What is a reserve study?
A reserve study is a financial planning tool HOAs use to estimate how much money should be set aside for future repairs and replacements of common elements. It typically assesses current assets, roofs, sidewalks, elevators, and their remaining useful life.
Why does a reserve study matter?
A community without a current reserve study is essentially guessing at how much it should be saving, which is exactly how boards end up blindsided by a special assessment for a repair that should have been fully anticipated years in advance.
When You’ll Run Into This
This gets performed on a regular cycle, often every few years, and reviewed most closely right before a big budget decision. Our breakdown of the HOA reserve study explains how boards figure out if they’re actually saving enough.
