Acri Greater Pittsburgh Property Management – Acri Community Realty Blog

You need to pick a Community Management Company with a dedicated Accounting Department

You think you have finally found the perfect Management Company for your homeowner’s Association. Proposals and RFP’s have been sent out. Interviews are complete, and the Board of Directors has reached a majority vote on who they want to use. All of that is great but unless you make a visit to your prospective company you might be missing some crucial details, for instance: Exactly how many people REALLY work there? Is the Company Controller also a property manager? Visiting the …

Why ACRI Should be Your Next HOA Management Company

For twenty-five years ACRI Community Realty has been the top property management company in the Pittsburgh, PA, area. Our multiple decades of successful property management experience illustrate the high quality of our services. We have long-running relationships with many clients and a low turnover of our managers. That results in a stable and reliable company that can help your HOA or condo Board make your community a success. But don’t just take our word for it. In the rest of …

The Top Five Reasons Community Management is a Good Financial Strategy

Community management companies are an investment. Your Board will need to pay money to bring in outside experts to help run your community. This expense will need to be baked into your budget. However, community management is well worth the effort and money. When considering a community management company, you need to not just focus on the cost. Instead, you should consider what the company can do for you. In the Greater Pittsburgh area, community management is a great financial …

Why your Association needs to Partner With a Reserve Specialist

Whether your association board works with a professional manager or self-manages the association, it’s likely that the board will still need the services of other professionals like a Reserve specialist. The Reserve Specialist provide unique skills, should partner with the board, and will provide invaluable resources to your association. When you partner with a reserve specialist it becomes much easier to asses what capital improvements need to be addressed and the time frame in which to address them. Reserve Specialists …

Condo Insurance Explained with 3 Examples

Condo Insurance or HO6 policy may seem hard to understand at first because it is a “walls in” concept, and in most cases, you simply own the air space. Within that space, you have quite a few things that you will need to insure. Repairs on the outside of the building, exterior walls, hallways, elevators, etc., if they were ever destroyed by a covered risk, would fall under the HOA insurance. There are relatively few risks condo dwellers have to …

10 Easy Money Saving Tips to Help Lower Utility Costs

You Can Accommodate a Tight Budget AND Go Green! Sticking to a budget is never an easy task. You would think that your budget would take an even bigger hit if you were also trying to be mindful of the environment. Believe it or not, you CAN do both! Check out this list of simple actions you can take to reduce your costs and contribute to respecting the earth. Saving Costs While Protecting the Environment Unplug appliances and electronics. TVs, …

How to Run a Successful HOA Board Meeting

In order to run a successful and effective Board Meeting, board members should be well-organized and prepared. One of the most important things a board can do is to hold an effective board meeting that makes the best use of everyone’s time. Because Board Members are volunteers, it is also important for Board Members to draw the line between private and association business time. If you have a management company, request that homeowners submit questions to them via email in …

6 Ways a Homeowner Association Can Ease Parking Wars

One of the areas creating the most controversial issues in planned communities, besides Pets, is related to parking. No one can argue that having rules in place minimizes the “you took my space” problem. In a perfect world, people follow the rules and are respectful of the rules set forth by the association. However, in the real world and for whatever reason, people choose to disobey the rules and create havoc in an otherwise acceptable situation. How to Minimize Poor …

What is a Homeowner Association?

What is a homeowner Association? A homeowner association is historically a non-profit corporation created by a developer when a community is in the planning stages and before selling the first home. Membership in a homeowner association is mandatory. The association is governed by a board of directors, which initially is the developer and his representatives. We have broken down the parts of the “WHAT IS A HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION?” into Four points to make it all understandable. 1. Is a homeowner …

What are HOA Fees and What do They Cover?

What are HOA Fees Are and What do They Cover? Are You Worried About a Home with HOA Fees? needs, is in excellent condition, and is the right size, in the right location and neighborhood. Your landscaping, entrance, and common areas are always guaranteed to look fabulous because your new home is part of a homeowner’s association (HOA). You can’t even make an excuse to escape working out because the amenities even include a fitness center with active programming for …

HOA Developer Control

Transitioning from a developer-controlled to a homeowner-controlled community can be a difficult process. Moving ahead after that “magic number” of homes sold requires planning. According to Alexander D. DiSanti, Esq., of Forbes Bender Paolino & DiSanti, P.C., in Media, PA. “Once the end of declarant control has happened, all responsibilities of the association are transferred from the declarant appointees to the executive board to the unit-elected board members once there has been a successful election meeting of the unit owners, …