Vendor contracts are essential in managing and operating homeowner associations (HOAs). They help ensure smooth operations for services like landscaping, snow removal, maintenance, insurance, accounting, legal services, and other necessary operations. However, poorly drafted contracts (or no written contract at all) can lead to costly disputes and inefficiencies. Here’s a guide to forming, managing, and enforcing vendor contracts effectively.
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What Is a Contract?
At its core, a contract is an agreement or a "meeting of the minds" between two parties. It consists of three key elements:

• Offer – A proposal to provide goods or services.
• Acceptance – Agreement to the terms of the offer.
• Consideration – The value exchanged by both parties.

​Does a Contract Have to Be in Writing?
While verbal agreements are enforceable in some cases, certain contracts must be in writing under Idaho law. However, it is always recommended to reduce agreements to writing.

An association should conduct a reserve study and fund in order to plan for future capital expenditures, ensure the board is fulfilling their fiduciary duty and avoid surprise capital expenses or the loss of an asset, amenity or lifestyle.

Competent common area capital analysis and reserve funding decisions are key elements to a successful community association in today's housing market.

A reserve study is a budget-planning tool that identifies the current status of a reserve fund and sets forth a stable and equitable funding plan to offset the future expense of replacing major capital components within the association.

A board has the responsibility to preserve, maintain and enhance the value of the assets of their community, and with that premise they need to consider three important matters for when dealing with their reserve study.

We face conflict in many areas of life including: personal relationships, work, community, politics, social issues, cultural differences, values and beliefs, opinions, and even within ourselves. Essentially, anywhere where people have differing perspectives, needs, or goals can lead to potential conflict. With our every changing society and unique lives, conflict becomes unavoidable. As we move forward, learning to manage conflict and the diverse personalities we interact with is essential. While many of the following steps can be used in other areas of our lives, the below are some suggestions when working in Community Management.

Identify the Underlying Issue: Conflict resolution starts with understanding the root cause. Active listening, empathy, and research are essential in uncovering the true issue. Understanding laws and governing documents is crucial, as it ensures that the resolution process is grounded in factual information and legal frameworks.

Introduction to the CTA 

The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was adopted by Congress in 2021 and went into effect on January 1st 2024.  It is an anti-money-laundering law aimed at gathering more information about corporations and limited liability companies that operate in the United States so that the federal government can take better action to prevent money laundering and terrorist funding.   

Under the law, all corporations and limited liability companies (among other entities) in the United States must file an initial “beneficial ownership interest” report to the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).  There are some exempted companies that do not have to report—I will address those below—but, by and large, every for profit and nonprofit corporation and LLC in the United States must report.  That includes all incorporated homeowners associations and condominium associations in Idaho.   

So, practically speaking, what does the statute require and what does it mean for your community association?  Well, I’m glad you asked!  Let’s dive into a primer of some basic CTA questions and answers.  Remember, this is not legal advice for your community association.  Rather, it is simply a brief, not-all-inclusive primer into the CTA.  If you have specific questions, please consult your association’s legal counsel. 

As we approach the end of 2024—just three months away—our management company and accounting department are diligently preparing for year-end closing. We have compiled a checklist to ensure that all items are addressed efficiently. Key items include:
 

1. Closing Open/Pending Maintenance Items: Begin finalizing any maintenance items scheduled for completion this year.
2. Approved Budget Notification: During the first week of December, we will notify communities regarding any changes to HOA dues/assessments effective January 1st.
3. Mailing Orders for Coupon Booklets/Statements: If utilizing a third-party mailing service, orders for coupon booklets or statements for HOA dues/assessments should be placed by the second week of December. This will ensure homeowners receive their materials before the holidays and can prepare for the new year.

As a homeowner, making sure your dues are paid on time is crucial. Timely payments ensure everything runs smoothly and you avoid late fees or penalties. But with so many payment options available, how do you choose the best one? In this article, we'll dive into four popular methods: mailing a check, using an eCheck, setting up an ACH transfer, and paying with a credit card. We'll break down the pros and cons of each for homeowners, and even touch on how Positive Pay can help prevent fraud for HOAs with a business account. 

Let’s get started!

Primary Methods for Paying Homeowner Dues 

When it’s time to pay your homeowner dues, you have several options. Here’s a quick look at each:

- Mailing a Check: The traditional way of sending payments.
- eCheck: A digital version of the paper check.
- ACH Transfer: Direct bank-to-bank transfers.
- Credit Card: Quick and easy payments.

Now, let's take a closer look at each method, starting with the good old-fashioned check.

It’s almost that time of the year – “the budget season!” Some may find the budget season to be the scariest and most stressful part of the year, and some may find it exciting where we get to plug in numbers and project an increase for next year’s annual operating expenses.
Budget preparation is one of the best parts about community association management – without adequate funding for each expense, a community’s day-to-day will be challenging to manage because a good budget leads to consistent growth of community’s finances and health.
Please see below for the basic steps of budget preparation:

• Find out any projected increases from all vendors that provide services for a community – if they can’t give us an increase percentage, then we will have to project it based on an inflation – a start between 3% - 5%. Except for insurance, we will need to contact an agent for their projection; it’s usually between 35%-40% today’s world.

Why does our community need a Reserve Study? If something major needs repaired or replaced, we’ll figure it out at that time, or hope we’ve been setting enough funds aside in our Reserve Account.

​Reserve Study requirements are different from state to state. Some states require a reserve study be completed, how often it must be updated, and what percentage of funds, based on the study, must be in the HOA’s Reserve account. Idaho does not currently require a reserve study to be completed for a homeowner’s association, but don’t be surprised if that changes in the near future. Just because it’s not required does not take away from the importance of having one completed, and the enormous benefit to your community.

​As an elected Board Member, one of your most important responsibilities is Fiduciary Duty. In a Homeowners Association, that means a duty to make decisions and act in the best interest of the association, and its subsequent members. 

Your community’s Annual Meeting is over. You love where you live and volunteered to run for the Board 
of Directors, having a desire to serve the community and help it continue to be a great place to raise 
your family. When the votes were tallied, your name was announced as a new Board Member…What 
Now?!?!

So many homeowners want to help in their community and each person has their own unique set of 
skills, and perspective, that can help your Homeowner’s Association tackle the business of the 
community. Backgrounds and experience in finance, construction, leadership, and organization are just 
a few great skills an HOA can take advantage of.
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Where do you start? A Board needs to start out by getting organized, whether it’s a brand-new Board 
taking over from a developer, or a couple new members being added to a current Board. Clear 
expectations and an understanding of each member’s role on the Board is vital.

Savvy owners realize that contractor selection is a crucial decision.  Selecting the right contractor will help you get the quality you want, at the right price, in the right time frame and the chance to work with people you like and respect.  In Part One of this article, we cover 6 key steps. 

1. Define your scope.  It might sound like a no brainer, but before you can do anything, you need to define the specific scope of work that you need done.  Even if the scope of work is only a few line items long, having a clearly defined scope of work is critical when determining the contractor you need.  In addition, having a defined scope of work is critical when communicating your needs to more than one contractor.  If you don’t do this, you may end up receiving very different bids for very differently perceived scopes of work.
2. Call people with similar experience. Now that you have your scope of work, contact people you know who have done similar work to the job that you are contemplating. Word of mouth can be a great way find a qualified professional to tackle your job. Ask them lots of questions and learn about their personal experience and how it might relate to your own present requirements.
   
3. Call the contractors directly. Once you have a list of contractors, calling them directly is a great way to begin the selection process.  Again, be sure to provide the same scope of work to each contractor so you can obtain a level comparison of how they would approach the job.  What is your initial impression?  Do they do this kind of work? Do they sound interested in the job at hand?  Are they available?  Did they take the time to talk to you and understand your needs?