Selecting Management: How to Find the Right Community Association Management Company is available in both print and digital formats. You are viewing the digital version. Purchase the print book here. 

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Deciding how your community association should be managed might be one of the most significant decisions a board makes. 

Whether the board opts to self-manage, hire an on-site manager, or contract a community association management company, the goal is to preserve assets, maintain value, and establish continuity as board members transition on and off in their volunteer roles. Professional management helps a community achieve these goals by providing expert assistance with operations, governance, community building, employment, financial matters, and more. 

For the community that decides to work with a management company, the board needs to apply a well-developed selection process. Management companies can provide a number of services. Therefore, the association should specify exactly what it needs to ensure that companies bid on the same set of requirements. 

This guide will help a community association board understand how to identify their needs and select the management company that best meets them. 

This guide will help you through what might otherwise be a tricky process. It contains criteria for selecting a management company, developing bid specifications, identifying the best candidates, sending out requests for proposals, meeting and interviewing candidates, and analyzing proposals. It also offers a section on working with your management company and sample management specifications. 

Contents 

Acknowledgments 

Introduction — Background and Key Points 

Chapter 1 — Why Professional Management? 

What Can Professional Management Do? 

Help for the Board: The Ad Hoc Committee 

Chapter 2 — Determining Management 

Specifications 

What to Include 

Other Common Duties 

Completing the RFP Package 

Chapter 3 — Identifying Management Companies 

The Importance of Professional Designations 

Narrowing Down Your Options 

Checking References 

Chapter 4 — Meetings and Interviews 

The Association Visit 

The Management Company Evaluation 

Chapter 5 — Making the Final Selection 

The Management Contract 

Chapter 6 — Making a Change 

Transition from One Management Company to Another 

Appendix — Sample Management Specifications 

©CAI Press, a Division of Community Associations Institute. All rights reserved. 

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