairs when a state of emergency has been declared to make sure their buildings and units are fit and safe for habitation.

The emergency board powers, which would be in effect for a limited time after a storm, include:

· The power to order a community-wide evacuation if the local authorities issue an evacuation order and provide the board with freedom from legal liability for any residents who ignore the order and stay.

· The power to levy special assessments without a vote and to borrow money for emergency repairs.

· The right to declare any portion of the property unavailable for entry or occupancy.

· The ability to contract for any services that are necessary to prevent further damage and necessary for health and safety.

· The power to implement a disaster plan, which could include shutting off utilities.

· The ability to call board meetings with reasonable notice rather that normal notice requirements and to cancel and reschedule meetings.

· The authority to name assistant directors to temporarily take the place of officers who are unavailable or incapacitated.

“Before and after a hurricane, board officers need the ability to react quickly to protect the common elements and the units, and now they have that ability,” Berger said. “There are safeguards to assure these emergency powers are not abused, but when a natural disaster strikes some of the normal rules need to be temporarily suspended for the benefit of everyone living in a condominium complex.”

However, even with the new powers, it’s often the actions a board takes before a storm that makes the major difference in recovery efforts said Alan Garfinkel, founding partner of Katzman Garfinkel, and a nationally-recognized leader in natural disaster law.

“The proper preparations are essential to maximizing your insurance benefits and achieving a full recovery,” Garfinkel said.

To ensure that an association receives all the money is deserves from its insurance carrier, Garfinkel advises that boards require their insurance agent to receive multiple quotes from different companies and prepare a written summary sheet of all coverage. The agent should also provide copies of all policies and make sure they have the lowest deductible with replacement coverage.

Garfinkel also advises creating a reserve fund for potential uninsured losses such as the deductible, securing a line of credit and lining up qualified repair professionals before a disaster strikes.

It is also important to have a plan that designates a community leader responsible for communicating with all unit owners, to identify an emergency operations location for board meetings and to keep insurance policies, property inventories and emergency contact numbers of owners in a secure location.

“Do not be fooled by cheap insurance,” Garfinkel cautions. “Make sure your deductible is low, you have replacement coverage, law and ordinance coverage, and special assessment loss coverage. We’ve seen several of examples of how this advice was not followed prior to the busy storm season we had three years ago, and unfortunately, many of those associations are still paying the price.”

Granted, a condo, townhome, loft or other home in an HOA community isn't always your castle when it comes to certain home improvements, but there are many other approaches you can take to help save the planet.

Community Associations Institute (CAI) has launched an interactive, Net-based initiative, Community Green to help HOA communities turn global thinking into local action through environmental awareness and activism by community association leaders and the 60 million people who live in HOA communities.

The principles are simple:

• Collaborate with neighbors to develop sustainable, consensus-driven decisions.

• Respect property rights and honor private agreements that are compatible with sustainable environmental practices.

• Be vigilant in actions that minimize the environmental footprint.

And developing green habits in a condo home is easy. Here are some ideas:

• Buy Energy Star. Appliances account for 20 percent of a household's energy consumption. Upgrading your kitchen with a new refrigerator will save the most. Don't forget the dishwasher, stove, oven and clothes washer and dryer.

• Tighten up. Close the fireplace damper when not in use. Insulate. Plug holes. Check air ducts for leaks. Patch the roof.

• Be cool with heating and cooling. Heating and cooling account for more than 40 percent of a home's utility bills. Keep your system well maintained, clean filters regularly and consider upgrading to the latest energy efficient models as soon as possible. Keep the thermostat as low as is comfortable in the winter and as high as is comfortable in the summer. Turn kitchen, bath and other ventilation or exhaust fans off as soon as possible or they'll suck out warmed or cooled air.

• Landscape smart. Choose indigenous plants with deciduous trees planted on the south and on the west sides to keep your house cool in the summer and allow sun to shine in the windows in the winter. Vines also provide shading and cooling. Growing on trellises, vines can shade windows or the whole side of a house. Winter winds can be deflected by planting evergreen trees and shrubs on the north and west sides of the house.

• Lighten up. Replace 25 percent of your lights in high-use areas with fluorescents and you'll save about 50 percent of your lighting energy bill. Why not replace them all? Fluorescent lamps also last six to 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs. Whenever possible, use solar powered outdoor lighting. Otherwise use photocells or a timer on outdoor lights so they will turn off during the day.

• Make windows winners. Windows account for 10 to 25 percent of heating and cooling bills. Replace old single-pane windows with new double-pane glazing and high-performance glass. In cold climates select windows that are gas filled with low-emissivity (low-e) coatings to reduce heat loss. In warmer climates, select windows with spectrally-selective coatings to reduce heat gain. New solar control spectrally-selective windows can cut the cooling load in half. If you can't replace your windows or decide not to, install white window shades, drapes or blinds to reflect heat away from the house; close curtains on south- and west-facing windows during the day;
Install awnings on south- and west- facing windows; Apply sun-control or other reflective films on south-facing windows to reduce solar gain.

"Best Practices: Energy Efficiency" by the Foundation For Community Association Research contains more greening information for HOA dwellers including remodeling tips and case studies of HOAs that successfully made it a priority to reduce their energy consumption and costs.

Visit "Community Green"

AtHomeNet is the nation's premiere provider of innovative, affordable customized websites for Association Management firms, Communities, and Homeowner Associations (http://www.AtHomeNet.com). The privately owned firm has in excess of one million homes on their service in 5 countries. The newest version of their service, "AtHomeNet Elite", is scheduled for a summer release and will feature full integration with 212 SOFTWARE's industry leading software.

Formerly known as TOPS software, 212 SOFTWARE has currently launched an aggressive campaign; reinventing their organization and its products as the most powerful property management software firm nationwide. Their partnership with AtHomeNet ensures that the progressive technology of both firms continues a legacy of redefining how the community of the future is managed.

Co-owner and Director of Marketing for AtHomeNet Susan Sander's stated, "TOPS Software's evolvement into 212 SOFTWARE represents an aggressive move by the company to usher in the next generation of Property Management Technology. With our own "AtHomeNet Elite" coming out soon, this is an exciting time for communities nationwide and beyond."

"For us, the decision of evolving the classic industry standard TOPS Software into 212 SOFTWARE is a real metamorphosis towards a higher degree of community management. The wave of excitement combined with reaffirming our partnering with AtHomeNet on the cusp of AtHomeNet Elite's pending release, has made this a banner year for both of our companies," added 212 SOFTWARE President, Jeff Hardy.

The announcement of the proud partnership between the two industry pioneers comes in the midst of AtHomeNet's 10 year anniversary festivities, which along with the release of "AtHomeNet Elite" will include; their 4th annual Training Camp to be held in September, the sponsorship of an Adopt a Library program with the Community Associations Institute, and a series of promotional endeavors and appearances.

For more information on AtHomeNet please contact Susan Sanders at 800-556-7852

Each condominium and co-op property has a "master policy," purchased by the owners’ association or co-op board. This policy covers the building structure and common areas, such as lobby, elevators, boiler, basement and roof. Every individual unit owner must purchase an additional, separate insurance policy to cover personal property and provide liability protection.

"To find out exactly what is and is not covered, carefully review your association bylaws or your co-op's proprietary lease," suggested Ewing. "Then, to obtain the right insurance for your condo or co-op unit, follow the guidelines below."

Ewing's checklist includes:

1. Understand the details. Some building insurance policies cover standard fixtures inside each unit (such as cabinets and original carpet). Others exclude improvements and additions to a condo/co-op unit -- new carpet, new cabinets, or a remodeled kitchen or bathroom -- which must be covered by the unit owner's policy. With other policies, unit owners are responsible for covering anything within the unit's walls. Know what you need to cover so you can work with your insurer to build the right policy.

2. Assess your coverage. Look into coverage for unit assessment fees. With this special policy addition, if the building suffers a covered loss, and all unit owners are assessed a portion of the cost, the insurance will cover the fee.

3. Watch for water problems. Many property owners know policies will not cover flood damage without special flood insurance. A more likely cause of water damage for condo/co-op owners, however, is water backup. Ask about a policy that covers damage from sewer or drain malfunction or backup.

4. Mind your business. Those who work from home should be aware that most condo/co-op insurance policies do not cover business activities. Owners generally need a separate policy to protect them from losses related to any business they operate from their home unit.

5. Cash vs. replacement value. Choose a policy that will pay replacement value for damaged or stolen goods -- that is, enough money to be able to replace belongings with new ones. Some policies cover "cash value" or "fair market value" instead, which refers to the money the owner would receive from selling their (used) belongings on the open market. Also, before selecting a policy, calculate the true value of possessions by doing a home inventory (forms and suggestions are widely available on the Web).

6. Go on the record. Photograph inside drawers and cabinets, and take snapshots of electronics and furnishings. Also take photos and keep receipts for any improvements to the unit, such as installing new fixtures or remodeling. Save the documentation in an electronic file that is backed up electronically, or put it on a CD in a safe deposit box. The records will speed payment of claims.

7. Ask for a discount. Most insurance companies give discounts for multiple policies, so check with the agent who issued your auto insurance. On the other hand, the best rate might come from the same company that issues the building or association policy. Check both before selecting a policy.

"Owning a condominium or co-op can be an excellent investment in your future," Ewing said. "Protect that investment with the right insurance, and you can stay on the road to successful unit ownership."

Based in San Mateo, Calif., Bills.com (www.bills.com) is a free one-stop portal where consumers can educate themselves about complex personal finance issues and comparison shop for products and services including credit cards, debt relief assistance, insurance, mortgages and other loans. As the online portal to Freedom Financial Network, LLC, the company has served more than 40,000 customers nationwide since 2002 while managing more than $1 billion in consumer debt. Its RSS feed is available at http://www.bills.com/news_releases/.

In 2008, Entrepreneur Magazine ranked Bills.com as the No. 3 fastest-growing U.S. company on its Hot 100 list. Company co-founders and co-CEOs Andrew Housser and Brad Stroh have been Northern California finalists in Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year Awards and were named to the San Jose Business Journal's "40 Under 40" list in 2008.

“Traditional real estate web sites list individual condo units and not the actual condominium buildings, making it very difficult to do an ‘apples to apples' comparison of one unit to another or one building to another building,” said Casey Sullivan, CEO of CondoCompare, Inc. “CondoCompare provides analytical tools that allow consumers to select condos that meet their exact requirements, and compare those condos and buildings to hundreds of others. The site even provides historical pricing information so consumers can determine the realistic market value of a property to help them negotiate the very best deal.”

CondoCompare's “secret sauce” is its ability to aggregate disparate data about hundreds of thousands of listings from multiple listing services (MLSs) and format this data so consumers can compare one unit or condo building to another. This is difficult to do because there are over 880 MLSs across the United States, all of which have proprietary systems with differing data formats and listing requirements. CondoCompare connects data about the various condo units with their respective buildings, which then allows consumers to compare units and buildings using more than 30 different criteria, including neighborhood, price, size, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, view, pet policy, and building amenities.

“The buying and selling of condominiums is typically a much more complicated purchase than buying a house,” said Brett Frosaker, president of CondoCompare, Inc. “We only work with the top agents in each market, those in the top 20 percent of their office and with a proven expertise in condominium sales. We even offer a Chat button on the site where you can talk with an agent and arrange for a tour of the property within 30 minutes.”

Consumers can register for free on the site and build a personalized profile in the “My CondoCompare” section. They can then post messages and photos about a favorite condo, share their knowledge of neighborhood amenities such as shops, dog parks or favorite dining destinations, and rank condo buildings on a one-to-five scale.

Once registered on the site, users can save their search criteria in My Saved Searches and save favorite condos and/or buildings in My Watch List, which will send them an email alert whenever there is a price reduction or new listings on the market.

CondoCompare.com began its service in the greater Seattle and Portland markets and will soon be expanding into California, followed by Texas, Nevada, Colorado and Utah in the coming months. A national rollout is planned within the next year.

About CondoCompare.com

CondoCompare.com is the premier condominium web site and real estate brokerage that allows buyers and sellers to research and buy or sell condominiums from the comfort of their office or home. CondoCompare Inc., a privately funded company, is based in Seattle, Washington and was founded in May 2007. For more information, please call 866-582-2667 or visit www.CondoCompare.com.

Speed control on private HOA streets is conducted differently than on city roads. Through its Board of Directors, the Association sets speed limits, posts signs, and must enforce traffic laws on their own. The city's police department does not enforce traffic restrictions on private roads.

The community has approximately 3,000 residents and 800 homes, most of which are occupied by families with small children or teenagers. Residents requested traffic calming to prevent cars from speeding on their streets. At first, the HOA responded by reducing speed limits, placing traffic signs and conducting an educational campaign. However, after these efforts did not slow traffic, the Board decided that a physical deterrent was necessary. Asphalt speed bumps were installed but residents found them frustrating and ineffective. After conducting research on other options, the community chose to install Traffic Logix rubber speed cushions. The cushions increase in grade over a longer distance so that motorists notice them and slow down but without the abrupt feel of speed bumps.

Speed cushions are traffic calming measures that slow cars to approximately 15-20 mph. They are designed as a set of graduated speed humps and make pedestrian vehicles slow down while allowing emergency vehicles pass without affecting response time. The standard Traffic Logix cushion is 3 inches high, with a width of 6 feet and a length of 7 feet. However, since Traffic Logix products are constructed of interlocking units, they are customizable to a variety of lengths or widths in 18' increments.

Before purchasing the speed cushions, the Association contacted several other cities who had purchased Traffic Logix products. Brian Erickson, the Association Administrator, noted that those contacted spoke highly of the rubber traffic calming products, their effectiveness, and their long-lasting durability. He also commented on the excellent design and visibility of the cushions. The cushions were installed by an untrained local electrician's crew who found the cushions easy to handle and user-friendly.

Two sets of the cushions were purchased and installed on major neighborhood streets, Milan and Tealwood. Although many residents requested traffic calming, these streets chosen as the most serious speeding concerns. Both roads have long stretches of uninterrupted driving, which results in people driving faster than they should. Mr. Erickson observed that "the cushions really have made a significant difference... It would be impossible for our community patrol to be there continually writing tickets, and the cushions make sure that folks drive slower and more safely."

The response has been very positive from residents and the community. The community expects to purchase additional speed cushions, focusing installations on the spine roads that are the community's main routes. When asked about the HOA's future plans for installing Traffic Logix rubber cushions, Mr. Erickson commented, "It's not a question of if but a question of when."

To find out more about Traffic Logix speed cushions, visit the company's website at www.trafficlogix.com.