Community Matters

Why Your Community Association Needs a Reserve Study

In this episode of CAI's Community Associations Podcast, we talk with John Hershey, founder of J. Hershey Architecture Inc., about the purpose of a reserve study and why community associations of all sizes and types should have a regularly updated reserve study. John is an LEED accredited professional architect, reserve specialist and president of the firm, which specializes in consulting, design and construction management. J. Hershey Architecture has offices in Philadelphia, Cleveland, Chicago and Orlando. John has over 30 years of architectural experience, and has expertise in transition studies, reserve studies and bid repair documents. He also provides construction management services. For more information on the firm, visit the firm's website or email John.

Sometimes Rentals Work FOR Community Associations

One of the topics that confound community associations and their boards is what to do about renters. Many times, the question is what can be done to limit them, prohibit them or somehow control them. However, in the right circumstances, possession and rental of a delinquent unit can be a real boon to an association plagued with a zombie property. A vacant property that is a whole in the budget and a bane to the community can be turned into a valuable asset.  A petition for possession, whether through a receiver or directly by the association is a  new strategy to combat delinquents that can be very effective for a progressive board with creative and aggressive counsel.

Our guest in this episode is Hal Barrow, Esq., Partner and Co-Founder of Barrow|Hoffman. Hal has represented hundreds of community associations since 1985. A magna cum laude graduate of Widener University School of Law, Hal has tried cases in state and federal courts throughout Pennsylvania. Hal is an active member of CAI, the Community Association Institute, and has served as President of the Pennsylvania and Greater Delaware Valley Chapter and as past chair of CAI’s Pennsylvania Legislative Action​ Committee. For more information, email Hal or visit Barrow|Hoffman's website at this link.

Social Media: Rules for Employers

The continuing growth of social media has created an array of pitfalls and challenges for employers, including community associations. Hiring decisions have been complicated because of publicly available information on social media, employees are using social media platforms to publicly air workplace grievances and complaints, and pictures and other information posted make an employee’s conduct outside the job only a click away for managers and colleagues in the workplace. These are just a few examples of the many issues, created by social media, that employers are dealing and coming to grips with on a daily basis. A misstep by employers in dealing with the array issues created by social media could lead to lawsuits, fines and other legal exposure.

We'll cover many of these issue in this episode of CAI's podcast. Our guest is Greg Hanscom, Esq., an associate in the Philadelphia office of attorneys Fisher & Phillips. Greg’s practice is devoted to representing employers in a wide array of litigation and non-litigation matters and focuses, in part, on discrimination claims brought under various federal, state and local statutes including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, and the Philadelphia Fair Practices Ordinance. For more information, email Greg or visit their website at this link.

Project Management: Finding the Right Professional for Your Community Association

If your condo or community association is starting a capital improvement project, you want the job done right. Hiring the right professionals can mean the difference between happy residents and a satisfied board of directors and a disaster. In this podcast, Maria Elena Solis, CMCA, with Lemus Construction, talks with CAI's Mike Shaw about how to properly administer a capital improvement or replacement project.

Maria Elena Solis, CMCAM, is a member of the chapter Board of Directors and also serves on the Business Partners Council. She served for several years as a community association manager, and earned the Certified Manager of Community Associations (CMCA) certification. She is now with Lemus Construction, a 2017 chapter Diamond Partner. For more information, contact Maria Elena via email or visit their website.

Condos & HOAs: Fiduciary Duty Explained

In this episode of CAI's Podcast, we will be talking about the important topic of fiduciary duty and what it means in the context of your condominium, cooperative or homeowner association. This is an important legal and financial term for elected board members and managers in community associations and we hope you will find this information useful to your community.

Our guest is Gregory Malaska, Esquire, with the law firm Young & Haros in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. Greg focuses his law practice in community association law, representing dozens of planned communities through Northeastern Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley in a diverse array of transaction and litigation matters including organizational document drafting, transitions from developer to association control, covenant enforcement, assessment collection, corporate management and employment matters. Greg is a member of the Board of Directors of CAI’s Pennsylvania & Delaware Valley Chapter and is past chair of CAI’s Pennsylvania Legislative Action Committee as well as CAI’s Pocono Mountains Regional Council. Visit Young & Haros online or email Greg directly for more information.

Governor Wolf, Legislature End Recording Fee Abuse in Pennsylvania

Community Associations Institute’s Pennsylvania Legislative Action Committee (CAI PA LAC) applauds Governor Tom Wolf for affixing his signature to Senate Bill 1282, legislation that will reign in skyrocketing fees charged by Recorder of Deeds in many counties across Pennsylvania for the recording of amendments to association Declarations. The Governor signed the Bill on Friday, November 4, 2016, bringing a conclusion to a five year effort by CAI PA LAC to put an end to the recording fee scheme adopted by over a third of Pennsylvania’s counties.

Listen to this podcast to learn more.

For more information on legislations impacting Pennsylvania's Community Associations, visit our website.