Happy Spring Everyone,
I’ve chatted with many of you in the last two weeks as I make my quarterly calls to check in. The feedback has been tremendous and I’ve shared this with all our employees. I wanted to provide you with an update from our recent Q2 company wide meeting and share our plans for the summer months. We introduced a management operating system in our business in the fall of last year and the first goal was to assemble the right team. We believe we have achieved that and your feedback about our new team members supports this. Thank you.
Update from Q1
We have implemented our new Zoom phone system and it’s working tremendously well. All of our employees now have direct lines which has made it much easier for our customers to connect with them.
We updated our 6d and financing questionnaire process and made it a much more customer-friendly experience. This has proved successful and much of this was completed by Christie, our accounting manager. As a result, the processing of these documents is much more efficient.
We continue to encourage our customers to make their condominium fee payments through our portal and stay tuned for some incentives for your community in the coming months to support this initiative.
We revamped our New Unit Owner Welcome Packets and I’ve attached a copy, if you’d like to review. We feel strongly that all new owners to your communities will be better informed of the rules and regulations and other important information, through these packets.
I’m delighted to share the news that we continue to grow our customer base. We welcome a 118 unit association in Hanson and a 100 unit association in Rockland to our portfolio of first class condominium associations.
For our customers with large reserve funds, we are moving these accounts to Abington Bank which provides DIF (Depositors Insurance Fund) coverage beyond the $250,000 limit of regular FDIC coverage at Rockland Trust. If you would like to discuss your Reserve Accounts, please reach out to me at your convenience. My direct line is 617-752-1922.
Plans for Q2
We have identified a number of topics that will be our focus for the next few months.
We are developing a New Trustee Orientation Program to help volunteers become accustomed with their new role. Many people join a board with little prior experience of what is involved and how the association really operates. This orientation will be spearheaded by myself and will include involvement from all our departments. We look forward to sharing the details of this program over the summer.
A number of our customers are embarking on large scale capital projects ncluding roof replacements, building exterior upgrades and HVAC system replacements. In some cases, we’re working with our associations to secure funding through an association loan. We have a number of bank partners that provide attractive loan packages for condominium associations. Interest rates are currently at historically low levels, and many associations we work with are taking advantage of these rates to address needed, deferred maintenance projects. Many of these projects, like roof replacements, will add value to unit owners’ homes. Mitch is working closely with the property manager for each association to ensure a smooth process. Andrew Caruso, who recently joined our team, and has a strong background in construction project management, will also be involved on a number of these projects.
We have identified a number of continuing education classes that our managers will be considering and we are also participating in online seminars to keep our employees up to date on some important topics. Our property managers recently participated in a seminar from one of our attorney partners to update them on collection procedures and property amenity openings as we emerge from Covid restrictions. This was extremely informative and they will be sharing this information with you as needed. One of our insurance partners is hosting a claims seminar this month to help our managers navigate what can be the most stressful situations for unit owners, boards and property managers.
In closing, I hope you have read this far and find these updates both helpful and informative. I’m always available to take your call should you need some advice or just want to chat. I recently helped a board member manage abusive electronic communications from some unit owners because they were dissatisfied with the decisions of the board. I explained the approach to take in this matter and how best to keep their community updated. They appreciated the phone call and I reminded them that being a volunteer board member comes with the highs and lows. Everyone is doing their best for their community and their intentions are always good. It’s difficult in this role to please all the people all the time.
As your partner, we’re here 24/7/365. Please don’t hesitate to call us when you need us. Have a great summer!
Regards,
Ronan
President
RGR Property Management
