Have a small or midsized condominium building or townhome property that you have been trying to “self-manage”? There is much to consider when trying to manage your property on your own. More Board members for condo and townhome associations are choosing professional management for several key reasons:
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Experience with dealing with emergency / after hours issues:
Ever have a broken water pipe at 2AM on a Sunday night? Would you know who to call to safely shut off the water and repair the issue ASAP? Management companies have a great deal of experience dealing with these kinds of issues and can often assist Boards with proper protocol, important decisions, and/or dealings with the insurance companies.
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Proactive maintenance and adding value to your building:
A good property manager has a background in construction and/or building project management. They will inspect your building on a frequent basis to ensure that the appropriate proactive maintenance is being done. They should also be able to catch issues before they become problematic.
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Ensuring that the Association’s accounting is correct and streamlined:
Management companies will have monthly reports of budget versus actual building expense information readily available for Board members to review. They can also assist with budgeting future expenses, capital projects, and tax filings.
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Able to collect on delinquencies efficiently and legally:
Don’t want to keep begging your neighbors for past due assessments? Who does? Since your management company is a professional organization, they are aware of how to legally collect on delinquencies and have resources available if legal action is required.
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Knowledge of State and Federal laws and condominium and townhome governing guidelines:
You manager will know how to file a refuse rebate in order to take advantage of a scavenger rebate from the City of Chicago. They can also ensure that appropriate Association paperwork has been filed with the State of Illinois.
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Able to find deals and take advantage of bulk rates:
Many vendors like to work for professional management companies since they can be a conduit for various buildings. In turn, the vendors will offer below market rates that get passed along to the various Associations. Management companies are also aware of what the market rates should be for a particular expense and can often negotiate these rates on behalf of the condo association.
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Ease of rental if necessary:
Moving out of town and can’t sell your condo? A management company that is already managing your building can often help with managing your rental unit. They generally have a good understanding of market rental rates and can assist with screening tenants.
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Reliable and available managers to address issues and tasks:
Tired of that door that just won’t shut correctly or light that keeps burning out? Generally your manager can handle these tasks efficiently by assigning it to the right person or vendor and can also be helpful when dealing with neighbor disputes.
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Have resources available and access to professionals for various types of work:
If you’re not a very handy person and/or would like contact names for electrical, painting, or other kinds of small projects in your home, your manager will likely have vendors that they have used in the past with successful results.
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Ultimate time saver whether you live locally or outside of the area:
Most condominium homeowners have careers outside of property management and therefore are not available during the day to deal with building issues, etc. Also, collecting assessments and paying bills each month can be quite time consuming. A good management company has established efficiency with processing these tasks and also can offer a great deal of transparency through online web portals, etc.
