Everybody wants a great Reserve Study. But what does that mean? Let me suggest a list:
• All the “right” components on your Reserve Component List (none missing that should be on the list, and none on
The 1998 National Reserve Study Standards have been in place for over 14 years. These standards give all of us in the Reserve Study industry clear definitions of terms that we use (and calculations that we make) on a regular basis.
National Reserve Study Standards started in a way you might not have expected… over lunch! Back in 1990, one of my competitors and I began meeting monthly for lunch. We felt the need to discuss our processes and terminology, planting the seeds of an agreed-upon “correct way” to say and do things in our industry.
This topic comes to you this month because the Board of a current client Association is in hot water because of what they didn’t disclose to their homeowners and to their prior Reserve Study consultant. We hear disclosure problems so often in the news nowadays that it is no longer surprising – a CEO of a large company sells stock in the company for a big profit right before bad news hits.
Keeping adequate Reserve Funds for the repair and replacement of common area facilities is an essential board responsibility in all Association governed communities.
We just finished working on a Reserve Study project involving three different Associations, built at different times along the growing edge of a major metropolitan area. Originally (40-50 years ago) the area was considered “horse country”, featuring rustic homes, stables,
