Hi,
Most HOA boards assume the finances are fine, because the balance looks healthy and the management company handles the books. However, if mistakes pile up, they surface as a surprise special assessment, drained reserves, or a failed audit – long after the money’s gone.
It builds slowly, one volunteer board handing off to the next. If any of this is your association, the risk is already stacking up:
- Nobody on the board independently checks the management company’s numbers
- The bank accounts are reconciled late, or not at all
- You’ve never had a reserve study, or the last one is years out of date
- Board turnover means no one actually knows the financial history
- “We’ll deal with the reserves later” has been said out loud in a meeting
Here is what it costs to the community:
- Underfunded reserves – the roof, the elevator, or the pavement comes due, the money isn’t there, and every owner gets a special assessment nobody budgeted for
- Deferred maintenance – small repairs become structural ones, and property values fall across the whole association
- A failed or qualified audit – lenders stop financing units and buyers walk away, because the numbers don’t hold up
- Fraud – HOAs are a soft target, and a trusted manager or treasurer can drain accounts for years before anyone catches it
- Personal liability – volunteer board members can be on the hook when the association’s money is mismanaged on their watch
None of this is about distrust or big budgets. It is about someone independent actually looking at the numbers before a problem becomes expensive – clean books, a current reserve plan, and an outside set of eyes on the association’s money.
That is what we do for HOAs – not just the annual audit, review, or compilation, but reserve planning, financial statements the board can actually read, the association’s tax return, and the controls that keep the money where it belongs.
Reply to this email by Friday and we will set up a free 15-minute call with one of our senior audit professionals to look at where your association stands. Bring your most recent financial statement and reserve study, and we will tell you where the gaps are.
Sincerely,
—
George Dimov, CPA
Licensed and Insured
(833) 829-1120 toll free
(212) 994-8081 Fax
www.dimovtax.com