How-To Stop Unexpected And Expensive Assessments For Homeowners.
It’s common for HOA Board Members to find themselves in uncomfortable management situations when the budget is short and residents have valid fixes the HOA can’t afford. How many times have you uttered the words, “I’m sorry, but it’s just not in the budget?” A tough thing to do when you know residents pay their share each year. Here’s the thing… when there’s a landscape problem it’s usually no bigger than a mole-hill… but, without proper planning and know-how, the problem turns into an Arctic mountain.
Delayed priority landscaping projects are the root to most HOA budgetary and resident issues.
Consider this example for a moment… A resident needs an overgrown tree or shrub removed. The resident puts in the request to the Board, only to find out, the HOA doesn’t have extra funds in the budget. As time goes by the shrub continues to grow and creates bigger, more costly issues. Perhaps the roots grow under the foundation and threaten the building’s stability. Or the shrub gets so large that it grows over the roof, attaches itself to the dwelling, and causes a huge insect problem for the residents who live there. The overgrown shrub or tree is no longer a small issue easily fixed when it was first requested. Now, it’s a big job costing the HOA much more than it would have. In my experience this is one of the biggest budgetary pitfalls HOA’s fall into with these avoidable landscape problems. Now urgency kicks-up and the once small issue becomes a big priority requiring the Board to commit time and money to fix an avoidable and costly problem. What’s worse… problems like overgrown trees and shrubs inevitably turn into structural property damage and insect problems. In the end, the hit to your budget is much greater, in addition to the aggravation you and the Board will experience with unhappy residents. You can clearly see how poor time and budget planning for landscaping causes so many avoidable issues. If the problem was assessed and documented in a long-term plan, it would not have become the monster it became. In addition, the homeowner would have been satisfied knowing it will be taken care of before it’s a huge problem. Long term planning not only makes certain homeowner’s requests are addressed, but it also saves the community money in the long term. Its long-term planning that keeps condominium communities looking beautiful and safe year after year. A Beautification plan is by far the best way to avoid many landscaping issues.