Continuity, Backlogs, Leadership and Vision

Here's the results of my annual driveway survey. It is an example for what follows in this post. We'll be replacing four driveways this year, which gives us 52 new driveways, or 62% since 2009. The older driveways are in good condition but crack filling and future replacements will be necessary. I'd like to point out that replacing four driveways per year, on average, will replace all driveways every 21 years. Our driveways have a useful life of 15-20 years, so replacing all at such a pace is within the guidelines we've established.

Yes, recent boards have been playing "catch up" to the problems created by earlier boards. The driveways are an example.

• Since 2009 52 driveways were replaced
• Based on lifecycle studies, only 32 should have been replaced
• The additional 20 that were replaced since 2009 were part of the maintenance backlog created by earlier boards. 
• Add to this streams, patios, common area patios, garage floors, etc. which were maintenance delayed. 

The current driveway data was collected by me and provided to the board [There were actually two surveys this year; one in the spring and one as fall approached]. This approach is typical of ongoing and frequent conditions surveys I instituted in this association in 2010. In 2016 there was no resistance to replacing the four driveways because I had take photos of all of the older driveways and presented that information to the board.  This is an example of an approach which avoids sticking our heads in the sand to the detriment of the association and its owners.

Driveway Survey August 2016

Prior to 2009 we had problems with aging driveways. The boards were faced with the magnitude of the roofing project and rising annual fees to accommodate it. Fees and the roofing project are only part of the problem.

It seems that annual condition surveys were suspended prior to 2011. With the infrastructure aging, it was easier I suppose to simply sit back and deal with those upset owners who came to association meetings. So the squeaky wheels got the grease. This approach has other problems, including the establishment of a substantial maintenance backlog.

Irate owners finally stormed association meetings. Most of the "kick the can down the road" leadership was replaced. However, the new board faced some real challenges in 2009. I think they replaced more than 12 driveways in 2009-2010. That was the tip of the iceberg.  They had made some big promises to win those seats in 2008. Those promises, combined with a real maintenance backlog led to a steady stream of owners attending association meetings with their hands outstretched. So the squeaky wheels had taken over the association. Expectations were high. Walking the talk is the difficult part.

The earlier boards had left several land mines behind for the replacement board of 2008. That included severe animosity toward any board by some owners. A failure to communicate was another. So we had a backlog of maintenance issues, an underfunded mega dollar roofing project underway, our major street was failing, we had chronic communications problems and owners were angry. That was directly a consequence of a failure of leadership and vision by earlier boards.

The true magnitude of the problem became apparent with the reserve studies that followed.

Another casualty was future boards. Is is any wonder that owners don't want to participate? But I'm making excuses for the owners. There is no excuse for avoiding involvement and protecting one's major financial investment. But too many owners used the problems as an excuse and simply promoted their personal agenda. Some had difficulty believing what was so. After all, the earlier "kick the can down the road" boards hadn't communicated and then the new "neighborly" board painted a rosy, fictional picture. Some owners were confused and had a right to be.

Solving the Problem
To deal with these types of problems takes leadership by example and vision. Not everyone comes to a volunteer board position to work; after all it is a power position and it does carry some cache in the community. When the going gets rough, some will run, some will attack those who communicate the bad news, and some will attempt to assassinate the champions. Others simply fulfill the role of underminers. There may be personal agendas and legacies to protect.

The new board of 2008 attempted to resolve the communication issues. But they lacked the backbone to tell the owners what was really so. After all, if one runs on a political slate of "change, " "neighborliness" and "we have enough money" it becomes difficult to tell the owners otherwise. So there was some real silliness. For example "We can maintain the property with an army of handymen." One of the board actually had a non-owner handy guy come to an association meeting to promote his agenda. Another silliness was "porous asphalt." At best these were diversions. At worst they pushed serious matters far lower on the scale of priorities.

It was difficult for the board to own up to the serious delinquencies and foreclosures that occurred commencing with the financial crisis of 2007-2008. They couldn't replace a rosy picture and communicate reality. It is really difficult to walk the talk, and our new board at the time discovered just how really difficult that is. The reserve study of 2010 was the sign to leave and all that they needed was to find an excuse. I was it and three ran for the exit.

There is that old expression "Lead, follow or get out of the way." When faced with underminers I'd prefer they simply get out of the way. But not all do. Nevertheless, there has been sufficient opportunity to move this association forward.

Major Steps
Here are some of the major steps undertaken at our association in recent years:

• Reserve Studies.
• Using reserve studies as the tool they are meant to be.
• Frequent condition surveys
• Establishing priorities
• Responsible budgeting
• Honest and thorough communications
• Continuous improvement
• Using data rather than automaticity.
• Acknowledging that budgets must consider property values, the financial impact on owners and the assessment increases necessary to fund reserves. 

Not everyone agrees with the previous steps and it has been an uphill struggle. You really can't "teach old dogs new tricks" if they are too inflexible and set in their ways. But they may be absolutely certain that they are right, never mind the numbers; that's an inconvenience. I supposed the "new tricks" expression could be the slogan for some HOAs. I can't take credit for the current amounts we collect via reserves. That goes to the boards of 2000-2010, who ramped up our reserve budgets by very large amounts. The average fee increase for reserves from 2002 to the budget meeting of 2010 was nearly 13% each year. It would have been higher had I not argued for a moderation of these increases in recent years, based upon:

• Current infrastructure knowledge
• Current 10-year infrastructure projections
• Current 30-year projections
• Knowledge of the financial impact on owners and property values.

Leadership and Vision

There are many aspect to leadership in a homeowners association. 

• Setting long term goals
• Establishing priorities for goals
• Managing our managers
• Managing a diverse group of volunteers
• Dealing with belligerent owners who run their personal agendas
• Building better boards
• Mentoring new board members
• Communicating responsibly to owners while avoiding glossing over inconveniences

It is unfortunate, but some association board members become bullies, some lose their vision and some fail to communicate honestly and authentically with owners. 

Nevertheless, I do think we have sufficient owners with the necessary qualifications to fully staff our board and tun the association. But to do so requires dealing with the bullies and some honest work. Perhaps that's the reason why "Ken" the apple orchard guy doesn't hire young people to help him in his orchard. At 95 Ken was pruning and climbing ladders with a half-bushel basket attached with a harness. He said younger people would expect a Cola machine and some would have their mothers come along. As for the older? Simply too lazy, I guess.