As an HOA Board member, one of your most important jobs is helping to select the right community association management company. The best professional community association manager will help your Board function as confidently, strategically, and efficiently as possible, while also ensuring that your entire community is able to thrive.
How can you be sure that the community association management team you select is the right one for the job? We’d definitely recommend doing some research, checking references, and interviewing a few different teams to compare their services and pricing.
Additionally, consider accreditation. Selecting an Accredited Association Management Company AAMC is one of the best ways of ensuring you’re working with a team of qualified professionals.
What is an Accredited Association Management Company AAMC?
What makes it so important to choose an association management company that’s accredited with the AAMC designation?
Well, for starters, this is one of the most prestigious distinctions awarded to community association management companies. Companies that earn AAMC status have proven themselves to be highly competent in helping communities succeed. AAMC status also indicates that employees of the company are highly trained in the field of community management. Indeed, acquiring AAMC status usually requires some extra, advanced training in the work of managing community associations.
Note: The criteria for becoming an Accredited Association Management Company are set by the Community Associations Institute. The Community Associations Institute, or CAI, is the leading resource for continuous education and training in the field of community management. At Kuester Management Group, we are proud to uphold CAI standards.
The Benefits of Choosing Accredited Community Management Companies
For a community association company to be accredited is a pretty big deal… but what does it actually mean for the community associations they serve? In other words, why should your community association care about hiring an accredited management team?
There are several benefits, including:
It Ensures Knowledge and Talent
For a company to receive AAMC status, they must demonstrate a high level of commitment to the business of HOA management. That level of commitment must be evident across the company’s employee base.
By achieving this high level of commitment, the accredited company will be able to help your HOA in a number of ways:
- Developing budgets and providing financial reports, assisting your Board members in upholding their fiduciary responsibilities.
- Communicating clearly and effectively with homeowners, particularly regarding sensitive subjects like special assessments.
- Prioritizing and executing maintenance and repairs to your common areas or communal properties.
- Enforcing the rules of the Association, plus local laws, in a way that’s fair and consistent.
- Procuring and negotiating with vendors, and assisting with vendor management as necessary.
It Ensures Experience
Something else to consider: When you choose a management company that has AAMC accreditation, it means that the specific community managers you work with will all have ample experience. They will have received plenty of continuing education. And, the management company as a whole will have demonstrated commitment to their clients over a long period of time.
In short, accreditation shows that the management company has a sound understanding of all the practical, legal, and financial aspects of their work, and that they have exhibited their trustworthiness and their resourcefulness over an extended track record.
It Ensures Integrity and Ethical Standards
A final reason to pick an AAMC-accredited company: It shows the company’s commitment to ethics and integrity.
Indeed, CAI members are bound to uphold some core standards of honesty and integrity, including:
- Maintaining separate bank accounts for each client, and reconciling those bank accounts at least once per month.
- Acknowledging all investments and disbursements of funds.
- Providing detailed financial reports on a monthly basis, which encompass balance sheets and income statements as well as budget comparisons and explanations for any expenditures.
These are simply a few of the benefits your HOA will receive when it chooses to work with a management team made up of CAI members. For more information about the merits of CAI membership or of AAMC status, we invite you to contact Kuester Management Group.
Contact Kuester Management Group Today
In addition to our accreditation, Kuester Management Group can also boast decades of experience as a Charlotte HOA management team and as a Myrtle Beach HOA management team. We have deep roots in the communities we serve and track records of excellent service and communication.
We’re here to help your community thrive, and to help your Board do its job as effectively as possible. If you’re ready to learn more about our specific range of services, we welcome you to contact us at any time.
