Category: On The Board

When is a flood not a flood? That’s a serious question for southeast Florida’s residential communities. Even if they have flood insurance, damage caused by heavy rains and backed-up sewers may not meet the National Flood Insurance Program …

I Love Lucy is one of the most beloved sitcoms in all of television history. In one episode, after Little Ricky is born, the baby is screaming and screaming, keeping awake the next door tenant, Mrs. Trumbull. Mrs. Trumbull complains to lan…

Few things can raise one's blood pressure like signing a big contract. That can be especially true for board members or managers signing sometimes mammoth contracts on behalf of a co-op or condo association, obligating their neighbors, fri…

Much like corporations and charity organizations, condos, co-ops and HOAs across the nation are helmed by groups of residents who volunteer to serve their communities, and who are elected to their post by their neighbors. This is of course…

A quote often attributed to the Prussian statesman Otto von Bismarck in the mid-1800s says something to the effect that laws are like sausages—it's better not to see either of them being made. It's a clever quip, and it's not entirely i…

While keeping the records of the association is not the most fascinating part of board membership, it is in some ways one of the most important. In fact, the flow of paperwork is the lifeblood of the community. The association’s decl…

It only takes a few minutes of a web search to uncover the traits that make a successful person or business owner. For example, Entrepreneurmagazine’s Steven Key wrote the article, “5 Qualities of Successful Persons,” which included such t…

The goal of any property developer is to sell units, but until that objective is reached, the developer assumes all the day-to-day responsibilities to ensure smooth operations and continued sales. This requires wearing many hats—manager, b…

The word community, like many words in the English language, has more than one interpretation. A community can be identified as a geographical location—a physical infrastructure of streets, parks and buildings, defined by tangible brick an…

Charles Dickens once said, “It is a pleasant world we live in, sir, a very pleasant world. There are bad people in it, Mr. Richard, but if there were no bad people, there would be no good lawyers.” Ah Mr. Dickens speaks the truth. Lo…