The board of a community association has plenty of responsibilities as detailed in the governing documentation. Residents who are volunteering as members of the HOA board may become overwhelmed by the many duties, leading to burn-out. Outsourcing some of these assignments to a virtual assistant will help prevent this issue.

Of course, there are several tasks that must be accomplished by the board members themselves. There are also jobs that need to be addressed by the individual homeowners rather than the HOA. These make it confusing to decide what to delegate or not, especially if you’ll be hiring a VA full-time.

Before you even think of scheduling appointments with contractors, you have to figure out who is responsible for which replacement, repair, or maintenance tasks first.

Importance of community maintenance management

According to some local regulations, homeowners associations are legally obligated to keep up with exterior maintenance for properties. The benefits of keeping the community tidy and aesthetically pleasing are numerous, including:

Creating a sense of community

Communal spaces like clubhouses and parks always fall under the jurisdiction of the HOA. These serve as the main features of your community so you must ensure they are well-kept. Members are more likely to use them when they are functional thereby giving people more chances to connect with other residents.

Boosting values of properties

Homeowners have to maintain their houses on their own but the association is accountable for the appeal and aesthetic of the neighbourhood. Property value isn’t based on size or square footage alone but also on natural lighting, home improvements, and even nearby amenities.

Giving residents value for money

Remember that people are paying for a community that is comfortable, safe, and nice on the eyes. Potential buyers are going to check if the neighbourhood matches the fees that will be asked from them. Existing residents will want to know if their money is going somewhere worthwhile too.

Know which tasks to outsource to a VA

Now that you’re aware of the importance of managing community maintenance tasks well, you have to assign tasks to the correct parties. For your virtual assistant, here are 4 administrative or maintenance related duties you may delegate to them.

Managing the calendar

Time management tends to be a mess within a homeowners association so it’s great that it may be assigned to a virtual assistant. They ensure to make the most out of every hour of the contractor plus they are deliberate about prioritising projects with a larger impact on the community.

Have someone else handle the maintenance requests, arrange the jobs, and organise the calendar so the contractors and workers will not be overbooked. It’s good to have an extra pair of eyes to check that the output meets the standards of the association too.

Communicating with contractors

Communicating with people is one of the most time-consuming parts of HOA management, because you have to do more than just email or call them. You have to hunt for vendors who provide the kind of services that your neighbourhood needs and that alone takes days, if not weeks.

Analysing the bids and negotiating the contracts may take more time than the actual projects themselves. Much of the work comes from discussing the maintenance or renovation you want done. A community manager will take care of the contacting and processing in your stead.

Organising the requests

Residents are quick to make requests when they encounter any inconvenience in the community. The first thing is to know who should handle their request and when. You’ll need a different vendor to repair the clubhouse roof than the one who is trimming the grass in the playground, for instance.

A broken fence is something the homeowner has to handle on their own but they may be asking for referrals for a contractor. Either way, a virtual manager will know which party to contact while ensuring that the board won’t be doing something that isn’t their job in the first place.

Tracking the insurance

You never know when accidents may happen, especially with construction work. This is why it’s important to have insurance in case something happens to a worker or to the structure after the work has been accomplished. Arranging this doesn’t necessarily need the HOA board so a VA will do.

Your assistant will organise the necessary information so it’s easy to determine if insurance is updated or needs renewing. They will also assist in processing the renewal through the correct channels so there will be minimal delay in the work and payments.

Find the right HOA assistant for you

There’s actually a lot that a virtual assistant may do for a homeowners or community association, and the four we’ve mentioned above are only the common ones. If you believe that your neighbourhood will benefit greatly from hiring a remote manager, we at Remote Workmate can help.

With just a click of the button below, you can get started in the staffing process for an HOA assistant.