The daily responsibilities of managing an HOA can be overwhelming for a Board of Directors comprised of volunteer homeowners. From overseeing property maintenance, creating annual budgets, ensuring homeowner compliance, facilitating legal documents, reviewing insurance for suitable coverage, assessing dues, vetting reliable vendors, mitigating liability and more, you can understand why most associations need professional management to ensure successful and strategic decision making.
At Beacon Management, we work with the Board of Directors to handle these and other critically important tasks which result in peace of mind and less stress for our volunteer homeowners. Realizing that our residents are busy professionals with lives and families, we reliably oversee the day-to-day operations and strategic planning of the association that benefits the board and homeowners in measurable ways.
Adding Value to Your Property
We understand the vast importance of property values, and their relationship with proper maintenance, attractive common areas and homes in compliance with the governing documents. Our top priority is ensuring your community remains in optimal condition that ideally continues to appreciate in value. With proper funding, we guarantee an excellent level of maintenance and enhancements to create a highly desirable community with incredible aesthetic appeal.
Helping to Ensure Property Guidelines
Running a successful HOA requires adhering to rules and regulations created to promote neighborhood conformity. Our managers understand the importance of enforcing these well-defined governing documents as they conduct site inspections, cite violations and attempt to rectify problems before they get out of hand. We’re all familiar with communities that don’t enforce architectural guidelines, address troublesome aesthetic issues or take necessary action against offenders. As a neighborhood declines, property values suffer as well. Remember, it’s difficult, if not almost impossible, for a community to come back once it reaches a “point of no return.” Board members need to work with their management company to take on the tough challenge of overcoming violations with proper education and enforcement.
Beacon Management is here to help make sure your homeowners follow the community guidelines. As a key aspect of any HOA, it’s that all rules and regulations are consistently followed, and homes are monitored for compliance. We’ll be responsible for ensuring community guidelines are implemented and any violations are promptly addressed.
Proper Financial Management
Our goal as your management partner is to offer strategic oversight of your community’s finances. By taking a careful look at your operating budget, capital reserves and current reserve study, we can help create a plan that maximizes your financial resources.
Managing a property correctly includes having GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) accounting – accrual accounting. Without this method – a client, whether they admit it or not, is operating somewhat in the dark and certainly without vision or all the information necessary for good financial decisions. This is the only type of accounting Beacon offers its clients.
Here are the fundamentals that we do every day:
Internal controls are of extreme importance as they relate to protecting association funds. Accordingly, we employ measures to oversee:
- General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, and Estoppel/PUD.
- In addition, our localized accounting department allows for easy access to information and personal response to your questions.
- Our Chief Financial Officer is unique in that he periodically attends board meetings and is involved in the ongoing dialogue with the board to accurately and properly reflect the financial condition for your community. The board treasurer will, in fact, have the benefit of a trusted advisor in Beacon.
Total accounting and financial solutions:
- Keep a separate set of books of account for HOA, including but not limited to general ledger, journals and paid bills file.
- Send monthly financial management report and disbursements journal to Board. Monthly aged accounts receivable report to Treasurer. Monthly: bank reconciliation, balance accounts receivables. Quarterly: post interest and reconcile Reserve accounts.
- Send a bill with a return envelope to all owners each month for maintenance assessment. Receive such payments and deposit directly into HOA separate Operating account at the bank, keeping records thereof.
- Delinquent payment follow-up: reminder notice on the bill at 30 and 60 days, pre-lien letter at 60 days, a lien filed at Board instruction, the release of lien when applicable. Post lien collection options and costs.
- Pay all bills out of HOA Operating account.
- “Red Flag” reports sent to Board if applicable on cash-flow and/or Reserve deposit problems.
- Coordinate with HOA accountant for the annual audit and tax returns. Accountant’s cost borne by HOA.
- Send annually FYE data requirements list to Board and mandated packet of info to owners.
- Deposit budgeted Reserves from HOA Operating account into HOA Reserve account(s) monthly, if funds are available. Tracking log for missed reserve deposits.
- Coordinate on lender foreclosures and owner bankruptcies if applicable.
- Maintain a current list of unit owners.
- Provide account history to the individual owner when requested.
- Deal with individual homeowners on their accounts and coordinate with Board if necessary.
- Coordinate with escrow companies and lenders for resales and refinances cost form by owner, not HOA.
Don’t leave your assets to chance. We don’t.
Reducing Repair and Maintenance Costs
Managing a community usually involves addressing potential maintenance issues, particularly those with amenities such as a clubhouse, pool, tennis courts, common areas and gates. As repairs are such an important budgetary consideration, Beacon provides convenient mobile maintenance services by trained technicians in fully equipped vans. We have overseen approximately $32 million in maintenance work.
Both a timely and affordable solution, our in-house maintenance staff ensure communities are well-maintained by handling routine work orders as well as property emergencies. Our mobile maintenance teams offer a variety of needed services including:
- Pressure washing (pool decks/mail kiosks/monument signs/sidewalks/parking lots)
- Drywall repair and interior painting/restoration
- Exterior painting
- Fence repairs (aluminum/chain link/wood/steel)
- Deck repairs
- Carpentry
- Gutter downspout repairs
- Lighting repairs and installation (landscape/tennis courts/clubhouse/monument signs)
- Plumbing repairs (toilets/p-traps/sinks/parking lot drains)
- Locks/hinges/door/window repair and replacement
- Sign installation (no parking/pool rules/street signs/stop signs/dog stations)
- Junk/debris removal
- And much more!
Our property management software lets us use electronic work orders to communicate with maintenance staff members and vendors, so we address and resolve issues faster. By performing maintenance with a proactive approach, your community benefits and saves money in the long run.
Beacon Management is Ready to Help
What happens when you hire Beacon? Our professional team in Atlanta has encountered and dealt with virtually every facet of the real estate industry, giving us a wealth of training and tested experience that we can share with you.
At Beacon, we are always mindful of our mission: To Improve the Quality of Peoples’ Lives. If we do our jobs well, we will have a positive impact on the lives of people who live in the properties we manage. Everything we do is geared first toward the question: How does this impact the quality of life of the people we serve?
After reviewing your options, we think you will agree that Beacon has the most to offer your community, board and homeowners. Please don’t hesitate to contact Mike Dubas for a friendly, no-obligation chat. We’d be happy to discuss your property management needs and learn more about how we can help you be as successful as possible.
Mike Dubas, AMS, CMCA
Beacon Management Services
(404) 907-2112 or mdubas@beaconmanagementservices.com