By Ashley Douglas, Reconstruction Experts
If I were to ask you to picture a thriving older HOA community near you, chances are you could bring one to mind easily. This type of community appears to age gracefully with residents who are happy to live near one another. They have flags of their favorite sports teams out front, their patios are decorated beautifully, and they have great participation in their monthly board meetings and community events. They have clearly attracted residents who want to invest in where they live.
The one that comes to mind in my neighborhood has always looked like a place that I would want to live--even before I worked in the HOA industry. Their siding is painted nicely, their roads are smooth and clear, and the landscaping is flawless. Whenever I drive by, I see a team of people working on some area of the property to keep it looking its best. In town they are known as one of the premier communities to live in, and units are always in high demand.
These types of HOAs make it look easy, but all of us know that maintaining high property values takes a tremendous amount of planning, effort, and money. And I’m not just talking about the work it takes to make things look nice.
Over the years I have gotten to know the HOA I mentioned above, and they’ve set the bar in my mind for how an HOA should approach caring for their community.
So, what have they done from a maintenance perspective to keep homes selling and residents happy over decades of time? The answer may surprise you because they do not focus most of their attention on flashy aesthetic repairs.
It’s easy to put up a coat of paint and keep the flowers looking nice, but what takes real effort and attention is what’s done regularly to keep the important systems of the building in good condition over the long haul. You know, the typical list of issues building inspectors come back with when a unit is getting ready to sell.
When I asked this community’s Board of Directors how they approach maintaining their property, I was refreshed to hear their reply. (The things I’ve included below aren’t an exhaustive list but will give you an idea of what I’m referring to.)
Life safety issues are always the top priority. Things to plan for in this category include:
- Deck maintenance
- Concrete trip hazard repairs
- Stairs on site that could use handrails
- Stairs leading to entry landings that need repair or replacement
Next, it’s important to consider what types of things could be causing the building damage right now. Most of these types of repairs center around keeping water out of your building.
- Roofing maintenance or replacement
- Window maintenance
- Maintenance of sealants
- Inspections for proper grading & drainage
- Siding maintenance
- Regular gutter cleaning
*The ranking list of repairs should be evaluated by a reserve study specialist and a design professional that you can find through your membership with CAI. Your reserve study should be updated regularly.
Once the HOA has gotten to the point where they have maintained all the important building systems, aesthetics can then be considered. This is where fun updated paint schemes and creative landscaping plans can come into play.
The importance of taking care of deferred maintenance cannot be overstated. A community that does not properly increase dues thereby only allowing themselves the ability to make bare minimum repairs won’t attract the best buyers for their neighborhood. Things like painting over rotted siding and deteriorated wood handrails, or not repairing hail damage promptly is a recipe for disaster for home values.
Quality home buyers want to see that the HOA has a plan for taking care of the important systems of the structure. If your HOA can show prospective buyers a good track record of maintenance, or a plan to make things better if this hasn’t been done in the past, they have a much better shot at maintaining and improving home values over time by attracting good buyers who want to live in a great community and participate in keeping it a nice place to live.
As the VP of the Colorado Region, Ashley utilizes her experience to manage the overall success of the Colorado Region of Reconstruction Experts, and works closely with RE’s Senior Management of each division to ensure that our core values of Safety, Quality, Schedule, Cost and Communication are fully utilized in the procurement, planning and the execution of each project. Ashley has worked at Reconstruction Experts for 10 years serving in many different roles along the way.
