Estates need professional managers

As we've said before, a big draw for people moving from stand-alone homes to estates and cluster complexes is the promise of "carefree living" - with someone else taking care common property issues like pool maintenance, lawn mowing and security system management.

So not surprisingly, there is often a reluctance to accept that such tasks are actually the responsibility of all owners collectively, through the homeowners' association (HOA), and a tendency to delegate them to the HOA management committee.

And this unfortunately means that a small group of owners can easily get stuck with organising everything relating to the upkeep and improvement of the common property, as well as the collection of levies and the enforcement of appearance rules - unless the HOA appoints a professional manager.

This is a good move, and since HOA managers or management companies offer a wide variety of services ranging from straightforward levy collection and payment of accounts to maintenance planning and supervision, information distribution and even emergency response to service failure, it is relatively easy to select one whose services and charges match the needs of the particular estate.

Another advantage of having a professional manager is that because he or she has no personal axe to grind with any homeowner in the estate, even unpopular tasks can be executed without posing a threat to the unity of the HOA.

In addition, a good manager will provide the continuity that is often lacking in HOAs, by filling the gaps where volunteerism falls short, keeping centralised records and accounts and even educating new management committee members on their roles to maximise their effectiveness.