[white_rose]

Up

0

Down

::

We dropped our management company last year due to budgetary reasons but have been struggling with the financial aspect of the HOA as of late. Our board members either don’t know how to manage finances properly or just can’t be bothered to put in the time. We’ve been toying with the idea of outsourcing just the financial management aspect and retaining the rest in-board. Does that make sense? Has anyone else tried this? What are your experiences? Just want to get some input before we commit to hiring a firm.

[cascascassie]

Up

1

Down

::

How many units are in your association?

[white_rose]

Up

0

Down

::

We are a nearly 300-unit community in Indiana.

[cascascassie]

Up

0

Down

::

Considering you have 300 units in your HOA, I think the decision to fire your management company was a bad one. You’ll quickly find that financial management is not the only thing you’re gonna have a hard time with over the next year or so. I suggest you hire another management company but maybe look for one that your budget can afford.

[white_rose]

Up

0

Down

::

Unfortunately, looking for a management company that we can afford isn’t as easy as it sounds. We’ve been forced to cut a lot of our spending due to a budget deficit.

[cascascassie]

Up

0

Down

::

What’s causing your budget deficit? Are there too many owners not paying their fees? Perhaps this is a larger problem when you dig deeper and not something you can fix by simply hiring a financial management firm.

[arnie920]

Up

4

Down

::

I’m on the board of our condo in Seattle and let me tell you – outsourcing our financial management tasks made life a lot easier. It’s the thing most people don’t know how to do since it requires a fair bit of knowledge, so it really helped us in terms of our workflow and budget when we hired a professional to do most of the work. 100% would recommend.

[white_rose]

Up

0

Down

::

@cascascassie I’m not sure why we’re in a deficit (I’m not on the board but I am a VERY concerned homeowner). I’ll have to bring that up at the next board meeting.

@arnie920 Thanks for your input! I will definitely suggest it to our board.

[cascascassie]

Up

1

Down

::

Budget deficits definitely need to be looked into if it happens often. Odds are something’s not right internally. Let me know how that works out for you!

[rpr@softmach.com]

Up

0

Down

::

I’m a new HOA board president, and our bylaws say the treasurer does the finances, but the management company has been handling our finances for years.

At first, I was alarmed, but I think it might be much less work for the HOA that way. Particularly, considering that folks only last a year or two before quitting the HOA board or moving away.

I am trying to figure out how the board can insure the money handling is above board. We get monthly and yearly breakdowns on spending, income, and on our reserve balance. I have asked to see the cancelled checks, but don’t know how that will go. The checking account is a shared trust account the management company uses.

[Webula]

Up

0

Down

::

I think outsourcing the financials is a good idea. It’s a lot of work, as well as a lot of responsibility. However, the board should still do their due dilligence and look over the financials every month. I have heard horror stories about financials that don’t jive.

@cascascassie I agree, something is definitely not right internally.

[danyellow]

Up

0

Down

::

I would suggest going back to a management company to help and take over financials.

[Author]

Posts