Page 6 - Nevada Cooperator January 2019

6 THE NEVADA COOPERATOR
—JANUARY 2019
NEVADACOOPERATOR.COM
MANAGEMENT
Addressing Management Problems
Communication, Mediation, Cooperation
BY MIKE ODENTHAL
M
ost of the time, when a problem
arises in a multifamily building
or community association, the
go-to solution is to get management on the
phone (or text, or email). The refrain usu-
ally goes something like: “Management will
take care of it!” “They’ve seen this a million
times!” “What can’t they handle?!”
This isn’t a bad thing, of course; the must maintain,” says Michael G. Kreibich, ciation and management has soured, such
vast majority of association managers are a principal at the law firm of Kovitz Shi-
thoroughly-experienced
professionals
with the know-how to solve just about any “If that relationship breaks down, it can ager assaults a resident or board member.
problem. But what happens when man-
agement is the problem? What happens for the community. However, because of slowly over time, and the board needs to
when the association manager just hasn’t the regular turnover of board members, be more attentive to pick up on the signs
been performing? To whom can a build-
ing or association turn when its trusted is counted on to guide the voluntary
adviser has lost that trust? Better yet, how board on nearly all aspects of association when things go bad with management,”
can all of this be avoided entirely?
Breaking Bad
In order to identify and attempt to rec-
tify management problems, it helps if the ular and ongoing stock should be taken a slower response to issues, or monthly
both the terms of a manager’s role and the about the performance of an association’s reports come later and later or not at all,
board’s expectations are laid out explic-
itly from the outset. The more the man-
ager’s job is precisely defined, the easier necessary to manage the expectations of that management is not responsive. Per-
it is to say with certainty that something the board. And those expectations should
has gone off track–and the easier it will be be discussed regularly and shared with
to right the ship. And a hands-on board management in a constructive way, al-
should be able to deftly spot when it is not lowing management to address any issues
receiving the service it’s paying for.
“The relationship between a board and sociation and the management company.”
its manager is one of the single most im-
portant relationships which an association signs that the relationship between asso-
frin Nesbit, which has offices in Illinois. sociation’s reserve funds, or if the man-
have lasting and widespread ramifications But in many cases, the relationship erodes
this often gets overlooked. Management of trouble.
governance, and the manager is entrusted notes Stewart Wurtzel, a partner with the
with a great deal of sensitive association New York-based law firm Tane Waterman
information and matters. Therefore, reg-
manager. Communication about that per-
formance, whether positive or negative, is plaints from unit-owners and vendors
before they drive a wedge between the as-
Of course there are some crystal clear
as if the manager absconds with the as-
“It’s hard to identify any one factor
& Wurtzel, P.C. “It can sometimes start as
or the board increasingly receives com-
haps you see late fees on invoices from
vendors that you were not anticipating.
“The most important thing to do when
questioning the quality of your manage-
ment services,” he continues, “is to have
a heart-to-heart with your agent and, if
need be, a discussion with upper manage-
ment or the owners. Boards should regu-
larly review management performance;
there is no minimum period that a board
should have to suffer with subpar per-
formance. If the board finds itself doing
things that it pays management to do, that
is certainly an indication that the agent
may be underperforming.
“If things don’t start to correct after a
few conversations or meetings with up-
per management, it’s time to start docu-
menting problems and issues via written
communications. When something is not
done right, don’t just call to complain;
send an email or a letter documenting the
problem. When you start to write, always
include the agent’s boss and head of the
agency on the copy.”
Embrace the Review
A board should neither shy away from
conducting a thorough, honest and open
performance review of its management
agent–nor should it be afraid to up the
frequency of reviews should management
underwhelm. Confrontation is never easy,
but the association is a client of the man-
aging agent, and as such can set the terms.
“As community managers are the up-
front daily contacts with HOA clients on
behalf of the management company, it re-
ally is a good practice to try and have what
I call a ‘quality control’ get-together,” says
Anne Calarco, President and Managing
Partner of Level Property Management in
Las Vegas. “We do ours as often as possi-
ble, but quarterly would be ideal, in order
to allow your board clients the opportuni-
ty to freely discuss any issues or concerns
they may have regarding services. Having
these discussions also gives management
company principals the benefit of hear-
ing about existing issues, and allows them
time to review with their manager any
processes and procedures that may need
to be revised or reinforced in order to bet-
ter serve that board.”
“For the first year of a contract, quar-
terly reviews are important,” agrees Stella
continued on page 14
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