Good condo association management is essential for residents’ satisfaction and for a well-run condominium.

Condos that have successful management have fewer conflicts and happier residents who are involved in their community. 

Here we look at the 5 best practices for board members and community association managers. These range from how to communicate better to how to use efficient tools to help you handle your daily activities. 

1. Effective management style

As you may know, a condo association can be self-managed or managed by a professional. Board members can hire the service of a condo property manager to help them run the community. If they do that, it becomes a managed condo association. 

Before taking this step, the whole board needs to sit down and decide what they need. Here are some questions to ask:

• What are our current struggles and problems?
• Do we have enough knowledge to manage our community on our own?
• Do we have enough time to handle all the demands and tasks?
• Are residents currently happy about our leadership?
• Do we have the funds to hire a community association manager?
• How would residents feel about hiring a condo management company?

A managed condo won’t automatically be better than a self-managed one. 

What works for some may not for others. It all depends on the community’s size, needs, resources, and residents. Knowing what is best for your community is crucial for successful condo association management. The board is also crucial here, while a management company will save you time, you still need to communicate with them regularly to make sure things are going smoothly. If you feel confused, you can always contact a management company to learn more about their services.

As a manager, your role is to help the community make the right decision. Here is what you can do:

1. Provide information about the support and benefits you offer
2. Help boards become more aware of what they require
3. Present them with client case studies to help them understand real-life situations

You can provide all that information on your website to help with their initial questions, and then meet with them when they are a bit further along in their decision-making process. Finally, make sure only to accept clients that are a good fit with your service. If you are not sure you will be able to meet their demands, refer them to someone else. 

2. Clear communication

Effective communication is the backbone of condo association management. It brings many benefits, such as improved teamwork and fewer misunderstandings. It also promotes trust between board members, managers, and unit owners. 

Communicating well is more complicated than it seems. It involves several elements. You need to try different approaches and see what works best. Being willing and able to adapt to different audiences and expectations is also important. 

In this section, we’ll give practical ideas you can put into action to improve communication in your condo. 

1. Using different communication channels

Different generations may live in the same building. Senior residents could prefer to check information on a notice board, while younger ones like to receive them by email. Communicating with unit owners through different channels increases the chance of everyone being informed. It also increases transparency. 

Nowadays, you can find solutions allowing you to communicate via various channels on one platform. You can, for example, send notices, emails, text messages, automated phone calls, and more. 

2. Creating an excellent condo association newsletter

A condo association newsletter is a great tool to keep residents informed. It also fosters engagement and helps create a sense of community. The great thing about newsletters is that you can add both day-to-day and vital pieces of information. Another idea is to allow residents to share interesting content. They could share pictures, recipes, anecdotes, and more. It’s an excellent way for unit owners to get to know each other better. 

As a board, you can also share information about some of your current activities. This can help increase transparency. 

As a manager, you should encourage board members to send newsletters regularly and consistently. 

3. Use a condo website 

Another great tool for effective communication is a condo website. It makes information easily accessible to board members, residents, managers, and potential buyers. You can include information about your association, such as the location, the size, the amenities, and more. You can also store governing documents and promote community events. 

For many, having a condo association website seems like extra work, but it actually allows you to have a single hub of communication. Nowadays, anyone can set up a site at an affordable price. You don’t even need technical knowledge. You can use condo website templates and add the information that you want.

3. Easy-to-access documents

Poor record-keeping is a common malpractice in condo association management. If you don’t fix it quickly, it can lead to severe issues, like losing important information. To save time and avoid problems, you must organize your condo association documents properly. 

The first step is to design an effective filing system to make your physical documents easy to find. When setting up a filing system, ensure that you:

1. Use a file naming convention
2. Add dates
3. Color-code your folders
4. Define who can access and edit the documents

Having a good process is essential to increasing transparency and accountability.

You can also keep digital records to make information easily accessible to everyone in the community. It facilitates the collaboration between board members and the management company. It also allows residents to find documents on their own, without having to request a copy. Also, as condo managers are often on the go, accessing files quickly from any device helps them be more efficient. 

Storing your association documents online makes board transitions’ easier, improves transparency, and builds a more sustainable community. It also saves everyone a lot of time and reduces the risk of damaged and lost documents. 

4. Meticulous Maintenance 

Condo maintenance plays a crucial role in residents’ safety and satisfaction. Not only a neglected property loses value, but it can also become a dangerous place for anyone on the property, or near it. 

The best way to avoid accidents and dissatisfaction is to apply preventive maintenance. It is a proactive way of checking and fixing issues regularly to prevent unplanned repairs in the future. Also, in the long run, this can help you save money and decrease condo fees. It can also minimize the risk of hazards and offer more enjoyable common areas to your residents. 

Also, frequent condo inspections help you keep track of the useful life of your property’s components. It can help the community to prepare financially for future large maintenance projects. 

Curb appeal (attractiveness of your property exterior) is critical to consider if you would like to attract new buyers. Make sure always to have your outside clean and well-maintained. If your building has enough space, you can implement one of these condo landscaping ideas to make your property stand out. 

5. Easy-to-use Technology

Nowadays, you can find online tools that streamline condo association management. One of them is condo management software. It’s an all-in-one tool that simplifies and automates daily tasks. You can manage every aspect of your condominium in one single platform. You can find software for all types and sizes of community associations. You just need to find the one that tackles your specific challenges. 

Managing a community is full of repetitive tasks that take a lot of time. Board members can become overwhelmed and disengaged, especially if they run the association on their own, using pen and paper. In this case, investing in self-managed condo association software might be the best thing to do. It won’t substitute for a management company, but it will help you deal with your tasks more efficiently and in less time. 

Here’s what condo association software allows you to do:

• Send communications to residents via different channels in one platform
• Set up and maintain a condo association website
• Store your documents and generate shareable links
• Register and manage the visitors’ ins and outs
• Assign and track parking spaces
• Track packages and notify residents
• Handle amenities booking and establish rules of usage
• Issue financial statements and track invoices 

Final points on condo association management 

Managing a condo association is a tough task. By using these tips, you can improve your condo association management, save time and ensure that residents are more satisfied with their community and the way it’s being run.

The board can continue to be self-managed or hire a management company to help them.