Key Advice That Keeps Assessment Fees As Low As Possible In Your Association

Do homeowners in your HOA ever complain on the neighborhood website that the assessment fees are too high?  It can be a daunting task to maintain low fees and meet the financial obligations of your homeowners association but it doesn’t have to be that way.  This post describes a few techniques you can use to keep HOA fees low without compromising the financial well-being of the association.

 

HOA assessments exist in two basic forms; monthly assessments and special assessments.  Monthly assessments are meant for basic upkeep of the homeowners association and they’re also used to take care of expenses such as maintenance of the common areas and security.

On the other hand, special assessments are imposed once in a while to pay for huge expenses such as replacing the roof or pool.  If monthly fees are too low, the HOA board might be forced to issue a special assessment that ends up burdening some homeowners.

 

Whether they’re monthly or special assessments, the board should ensure that all fees are paid as needed.  This will prevent the reserves from running out and eliminate the need for suddenly increasing HOA fees.  The board should be vigilant to make certain that all funds are used as intended.

It’s also important to cut overhead expenses as much as possible since these increase your overall expenses for the year.  When looking for suppliers and service providers such as designers for the neighborhood website, look at quotes from different parties.  Then choose the one that offers you the best deal with regard to quality and price.

Even though HOA fees are often expected to increase, there are steps you can take as the board for them to stay at decent levels.  Try the methods discussed above and see how they affect your association.  For instance, when a homeowner takes care of common areas, it tends to reduce the maintenance fees and ultimately keep assessments down!