Coachella Valley Community Associations Institute Magazine · It’s October and I hope all allergy and hay fever sufferers have left the area because we are right in the middle of

OctOber 2011

Coachella Valley Community Associations Institute Magazine

InsIde

Purchasing and Financing Leasehold LandReserve Today or Pay Tomorrow, Fundamentals of ReservesCVWD Landscape Rebates Available NowHomeowners Association Law, Your Questions Answered

www.coachellavalleycai.org 3

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Quorum October 2011 www.CoachellaValleyCAI.org 3

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2 Quorum September 2011

on the cover

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coverOCTOBER 2011

Coachella Valley Community Associations Institute Magazine

INSIDE

Purchasing and Financing

Leasehold Land

Reserve Today or Pay Tomorrow,

Fundamentals of Reserves

CVWD Landscape Rebates

Available Now

Homeowners Association Law Q&A

Be our next

no cost to youevery Cover haS a Story.

tell uS yourS!MuSt be CaI-Cv MeMber

In good StandIng

contact Wendy at the caI-cv offIce

(760) 341-0559 [email protected]

www.CoachellaValleyCAI.org 5

ContentS

Quorum October 20114

board of dIreCtorS CoaChella valley Chapter 2011

art Coulter, preSIdentPalm Valley Homeowners Association

rob WInkle, preSIdent eleCtWestern Pacific Roofing

glorIa kIrkWood, CCaM, paSt preSIdentPalm Valley Homeowners Association

Zoe loMbard, CCaMMonarch Management Group

CyndI koeSter, pCaMMutual of Omaha Bank/Condo Certs

ChrIStIna baIne deJardIn, eSq.Peters & Freedman, LLP

krIStIn berryhIll-hood, CCaMMerit Property Management

MIke MaStropIetroOrange Coast Building Services

nena rutherford-MIlWard, CCaMDesert Resort Management

pat SMIth, CCaM, pCaMVeneto HOA

MIChael Walker, CMCa, aMS, pCaMPGA Residential Association

CAI Coachella Valley Office 41-905 Boardwalk Suite A-2

Palm Desert, CA 92211 Tel: (760) 341-0559 Fax: (760) 431-8443

Wendy Van Messel, Executive Director E-mail: [email protected]

Website: www.cai-cv.org

SubSCrIber ServICeSThe Coachella Valley Quorum Newsmagazine is a publication expressly prepared for our Association leaders, managers and other related professionals of the Community Associations Institute. Authors are encouraged to submit articles for publishing consideration. All articles accepted for publication in the Quorum are subject to editing and rewriting by the Publications Committee.

artICle SubMISSIonS or advertISIng InforMatIonCAI-CV Executive Director, Wendy Van MesselE-mail: [email protected]

Editors: Dionne Petitpas and Paula Tapia E-mail: [email protected]

The materials contained in this publication are designed to provide our members with accurate, timely and authoritative information with regard to the subject covered. However, the CAI Coachella Valley Chapter is not engaging in the rendering of legal, accounting or other professional types of services. The CV Chapter has not verified the contents of these articles or advertising, nor do we have the facilities or the personnel to do so. Readers should not act on the information contained herein without seeking more specific professional advice from legal, accounting or other experts as required.

20 September Monthly Program Demystifying Financials and Investments

features

10 Budget 101By Mark D. Dodge

19 Community Association Fundamentals By Community Associations Institute

22 Reserve Today or Pay Tomorrow. Fundamentals of Reserve ManagementBy Cyndi Koester

26 Purchasing and Financing Leasehold LandBy Blair Merrihew

28 Save Energy, Save Money Now is the Time to Move on LED LightingBy Kimberly Weiss

chapter news

6 2012 CAI-CV Committees: New Changes, Growing Leaders.By Rob Winkle

32 Have You Heard?By Wendy Van Messel

36 CAI-CV Chapter New & Renewing Members

37 Advertisers Index

40 Schedule of Events

chapter events

33 CAI Class M202 - Association CommunicationsBy Shelly Ruegsegger

26 28

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As most volunteers are probably aware by now, we have made some significant changes in our committees. In an effort to create a mentoring program and grow leadership in the Association, the following changes have been imple-mented: In most cases, 2011 Chairs of the committees have been moved to the position of Past Chair, the Co-Chairs have been made the Chairs and one member of the com-mittee has been named as the Co-Chair. The idea behind the change is to grow new leaders from within the commit-tees. The Past Chairs have the task of sharing their knowl-edge and experience with the new chairs to provide some continuity to each event or program.

Another change that has been made is that the three positions named above are the only people currently assigned to the 2012 committee. The Chair has the respon-sibility of determining how large or how small the commit-tee should be. Our request is for anyone who has interest in serving on a committee, please submit an application for review. It is important to list the committees that you have interest in and in, the priority that you place them. The Chairs will select the volunteers for their committees based on their past performance as well as new members wanting to get started on a committee. This should allow access for more members to be included in the process.

With all change come challenges, I am confident that with the help of the membership these changes should make for positive growth in the chapter. I respectfully ask that we try this system with open minds and see what happens. I am open to any suggestions that will benefit the Chapter.

2012 CaI-Cv Committees: new Changes, growing leaders.Calling all volunteers - apply today!

Respectfully,

Rob Rob Winkle, Board President ElectWestern Pacific Roofing Corporation

35


ContentS


edItorIal board

edItorS

dIonne petItpaSThree Phase Electric

paula tapIaPacific Western Bank

CoMMIttee MeMberS

greg & barbara MaSterSMasters Environmental

MattheW laWton, CIC, CIrMSPrendiville Insurance Agency

Shelly ruegSegger, CMCa, CCaMPersonalized Property Management

StephanIe oteroOffice of Stephanie Otero, CPA

Steven Shuey, pCaM, CCaMPersonalized Property Management

Steven J. tInnelly, eSq.Tinnelly Law Group

Sue anderSonUniversal Protection Services

tIM blooMBrite & Clean, Inc.

valerIe WardBURRTEC WASTE & RECYCLING SERVICES

photographerS

bIll rIChardSonPatio Furniture Doctors

CreatIve dIreCtor & graphIC deSIgner

rodney bISSellBissell Design Studios

The mission of CAI is to provide the leadership for successful development

and operation of community associations through information,

research and education.

departments

8 President’s Message

9 From the Editors

12 CLAC NewsUrgent Warning About Rental Restrictions: Senate Bill 150 Enacted By Mary M. Howell

13 Welcome Aboard Jean Fredericks, The Prescott Companies CV Division By Dionne Petitpas

14 About CAICAI California’s Legal Forum in Long Beach on the Queen Mary By Steven Shuey

17 CAI National News The Waiting Game By Community Associations Institute

25 One Green WorldYour Guide to Recycling: What’s Recyclable? By Valerie Ward

31 Homeowners Association LawYour Legal Questions Answered By Steven J. Tinnelly

34 Water WiseCash In! CVWD Landscape Rebate Program Funds Available Now By Dave Koller

35 Time Honored MemberKay Ladner By Shelly Ruegsegger

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14

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WAYSTO CUT YOUR3

FALL WATER BILL

For more information,call Coachella Valley Water District

at (760) 398-2651or visit www.cvwd.org

Participate in CVWD’s Large Landscape Smart Controller Rebate Program

Adjust your irrigation controllers for the cooler fall temperatures

Convert your grass to Lush & Efficient Desert Landscaping

Quorum October 2011 www.CoachellaValleyCAI.org8 9

froM the edItorSpreSIdent’S MeSSage

It’s October and I hope all allergy and hay fever sufferers have left the area because we are right in the middle of scalping and over-seeding the common areas and the golf courses. And can’t we all feel it!

Some great Chapter news: the new 2011-12 Membership Directory is being finished up and it should be out by late October.

An M202 Class was held on the 15th and 16th of September, and I know there were some empty seats. CAI-CV has scholarship money available, so now is the time to take advantage of these classes, especially when they are given locally. The next local class will be the M100 class on April 19, 20, and 21 in 2012. Put this on your calendar now as it will also be given in the Valley.

Socially speaking, the Country Western Roundup will be held on Friday, October 7th at the offices of Sunshine Landscape in Thousand Palms. Like last year, there will be lots of music, line dancing, food, beverages, and fun. This year’s cow pie for the bingo game will be provided by a pony? There will be pictures to prove it next month!

The Awards Banquet will be Friday, November 4th at Heritage Palms in Indio. The Commit-tee needs your nominations in all the catagories, so if you haven’t nominated someone yet, con-tact Wendy for a blank nomination form. This is one of the ways we can show our hard-working volunteers how much we appreciate their help.

If you have not submitted your Volunteer Interest Form for the 2012 Committee positions, please do not delay, contact Wendy for the form and return it “toot-sweet” as many of the com-mittees need to start working on their projects now, in fact, Spring Golf is already scouting for a location for their tournament, so let’s get involved.

Do come to the Golf Cart Parade on El Paseo in Palm Desert on Sunday, October 23rd, where we’ll have an entry again this year. Last year the Chapter placed third in the “Best Theme” category and the committee is working hard to beat that record this year. So, we need lots of applause when our entry goes down the street. Come join the fun!

See you on the links,

Art Coulter

Thank goodness the temperatures have cooled a bit, and as is always the case this time of year, the pace of our Valley has begun to speed up. There’s lots to do in our fun chapter, so don’t let the many choices of events happening get you stressed, just jump in!

This month in the QUORUM, we have some infor-mative articles that are a great follow up to the monthly program on “Demystifying Financials & Investments.” Speaker Mark Dodge contributed a very helpful article on “Budgeting 101.” It would be a great item to cut out and share with a Board. Another great article to share is from speaker Cyndi Koester, a timely informative read on Reserves, “Reserve Today or Pay Tomorrow, Fundamentals of Reserves.”

As temperatures drop, water needs change, and this month’s Water Wise column is especially timely—CVWD details information on “Landscape Rebate Pro-grams.” We love information that benefits our wallets as well as our minds.

Another timely article is in our CLAC News depart-ment, an “Urgent Warning About Rental Restric-tions,” a must read from attorney, Mary Howell. And speaking of legal minds, our HOA Law department is already receiving questions from our membership to be answered by various attorneys in the Valley. So check those out, and be sure to email in your legal questions, “inquiring legal minds want to know.”

Enjoy this month’s issue of the QUORUM.

President’s Messageart Coulter, palm valley homeowners association CaI-Cv Chapter board president

From the Editorsdionne petitpas, three phase electric paula tapia, pacific Western bank

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A good budget captures all of what has happened in the community, and all of what is projected to happen in the coming twelve months. A great budget accomplishes the same goals while also maintaining neutral or positive cash flow. Many mistakes are made in annual planning, and below is a quick summary of how to avoid some of the most common.

revenueS Budget only for the collectable por-tions of the violations and late fee revenue. For some this may be 5%, for others this may be 95%, so conserva-tively determine what your ratio is.

Do not budget for any revenue which is not 100% certain. Miscellaneous revenues are the best example.

expenSeS Understand your expense trends.The way to develop an expense plan is to first project your year end numbers and compare them to your original spending plan. The single largest mistake you should avoid is carrying forward of numbers which are not accurate to begin with. The easiest way to forecast your projected year end expenses is to add your year to date expenses to your budgeted expenses for the balance of the year. Understanding each of the variances between your original plan…..both positive and negative….is the best way to insure your budget is truly reflective of reality.

Do not forget utility price increases. Know what each utility provider has obtained approval for relative to rate

pay both. Similarly, electrical and water expenses spike in the summer and landscape extras spike in the fall during our seasonal turf over seeding. Plan accordingly.

Bad debt also has a large cash impact and is discussed next.

Bad debt, bad debt, bad debt. There is no area more misunderstood on your budget than bad debt, and poor delinquent assessment planning is perhaps the largest budget problem facing homeowners associations today. It can single handedly destroy your budget and your association’s finances. Your budget can be perfect in every other way, but if you under-estimate bad debt, you have not only understated your expenses, you have also set up your association to have negative cash flow each month. Here is how it works:

Correctly budgeting bad debt expense is, in its simplest form, the manner in which you adjust your expense bud-get for the uncollectable portions of your assessments. Your budget each month, or at least on an annual basis, is designed to be zero profit and cash neutral. You plan for each dollar com-ing in as an assessment to go back out again as an expense. As such, if you are not collecting 10% of your assess-ments, and have still budgeted to spend all of that 10%, you will have insufficient cash to pay your expenses. Planning for unpaid assessments is easy. If you are billing $100,000 per month in assessments and experi-encing a 10% delinquency rate, your bad debt expense should be no less than that same 10%......or $10,000 per month. That is the surest way to be certain you do not spend more cash than you are collecting.

How can you determine what your delinquency rate is? A fairly complex analysis can help you to determine this amount, but I prefer a simple test to anything complex. Review your

more you will spend to repair sections and to replace blown bulbs. Similarly, older pool equipment means more pool service extras and higher utility costs based on lower efficiency.

Know your reserve study and be consistent with what expenses you charge to your reserve fund. Do you have tree replacements accounted for? Are your pool pump, heater, and lounge chairs included in your study? Is your landscape lighting included? How about your lake pumps? Drywell cleanouts? Signage? Mailboxes? All of these areas can create one time operating expenses which are budget busters and each are often included, and frequently not accounted for, on your reserve study.

Do not arbitrarily cut an expense line item without a plan to make the cut a reality. Street sweeping and security patrols can be reduced in frequency to reduce costs. Those are easy if you communicate the reason for the changes and the positive impact on the budget bottom line. Other expenses are not. Reducing pool extras expense or lighting maintenance with-out infrastructure upgrades or alter-ing the nature of the repair contracts is a sure way to create an adverse variance.

Know what your budget means from a cash standpoint and plan accord-ingly. Your responsibility does not end with good expense planning. You must also understand the cash flow impact of your spending plan. A good example is insurance expense. It is often expensed evenly each month, but is seldom paid in that fashion. Do you finance and pay in install-ments or lump sum? The answer is important. Look also at large outflows such as palm tree trimming. Suffice to say you may find yourself with a large insurance payment and a large palm tree trimming bill due at the same time without sufficient cash to

increases which will impact your fiscal year. Even a 7% or a 10% price increase on a $100,000 budget line item can be a budget buster.

Know the effect of any reserve spend-ing initiatives on your operating bud-get. Irrigation is a good example. Irri-gation smart controllers can greatly reduce both your water consumption and the pattern of your water use. Similarly, efforts to reduce water usage through the use of more efficient sprinkler heads or better maintenance of your irrigation infrastructure may save water, but your irrigation repairs and maintenance expenses will increase.

Know the age of your infrastructure and what that means for spending patterns. Underground lighting is a good example. The older it gets, the

delinquency report, specifically the totals on your 60, 90, and 120 day col-umns. Often, the totals at the bottom of each of these columns will be very close. Use an average of the three col-umns to calculate your approximate delinquency rate. It is also often help-ful to look at your delinquency reports back over the prior 12 months and evaluate your trend. If you had $10,000 per month in delinquencies a year ago, and only $5,000 now, this trend should be considered. Will the improvement continue?Much of this may seem simplistic, but often even the most seasoned manag-ers and experienced Boards can miss key elements. If all else fails, here are some good general guidelines to stick to:

➊ Accept the reality of your delin-quencies. They will not magically disappear.

❷ If you have to guess, guess con-servatively. This leaves you some flexibility.

❸ Plan for the worst, hope for the best. Always best to have excess equity rather than a deficit.

Review your financials monthly, and understand each of your variances monthly. Know where you have been, and where you are going.

Make adjustments to your spending plan as your circumstances change. You cannot change your budget, but you can change your spending pat-terns.

Mark D. Dodge, MBA is the Chief Financial Officer for Desert Resort Management. He can be reached at (760)

346-1161 or via email at [email protected].

By Mark D. Dodge Chief Financial Officer Desert Resort Management


featurefeature

www.CoachellaValleyCAI.org 13Quorum October 201112

ClaC neWS

www.coachellavalleycai.org

Urgent Warning About Rental Restrictions: Senate Bill 150 EnactedBy Mary M. Howell, Esq., Epsten Grinnell & Howell

Welcome AboArdJean frederICkSthe preSCott CoMpanIeS

Please welcome to the Valley, Jean fredericks, CPM (Certi-fied Property Manager), Vice President/General Manager of the Coachella valley division of the prescott Companies. Jean has been in the HOA

industry for more than 25 years, with her experi-ence including Resort Condominium Management in Hawaii, Commercial, Residential and Associa-tion Management in Hawaii, Kansas and California. She’s been a CAI member for almost two years, appreciating the need for continuing education as well as the need to keep current with our industry’s ever changing laws and regulations.

Since its inception in 1992, The Prescott Com-panies has emerged as a recognized leader in the management of Master Planned Community Associations, Planned Unit Developments, Vertical Developments and Condominium Developments. Jean comments, “our determination and dedica-tion to ‘Exceeding the Expectations’ of those we serve has been a driving force over the years and has helped us in fostering long term client rela-tionships.” The company has Division Offices in Downtown San Diego, Oceanside, Rancho Ber-nardo, Temecula, San Francisco, and Las Vegas. The Prescott Companies is pleased to announce the opening of it’s new Coachella Valley Division Office in Palm Desert.

Jean is married to World Renown Golf Instruc-tor/Flexibility Expert, Roger Fredericks. They have one son, Ryan, who just turned 12 years old. When she isn’t focused on her management duties, Jean enjoys playing piano, cooking, crafts, and outdoor fun.

To contact Jean, you can call her at their division office, (760) 634-4700, or email her at [email protected]. The office address is 77-564-A Country Club Drive, Suite 103, Palm Desert, CA 92211. You can also visit them at www.prescottmgt.com.

By Dionne Petitpas, Three Phase Electric

same case, the court also approved a portion of the amendment which allowed the association to evict a violating tenant.)

In Fourth La Costa v. Seith, the court approved an amendment which required all leases to be in writing, and contain language binding tenants to the governing documents.

While there are few reported cases, it would also appear that “occupancy restrictions” (that is, restrictions on the number of occupants who may reside in a dwelling), are also appropriate, provided such restrictions do not vio-late anti-discrimination guidelines. The usual accept-able number is 2 residents per bedroom plus 1.

Restrictions based on “familial status” are hard to enforce, if the basis for enforcement is that the residents aren’t related “by blood or marriage.” Case law in the last 25 years makes it clear that a “family” consists of persons living together in the normal familial sense—sharing all rooms, sharing the responsibility for main-taining, paying the rent, etc. If (as the court in Colony Hill made clear) the use is not familial, but commercial (as when roommates are sought by advertisement, and certain portions of the homes are “off limits” to the resi-dents), it is appropriate to conclude these are not “single family” uses.

ConCluSIon. If your community is serious about restrict-ing rentals, it would be wise to evaluate whether and how to proceed before the effective date of SB 150, January 1, 2012. Rental restrictions should be contained in the CC&Rs, not in the rules; CC&Rs are entitled to a presumption of reasonableness under Nahrstedt, making them far easier to enforce in court actions. Further, since CC&Rs (not rules) are recorded, they provide actual and constructive notice to owners (that is, an owner is bound by the CC&Rs whether he knew about them at the time of purchase or not).

Condominium project associations wishing to obtain or retain FHA certification should consult with an attorney before deciding whether to pursue rental restrictions as certain rental restrictions will affect FHA certification eligibility.

Mary Howell is a senior partner with the law firm of Epsten Grinnell & Howell and holds the prestigious designation of CCAL (College of Community Association Lawyers). She’s also the co-author of

the State Bar’s text on Common Interest Developments. You can reach Mary at www.epsten.com.

This year the California legislature enacted SB 150, a bill championed by the California Association of Realtors, intended to deprive association owners of the ability to restrict rentals within their communities. Until the pas-sage of this bill, which adds Section 1360.2 to the Civil Code, owners within a common interest development were free to amend their CC&Rs to restrict rentals when it was reasonable to do so.

After January 1, 2012, this right is severely abridged. However, the new law does not affect rental provisions that became effective before January 1, 2012. If your association is contemplating a restriction on rentals, it would be wise to submit such a CC&R amendment to the owners immedi-ately, to allow for recordation of the amendment prior to the effective date of the statute.

the bIll provIdeS:

Any amendments to CC&Rs which would prohibit rentals of dwellings within the development are effec-tive only as to (a) owners who purchased after the amendment was recorded, and (b) prior owners who consent to be bound by the amendment.

The amendment does not apply to commercial com-mon interest developments. They may continue to enact rental restrictions without regard for the provi-sions of the new law.

While it is not absolutely clear, it appears that only “prohibitions” are outlawed; lesser restrictions, such as 30-day minimums or requirements that only the entire dwelling may be rented, appear to be permitted under the new law.

The new law adds a requirement that, prior to rent-ing or leasing a dwelling, an owner “shall provide the association verification of the date the owner acquired title to the [dwelling] and the name and contact information of the prospective tenant or the tenant’s representative.”

Because the new law creates classes of owners with differ-ent rights, it may be subject to legal challenge on the basis of previous California Supreme Court rulings (see, e.g., Villa de las Palmas v. Terifaj: “To allow a declara-tion to be amended but limit its applicability to subsequent purchasers would make little sense. A requirement for upholding covenants and restrictions in common interest developments is that they be uniformly applied and burden or benefit all interests evenly. (See, e.g., Nahrstedt, supra, 8 Cal.4th at p. 368 [restrictions must be “uniformly enforced”]; Rest.3d Property, Servitudes, § 6.10, com. f, p. 200.) This requirement would be severely undermined if only one segment of the condominium development were bound by the restriction. It would also, in effect, delay the benefit of the restriction or the amelioration of the harm addressed by the restriction until every current homeowner opposed to the restriction sold his or her interest. This would undermine the stabil-ity of the community, rather than promote stability as covenants and restrictions are intended to do.”).

CertaIn typeS of rental reStrICtIonS are CoMMon, and SoMe have found Support In CaSe laW:

In Colony Hill v. Ghamaty, a court of appeals upheld the application of a “single family residential use” restriction to prohibit room rentals (a “mini dorm”).

In Mission Shores Association v. Pheil, the court approved the propriety of a CC&R provision which required a minimum 30-day rental period. (In the

13


ClaC neWSabout CaI

CAI California’s Legal Forum in Long Beach Aboard the Queen MaryBy Steven Shuey, PCAM, CCAM, Personalized Property Management

This is the second year the eight California chapters host this Legal Forum for California Communities. The

National office provides some assistance on technical issues; and our statewide membership provides the energy and fills the seats. The 2011 Legal Forum takes place October 21st. Members can attend for less than $140 depending on various discounts applied. It is a fabulous location for a number of reasons – a lot of history can be seen aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach. Making history is something California is known for and CAI is doing its part.

The CAI Legal Forum offers two education program tracks—one for community managers and one for board members and other homeowner leaders. Sessions are presented by expert panels, including government officials, seasoned management professionals and members of the prestigious College of Community Association Lawyers, a professional organization that represents the very best attorneys in the industry. Anyone who lives in, works for, or provides services to a California community association will leave the event more informed, more engaged and bet-ter able to contribute to a successful community.

The keynote speaker is Steve Ford. His unique per-spective as an accomplished actor and the son of former President Gerald Ford and Betty Ford encompasses a broad range of fascinating subjects, including being 18 years old and having 10 Secret Service agents as constant compan-ions, his father’s leadership in taking over the reins of the presidency following the resignation of Richard Nixon, two assassination attempts on his father’s life and his mother’s bouts with alcoholism and breast cancer. Ford’s keynote address shares the tools of his success in Hollywood, as well as those of his parents. His presentation focuses on such issues as leadership, overcoming adversity, the impor-tance of family, living with values and character, setting and juggling priorities, and making the right choices in life.

Other speakers who will presenting educational infor-mation include: Adrian Adams, Esq., of Adams Kessler PLC; Lori Albert, CCAM, of Albert Management Corp.; Jeffrey A. Beaumont, Esq., of Beaumont Gitlin Tashjian; Darren Bevan, Esq., of Baydaline & Jacobsen LLP; Dawn Braddy, CCAM, CMCA, of N.N. Jaeschke Inc.; Dennis M. Burke, Esq., of Fiore Racobs & Powers; Scott Canady, Community Associations Institute; Lisa Esposito, of Massingham & Associates, Charles Fenton, Esq. of Fenton Grant Mayfield Kaneda & Litt LLP; Sandra L. Gottlieb, Esq., of Swedelson & Gottlieb; Beth Grimm, Esq., CCAL, of the Law Offices of Beth Grimm; Jennifer Jacobsen, Esq., of Baydaline & Jacobsen LLP; Kimberly Lilley, CIRMS, of Berg Insurance Agency; Jim Lingl, Esq., of Lingl ADRS; James R. McCor-mick Jr., Esq.,of Peters & Freedman LLP; Richard P. Neu-land, Esq., CCAL, of Neuland & Whitney; Matt D. Ober, Esq., CCAL,of Richardson Harman Ober PC; Janet L.S. Powers, Esq., CCAL, of Fiore Racobs & Powers; Peter E. Racobs, Esq., of Fiore Racobs & Powers; Kelly G. Richard-son, Esq., CCAL, of Richardson Harman Ober PC; Vince Sincek, Esq., of Epsten Grinnell & Howell; Margaret “Gen” Wangler, Esq.,of Fiore Racobs & Powers; and Steven S. Weil, Esq., CCAL, of Berding | Weil.

There are 11 different sessions being presented with variety enough to suit any and all attendees. Designation credits are available.

Steven Shuey is a certified professional commu-nity association manager. He serves on the board of directors for the Association of Professional Community Managers, as well as the National Faculty of CAI. He is a community association

consultant with Personalized Property Management and may be contacted at [email protected].

DESERTMANAGEMENT

Providing you and your association with customized, professional accounting and

management since 1981.

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P O Box 799Rancho Mirage, CA 92270

P 760.862.1202 • F 760.862.1210

Palm Springs400 South Farrell Drive, Suite B-210

Palm Springs, CA 92262P 760.325.4257 • F 760.778.6846

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HOA Banking Made Simple

Partner with Strength. Partner with Pacific Western Bank.

Paula Tapia(760) 777-6445

[email protected] Calle Estado, Suite 101

La Quinta, CA 92253

Ken Carteron(760) 432-1335

[email protected] Canterbury Pl., Suite 202

Escondido, CA 92025

Visit us online atwww.pacificwesternbank.com

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about CaI


This year’s theme is “Carnival Style” and the parade will be held on Sunday, october 23rd. Last year our Chapter took home the trophy for 3rd Place in the Theme category, and was our Chapter’s Committee of the Year. So bring your ideas and be a part of an award-winning committee.

ContaCt Wendy at the caI-cv offIce

for more information

(760) 341-0559 [email protected]

save the date

palm desertGolf cart parade

cai MortgageMatterS

The Waiting Game By Community Associations Institute

CAI members know that during the course of 2011, the federal government is restructuring the entire mortgage finance system. This means that the rules for who gets a mortgage, for what type of home, and in what type of com-munity will dramatically change and impact the housing market and community associations for years to come. CAI has been working to ensure that the rules which will even-tually be adopted provide for fair treatment of lending cri-teria that apply to community associations. Over the course of the summer, CAI submitted com-ments on two pending regulatory proposals governing mortgages. While dealing with pending regu-lations is not necessarily the most interesting of tasks, the stakes for community associations could not be higher.

In July, CAI submitted comments on proposed regulations govern-ing “Qualified Mortgages,” or QM for short. These regulations will set standards for a borrower’s ability to repay their mortgage. The proposed regulations require that a lender look at more than just the principal mortgage payment and include mandatory fees like insurance and association assessments as part of the lending decision. In part, this is good news for community associations as buyers will be evaluated on their ability to pay the mortgage and their association assessments, a factor that is often overlooked. Having assessments as part of the lending decision should help to reduce assessment delinquencies. However, on the down side the proposed regulations will allow lenders to rely on third parties, such as community association man-agement companies or association boards, when verifying the assessment levels in a community. If the information provided is inaccurate, associations could face liability if the loan goes into default due to inaccurate information. Additionally, the proposal also seeks public input on the use of community association transfer fees levied at the time of sale. CAI members will recall our successful fight to

block another federal agency from banning most mortgages from communities with such fees. That proposal would have made up to 11 million homes unmarketable as approx-imately 49% of community associations charge a transfer fee. CAI addressed these and other issues in our 52-page comment letter to the government.

In early August, CAI commented on proposed regula-tions which would create Qualified Residential Mortgage (QRM) standards. While the QM regulations would estab-

lish ability-to-pay standards, the QRM proposal would establish regulations to govern the type of mortgages available to consum-ers. The draft QRM regulations include provisions which would require minimum 20% down pay-ments and remove the ability of a borrower to finance closing costs and realtor fees. In fact, a study undertaken by mortgage lenders indicates that the QRM regulations as drafted would eliminate more than 70% of currently qualified buyers. CAI’s comments express concerns on a host of issues rang-ing from the impact of strict rules on an already depressed housing market to an unintentional growth in the role of the FHA for buyers

who do not meet the new QRM standards.The comment periods for these proposed regula-

tions have now closed and the federal government will be reviewing comments and issuing a revised regulatory pro-posal on a date yet to be determined. In the meantime, you can follow CAI’s work and share your thoughts at www.caimortgagematters.org. We will continue to monitor and participate in shaping the development of the FHA’s condominium underwriting guidelines to ensure that the perspective of community associations is heard. If you have any questions about the QM or QRM regulations and how it could affect your community, e-mail [email protected] with QRM/QM in the subject line.

Rules for who gets a mortgage, for what type

of home, and in what type of community will

dramatically change and impact the housing market and community

associations for a years to come.

Community Association Fundamentals Core Principles for HOAsBy Community Associations Institute

❶ Associations ensure that the collective rights and interests of homeowners are respected and preserved.

❷ Associations are the most local form of representative democracy, with leaders elected by their neighbors to govern in the best interest of all residents.

❸ Associations provide services and amenities to resi-dents, protect property values and meet the estab-lished expectations of homeowners.

❹ Associations succeed when they cultivate a true sense of community, active homeowner involvement and a culture of building consensus.

❺ Association homeowners have the right to elect their community leaders and to use the democratic pro-cess to determine the policies that will protect their investments.

➏ Association homeowners choose where to live and accept a contractual responsibility to abide by estab-lished policies and meet their financial obligations to the association.

❼ Association leaders protect the community’s financial health by using established management practices and sound business principles.

❽ Association leaders have a legal and ethical obliga-tion to adhere to the association’s governing docu-ments and abide by all applicable laws.

➒ Association leaders seek an effective balance between the preferences of individual residents and the collective rights of homeowners.

➓ Association leaders and residents should be rea-sonable, flexible and open to the possibility—and benefits—of compromise.

Fundamentals can be downloaded at www.caionline.org/governance/fundamentals.pdf.

For more information about Community Associations Institute, go to www.caionline.org.

Even though we live in an association, you might be surprised how many of our neigh-bors—owners and renters alike—don’t really understand the fundamental nature of com-mon-interest communities. And we know that many others, including the media and govern-ment officials, lack a true understanding of the community association (or condominium) concept.

Community Associations Institute (CAI), a national membership organization that rep-resents the best interests of common-interest communities like ours, developed 10 basic principles that answer three essential ques-tions: What is the basic function of a com-munity association? What are the essential obligations and expectations of homeowners? What are the core principles that should guide association leaders?

We’re ConfIdent you’ll reCognIZe our CoMMunIty WhIle readIng theSe prInCIpleS.


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SpeakerS:cyndI Koester cmca, ams, pcam avp, southern ca regional acct exec, mutual of omaha Bank & condocerts

marK dodGe

chief financial officer desert resort management

thankS to our SepteMber prograM SponSorS:advanced painting and sealing

ams paving

asphalt md’s

first california Bank

mc painting & construction

nelson paving and sealing

o’connell landscape maintenance

peters & freedman

thankS to our SepteMber SCholarShIp SponSor:pacific western Bank

SponSorS

CAI-CV Monthly Luncheon

September 9th 2011 Palm Desert

how to use financials as a tool for budgeting

understanding variances in your financials

understanding Investments: fdIC, CdarS, Sweep accounts, uS treasury


SepteMber Monthly prograM

protection from fluctuating inter-est rates, because not all the funds mature and reinvest at the same time. It also allows the association to take advantage of what are generally higher long-term interest rates. Once a ladder is established, maintain it, and adjust the levels of the rungs as needed for anticipated expenditures.

When evaluating the expense side of the reserve equation, it is vital to establish and maintain a sound finan-cial expense plan with a professional reserve study.

Not only is proper expense plan-ning for future stability extremely important to the health of the asso-ciation, it is also vital for the protec-tion of association’s board of direc-tors. This aspect is often overlooked when considering the cost of a proper reserve study by a reputable reserve study firm.

Statistics show that only 10-20% of association boards are proactive with proper reserve planning with the use of a reserve study. Without it, managing expenses in line with cash flows and lowering spikes of big ticket reserve expense outlays often proves difficult.

In light of an unfortunate situation where an associa-tion becomes involved in a

lawsuit regarding improper reserve planning, the cost of an outside reserve study becomes a rather small outlay of funds.

the following steps can be consid-ered a “best practices” guide for how reserve funds are spent on big ticket reserve expenses:

As outlined above, follow a sound financial plan by performing a proper reserve study.

Develop and adhere to a preven-tative maintenance schedule to increase the likelihood the components achieve or even exceed their estimated useful life.

Conduct periodic inspections of components and adjust the repair/maintenance schedule if necessary. Some expenses may be able to be

conditions. These conditions may include the current fund balance versus the funding plan benchmark, a change in interest rates, a change in the inflation rate, and a change in the number of paying members due to build out or delinquency. The annual contribution rate may need to be adjusted based on the updated financial analysis, but careful income management should reduce the need for large adjustments and hence minimize the impact on the annual budget.

The association will then develop an investment plan, guided by the investment policy. To satisfy the secu-rity requirement, associations gener-ally limit their investment options to demand deposit accounts (checking or savings accounts), money market mutual funds, certificates of deposit, US Treasury bills and bonds, and perhaps highly rated municipal bonds held to maturity. They should match the liquidity of each investment to the anticipated need for cash, but keep in mind the need for unexpected expen-ditures can arise. Absent a known plan to spend more in the next year, a general rule of thumb is to keep 20% of your reserve fund relatively liquid.

For the remaining 80%, a sound investment strategy that is easy to set up and maintain is an investment ladder - a set of fixed-rate invest-ments with equally spaced and staggered maturity dates. This strategy guarantees liquidity at predetermined dates to handle expected or unexpected cash flow needs. It affords some

Reserve Today or Pay Tomorrow. Fundamentals of Reserve ManagementBy Cyndi Koester, PCAM AVP, Mutual of Omaha Bank/CondoCerts

The goal of reserve budgeting is to ensure sufficient funds are set aside to be available when required to maintain the common elements of the community, without having to resort to special assessments or loans. Determining how to do this is accom-plished by conducting a reserve study. It is highly recommended that the association hire a professional reserve specialist to conduct and update the reserve study.

the reserve study has two compo-nents: a physical analysis and a finan-cial analysis. The physical analysis is an inventory of all of the common components, an assessment of each component’s current condition, an estimation of its remaining useful life, and an estimation of the repair/replacement cost. The financial analysis looks at the current reserve fund balance and determines the appropriate contribution rate going forward to meet the projected repair/replacement schedule.

there are two sources of fund-ing: contributions from assessment income and reserve investment income. The association will want to produce a funding plan that is fiscally responsible while ensuring a reason-ably stable contribution rate over the years.

there are three types of fund-ing plans applicable: full funding, baseline funding, and threshold fund-ing. The recommended method is full funding, whereby the goal is to attain and maintain the reserve fund at or near 100% the projected fund balance as determined by the reserve study. This minimizes the risk of shortfalls or the need for special assessments or loans.

the riskiest method is baseline funding, whereby the goal is simply to keep the reserve balance above zero. Even a minor reduction in a component’s useful life can result in a deficit in the reserve fund balance. Contributions to reserves may vary widely from year to year, which can be a problem if there are contractual or statutory restrictions on the amount an association can increase assess-ments. This method is not recom-mended, but if used, there must be annual updates to the reserve study, including on-site physical analysis.

The third method is threshold funding, whereby the reserve bal-ance is kept at a predetermined dollar amount. The challenge is to deter-mine what that amount should be. Although less risky than base-line funding, this method can still result in shortfalls and the

need for a special assessment or loan, so it is not generally recommended either.

The association should develop an investment policy to set the standard and procedures for investing reserve funds. This makes it easier for the board of directors to make consistent choices and provides structure and continuity from year to year, even through changes in board member-ship. When developing an investment policy, the board should first look to its governing documents to be aware of any restrictions, such as a requirement that all funds be FDIC insured. The investment policy should be reviewed periodically, but revised rarely.

the investment policy should be guided by the following goals, in order of importance: safety, liquid-ity, convenience, and yield. Safety means the funds must be insured, with no risk to principal. Liquidity means the funds are available when needed. Convenience addresses the ease of accessing and monitoring the investments. Yield is the income gen-erated from the investment.

The financial analysis of the reserve study will make assumptions based on long-term market trends, which may or may not hold true in the short-term. Therefore, the finan-cial analysis should be reviewed and updated annually to adjust for current

By now nearly everyone is aware that the downturn in current economic conditions has affected community associations nationwide. The increase

in delinquencies and foreclosures has put the squeeze on operating budgets, and this has had an impact on some associations’ ability to fund their reserves. Recog-nizing this bodes poorly for the future, so we’re going to review the fundamentals of reserve fund income management and reserve fund expense management.


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23www.CoachellaValleyCAI.org

Ever wonder if that cardboard milk carton is recyclable? What about the wine glass someone broke at your last party? Or that Styrofoam egg carton? See the list below for answers to these questions and others you may have regarding acceptable and not-acceptable items.

Your Guide to Recycling: What’s Recyclable?By Valerie Ward, Burrtec Waste & Recycling Services

Acceptable recyclable Items

White and colored paper

Newspapers

Phonebooks

Cardboard cereal boxes

Magazines

“Junk” mail

Books

File folders

Envelopes

Cardboard (flattened)

Aluminum cans

Plastic bottles & containers (#1-#7)

Plastic medicine bottles (empty)

Glass bottles and jars

Aerosol containers (empty)

Tin cans

Not Acceptable Items Food

Food-stained paper items

Toilet and facial tissue

Used paper towels

Styrofoam

Medical waste (including needles/syringes)

Tyvek envelopes

Non-numbered plastics

Household chemicals

Bubble wrap

Padded envelopes

Green waste

Dishware

Mirrors

Window glass

Oil

Clothes

Wax-coated cardboard

Electronic equipment

Batteries

Fluorescent bulbs

Cut this list out and tape it up in your kitchen or near your trashcan, it’s an easy way to keep recycling simple. Please note this is only a guideline and not a complete list of all items.

Valerie Ward is the Director of Community Affairs at Burrtec Waste & Recycling Services, the local trash hauler. Valerie can be reached via email at [email protected].

deferred; some may have to be done sooner than planned. Use vendors being considered for the job to aid in the analysis, then document and store this analysis.

Consider if a project/job can be accomplished “in house” with employees or volunteers, or if an outside contractor is required or more cost-effective.

When it has been determined a project/job should be out-sourced, develop and document a bid solicitation and evaluation process. Solicit bids from multiple reputable contractors/vendors. Document how the winning bid is selected.

Seek to avoid sacrificing quality for cost – the lowest bid may not be the best bid. But if you must

make this choice for budgetary reasons, be conscious of the fact and adjust the future repair/maintenance schedule and fund-ing plan accordingly.

Prior to an actual reserve expen-diture, conduct an open meet-ing by the association board of directors to discuss options and concerns raised by homeowners.

Remember to ‘stay the course’ when it comes to reserve planning. With all the stresses of the current real estate residential market conditions being experienced nationwide, resist the urge to be influenced by cur-rent factors such as interest rates and collection issues within the associa-tion. Remember that the benefits of sound reserve expense planning are threefold: 1. Simplification of ongoing

maintenance. 2. Protection of the association board of directors. 3. The long-term health of the association and its community.

In summary, try to keep all plan-ning as simple as possible by remem-bering these key objectives:

Know where you are now (The ‘Beginning’)

Know where you want to be (The ‘End’)

Know how to get there (The ‘Roadmap’)

Cyndi Koester, PCAM AVP, is the Regional Account Executive for Mutual of Omaha Bank/CondoCerts.

You can reach her at (949) 235-8498 or at [email protected].

country western round-up when: October 7th, Registration 5:30pm where: Sunshine Landscape, Thousand Palms

BreaKfast proGram topIc: Associations, Managers & Business Partners, with Julie Adamen – Walk a Mile in My Shoes when: October 14th, Registration 7:30am where: Palm Valley Country Club, Palm Desert

caI leGal forum: calIfornIa communItIes when: October 21st where: The Queen Mary, Long Beach

palm desert Golf parade when: October 23rd, Parade Start, 1:00pm where: El Paseo Drive, Palm Desert

annual awards evenInG – Gems of the desert when: November 4th where: Desert Willow Golf Resort, Palm Desert

leGIslatIve update and mInI-trade show when: November 11th, Registration 11:30am where: Heritage Palms Country Club, Indio (note change of location)

oc

toB

er

no

ve

mB

er

upcomInG

events

caI-cv


one green World


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27

Here in the checkerboard ownership of land that is the Coachella Valley, many homes sit on Indian Land and are in master communities managed by homeowners associa-tions. In these situations, the Indians have leased the land to the HOA under long-term leases, e.g. 99 years. Over the last decade many of the expiration dates on these leases are within 20 to 30 years. If a bank is willing to lend money for home loans on leased land, they will normally require the maturity date of the underlying lease to be several years beyond the term of the proposed loan. Many of the home-owners are now coming to their associations indicating that they cannot sell or refinance their homes due to the matu-rity of their leases being less than 30-35 years out.

To accommodate the homeowners, the association needs to make a decision to either extend the lease or pur-chase the land from the Indians. If the homeowners vote to purchase the land, the HOA will typically act as a “middle-man” to purchase the land in its entirety prior to transfer to individual homeowners. This generally triggers the need to approve a special assessment to the homeowners to come up with the cash for the purchase. If all of the homeowners are not able to come up with the cash for the total spe-cial assessment, a bank may be able to help the HOA with financing.

There are two ways a bank can finance this type of proj-ect. The first is taking a mortgage on the land. This is very complicated and can be very expensive due to the underly-ing costs involved. Some of these costs include appraisal, title, and escrow fees and release fees, just to mention a few. The second way some banks approach this is to lend the money to the HOA using the assessments as collateral for the loan. This type of financing is less expensive as the bank is not taking the land as collateral so there is no need for appraisal or title fees. Once the purchase transaction has closed the homeowners obtain fee simple title to their property. For the homeowners that did not pay the total assessment, the association would hold a direct note in the amount of the assessment secured by a deed of trust. At this time the homeowner may be able to obtain traditional

financing, as the land is now fee simple. In the second scenario, the bank will require historical financial informa-tion, including, but not limited to, the following from the HOA:

Audited financial statements

A current budget

The most recent reserve study

The minutes approving the special assessment

An accounts receivable aging report

The reasons for the information set out above are as follows:

Financial statements are used to determine that the association has adequate historical cash flow to cover operating expenses.

The current budget is used to verify that the future operating expenses are covered and are in line with historical expenses.

The reserve study will let the bank know that the association is properly reserving for future capital expenses.

The special assessment is what the bank uses to verify that there will be sufficient cash flow to service the new loan payment. A note about the special assess-ment – when calculating the special assessment, the HOA needs to take into consideration not only the

principal and interest payments on the loan, but also the costs of the loan, legal fees, title and escrow fees and possibly reconveyance fees for when the individ-ual notes are paid off. In addition, they need to take into consideration possibly setting up a fund to cover any units currently not paying assessments and future delinquent assessment payments.

An accounts receivable aging report gives the bank an idea of the timing of the receipt of the association’s monthly dues. It should also reflect any units that are in foreclosure and/or have legal action initiated.

Once the bank has all the information and has com-pleted its due diligence, it will then be able to make a deci-sion on the loan request.

In summary, if a HOA is planning to purchase the lease-hold land and have determined that they will need financ-ing, they should contact their banker as soon as possible. This way the HOA and the bank can work through the process together.

Blair Merrihew, Vice President and Regional Manager, Pacific Western Bank. Providing commercial banking services, in-cluding real estate, construction and commercial loans. You can reach Blair at (760) 324-9483 or [email protected].

Purchasing and Financing Leasehold LandBy Blair Merrihew, Vice President, Pacific Western Bank


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(760) 328-8999

Save Energy, Save Money Now Is the Time to Move on LED LightingBy Kimberly Weiss, Vice President, Three Phase Electric

If your community is one of the fortunate ones to have adequate reserve or operating cash, now is the time to take advantage of the opportunity to capitalize on the current economic, technological, and political conditions.

Installation costs are at an all time low due to the economy, but they will increase as markets pick up. Manu-facturers are currently offering their products at amaz-ingly low prices, backed by exceptional warranties. In addition, contractors are offering low labor rates due to the increased competition resulting from decreased new con-struction. That, coupled with the technological advances that have occurred in the LED lighting sector in the past 12 months, make now the time to seriously consider a lighting

upgrade. The temptation to upgrade is transformed into a smart business decision when you consider that energy costs are nearly guaranteed to increase in coming years. Even President Obama in his recent State of the Union address stated that, “by 2035, 80 percent of America’s elec-tricity will come from clean energy sources.” In order to meet that goal, utility companies will have no choice but to raise the rates of traditional power.

It is true that the new LED light fixtures can reduce operating expenses. What’s more, we can now design sys-tems that offer better light output, while reducing or elimi-nating glare and light trespass so that our night skies stay dark. All of this can be accomplished while dramatically

reducing energy consumption, and offering maintenance-free operation for 11 plus years. To take it one step further, we now have the option of replacing light poles with new poles that offer a lifetime warranty. Check with your reserve spe-cialist, but in our opinion, a lifetime warranty would allow a community to effectively eliminate the reserve contribu-tion for that item, creating a permanent solution and further enhancing the budget.

ConSIder the folloWIng for replaCIng 20 exIStIng 100-Watt Metal halIde lIght fIxtureS WIth 60-Watt led fIxtureS:

lIfeCyCle eStIMate (11.41 yearS)Existing MH100 Proposed LED

Total Lifecycle Energy Cost $20,200.38 $10,794.77Lifecycle Lamp replacement Costs including labor and materials $8,164.00 $0.00

Lifecycle Savings $17,569.61

Will your existing CD investments pay you $17,569.61 over the next 11 years?

It makes complete “cents” to let your community’s money work for the residents instead of for the bank, and at the same time improve beauty, property values, security, and community morale.

Kimberly Weiss is the Co-Founder and Vice President of Three Phase Electric, Inc., an electrical and lighting company specializing exclusively in Homeowners Associations. You can reach them at

(800) 429-4141 or at www.HOAlighting.com.

the temptation to upgrade is transformed into a smart business decision when you consider that energy costs are nearly guaranteed to increase in coming years.


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Many of our unit owners and some board Members live

out of state. the board is con-sidering holding “virtual” board meetings via web-conferencing. Is this permissible?

Yes. Provided that your Association’s CC&Rs do not explicitly require physical Board Meetings, a Board

can hold a “virtual Board Meeting” so long as the meeting complies with the California Corporations Code and the “Open Meeting Act.”

California Corporation’s Code Section 7211(a)(6) permits Directors to hold meetings through the use of “conference telephone or electronic video screen communication” so long as they are able to hear one another and participate in the meeting. The “Open Meeting Act” (California Civil Code Section 1363.05) however, allows members to attend all meetings of the Board of Directors. The web-conferenc-ing platform must therefore allow all members to attend the meeting electronically and participate in open forum during the meeting. Most modern video-conferencing platforms contain this type of functionality. However, if there are any owners wishing to attend the virtual meeting who lack the technology or know-how required to do so, the Association may need to take additional measures to accommodate such owners. These measures may include setting up a computer/web-conferencing terminal in a common area building or working with the HOA’s manage-ment to find a similar solution.

does our board have to notify the membership when

we are making only small changes to our operating rules?

Maybe. The answer will ultimately depend on whether the proposed rule changes will have any

substantive effect. In general, California Civil Code Sec-tion 1357.1340(a) requires that the board mail any proposed rule changes to the membership along with a statement as to their purpose and effect at least thirty (30) days prior to the Board voting on the proposed rule change. This is com-monly known as the “30 day comment period.”

However, if the proposed changes are non-substantive (i.e., formatting or grammatical edits), then arguably there is no real need for membership comment because the pro-posed changes will not have any substantive effect on the membership or the community.

Your Questions AnsweredBy Steven J. Tinnelly, Esq Tinnelly Law Group We all know how often legal issues pop up in our communities and in our industry. We’ll help resolve these issues by providing answers to the various legal questions that arise in the day-to-day affairs of Homeowners Associations.

hoMeoWnerS aSSoCIatIon laW

Attention QUORUM Readers! We would like to remind you of our goal to make the QUORUM’s HOA Law section the best it can be by involving you. To this end, the QUORUM encourages you to submit legal questions to be answered byattorneys in our industry.

Email your questions to [email protected] or scan the QR to ask a question now.

Steven Tinnelly, Esq, is with the Tinnelly Law Group serving Southern California HOAs. You can reach him at (949) 588-0866 or by email at [email protected].

Writers for every topic.

Give our readers your unique

perspective. Join the fastest-growing

committee in the Chapter.

the honor and prestige that goes into each quorum issue can be yours. We're looking for a variety of writers to expand our coverage of the community and

the Coachella valley.

please contact the CaI-Cv office to become famous and wield that pen like a [email protected] • (760) 341-0559


Chapter neWS Chapter neWS

Have You Heard?OctOber 2011

By Wendy Van Messel, CAI-CV Executive Director

nationally recognized des-ignations, or for information regarding scholarships that are available through the chapter, please contact the chapter office.

have you meet terry Smith yet? Terry is working in

the chapter office and has a great recall of names and faces. Working as Adminis-trative Assistant she brings

designation neWS! Con-gratulations to Vanessa Robertson, with Desert Resort Management for adding another designa-tion to the end of her name. She has now proudly added CMCA to her title. Way to Go Vanessa! For anyone consid-ering doing the same thing, mark your calendar for next April 19th – 21st, 2012, when we will be holding the M100 class here locally. For more information on achieving

with her a widely varied background, including working as an Admin Assis-tant for U.S. Air Force Head-quarters at the Pentagon, where she met and married her husband Jeff. Together they have 3 children and have moved most recently from Texas. When Terry isn’t working, she enjoys cook-ing, reading and taking care of her family. On behalf of the Board of Directors and the membership, welcome aboard Terry.

the right Job. the right employee. the right Match. Did you know that among the many things CAI National provides, it also provides the CAI Job Market to help connect members with employment opportu-nities and to give manage-ment companies and other business partner members a convenient, low-cost way to find professionals. Job seekers and employers can go to www.caionline.org/jobmarket.

2012 Committee Chairs and Co-Chairs are being selected by the board of directors. Now is your opportunity to take advan-tage of the another network-ing aspect of CAI. Com-mittees are currently being formed for 2012, so please go

to the website, watch your emails on Friday weekly updates, or contact the chapter office for the Volun-teer Interest Form and get it turned into the chapter office to have fun work-ing with other members to make CAI-CV committees and events the best that they can be.

the Chapter would like to extend an extra special thank you to Micha Balles-teros and the staff at Flood Response for being such great hosts for our recent M202 class.

good news is always fun to share; babies, promo-tions, professional designa-tions, or even changes in office location. If you have news that you would like to share with the chap-ter, please submit it to [email protected] for consideration.

CAI Class M202 – Association Communications

CAI held its M202 class locally on September 15 & 16, 2011 at the Flood Response corporate building in Thousand Palms. The instructors were Diana Larson, AMS, PCAM from Barrington, IL and Alan Takumi, CMCA, AMS, PCAM from Mililani, HI. Diana is the Director of Marketing at Alma Prop-erty Management Services, Inc. and Alan is the VP of Account Executives and a Portfolio Manager at Certified Hawaii. There were 17 attendees at the class ranging from Arizona to Truckee, California.

All attendees were given a course workbook with six modules covering the essentials of written communication, providing exceptional customer service, communication with residents and man-agers, developing internal communication and media relations. The information contained in the workbook was informative, well organized and all modules were pertinent to Community Manage-ment. The Instructors were easy to hear, entertain-ing, funny, knowledgeable and used a power point presentation for following along.

Micha Ballesteros of Flood Response and her staff were the hosts of the event and did a fabulous job. The room was set up nicely with comfortable seating and tables and supplies were provided.

The class is a PDMP course and required to obtain your PCAM designation. I would recom-mend it to anyone seeking to improve his or her verbal, written and non-verbal communication skills and customer service. I believe all points covered in the M202 course are vital to being a successful Community Manager. Communication is everything!

Shelly Ruegsegger, CMCA, CCAM, is a Community Manager with Personalized Property Management. You can reach her at (760)-325-9500 or

[email protected].

33

By Shelly Ruegsegger, CCAM, CMCA, Personalized Property Management

Wendy Van Messel is the Executive Director for the CAI Coachella

Valley chapter. If you have an item for Have You Heard, please email it to [email protected]. The office number is (760) 341-0559.

Cash In! CVWD Landscape Rebate Program Funds Available NowBy Dave Koller, Conservation Coordinator, Coachella Valley Water District

needed in the summer. That means homeowner associa-tions should have already started reducing watering times.

For the most part, grass in the Coachella Valley doesn’t need daily irrigation in the fall; and desert landscaping is happy with only 3-4 days irrigation per week or less.

October and November are perfect months for updat-ing your plant palette with new, water-efficient plants and shrubs. Fall and winter’s mild temperatures also make it a good time to tackle major landscape and irrigation projects, such as converting to desert landscaping or retrofitting your sprinkler system. The district is now offering land-scape rebate programs to all CVWD customers, even where

valley cities do not match the funds. These conservation programs are designed

to assist residents, businesses and homeowner associations (HOAs) who want to reduce their outdoor water usage. Applications and a com-plete list of the eligibility requirements are available at www.cvwd.org or at CVWD offices. For qualifying HOAs and commercial custom-ers the district will pay $1 for each square foot of grass replaced with desert-friendly landscaping up to 5,000 square feet.

Rebates apply to both full conversions and curbside conversions. A full conversion requires that all turf be removed between the street curb and the HOA/business perimeter wall or other defined areas. A curbside conversion is for HOAs or businesses with limited budgets or those who do not want to give up all their turf. Curbside conversions must have a 24-inch wide buffer (setback) between the curb and any spray irrigated turf. Setbacks can be covered with decomposed granite or decorative rocks and drip irrigated desert friendly plants.

The district’s sprinkler nozzle rebate pro-gram is for customers who replace older, ineffi-cient spray heads with water-saving new gen-eration sprinkler nozzles in conjunction with installing a weather-based irrigation controller.

These sprinklers are easy to install and fit most standard pop-up sprinkler systems. Rebates of $2.50 per nozzle will be available to large landscape customers with a maximum rebate of $500.

Large landscape customers are eligible for smart controller rebates of up to $750 per irrigated acre or 50 percent of the cost of the controller, whichever is less.

Please take advantage of these programs while funding is still available. By reducing water waste and better managing water usage, we’re collectively making a difference in the Coachella Valley’s future groundwater supply.

Dave Koller is the Conservation Coordinator for the Coachella Valley Water District. You can contact him at [email protected] or (760) 398-2651.

the district is now offering landscape rebate programs to all CvWd customers, even where valley cities do not match the funds.

As temperatures start to cool, it’s important to remember that landscaping needs in the desert vary significantly from season to season. Grass typically needs only 1/3 to 1/4 the amount of water in the fall and winter than it


Water WISe

TIme HoNored memberkay ladner, CCaM, aMS, MCM

By Shelly Ruegsegger, CMCA, CCAM, Personalized Property Management

kay ladner moved to the Coachella Valley in 1981 and has lived in La Quinta since 1984. Kay is passionate about photography, and also enjoys gardening and hanging out with friends, family and her dogs.

After two years at Mt. San Jacinto College she opened a boutique advertising agency which focused on marketing for stud horse farms and commercial real estate. Kay

later came to the desert and was a top-producing commer-cial real estate agent with the George Elkins Company.

Kay just read a great book called Travels in the Greater Yel-lowstone by Jack Turner and her most recent download to her iPod was Born This Way by Lady Gaga.

Kay tells us, “I have two wonderful sons and a talented granddaughter who shares my love of horses.” Her favorite saying is, “everything happens for a reason, just believe.”

Kay started her career in community management over twenty years ago when she was recruited to assist with the developer transition of Morningside Community Associa-tion. She promptly joined CAI where she, “met Pat Smith who was a valued mentor and helped me understand the nuances of community management.” Kay has served on many CAI committees over the years along with also serving as a CAI Board member and then President in 1994. Kay is most proud of creating the “Day at the Races” which has been a successful event for many years, bringing together managers and business partners in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.

Kay is a founding member of the Community Managers International Association, and holds the AMS and CCAM designations. She works for Desert Resort Management and serves as the onsite General Manager for Motorcoach Country Club in Indio, a premier RV Resort and Property Owners Association. The majority of her career has been as an onsite GM assisting with developer transitions, but has also served an array of communities from large scale to high rise.

You can reach Kay at (760) 342-4215 or by email at [email protected].

aCCountantS & bookkeeperSallen & aSSoCIateS ........................................................................ 2

brabo & CarlSen, llp .................................................................. 18

rIChard oSborne, Cpa .................................................................. 9

SCott CorporatIon ..................................................................... 36

StephanIe otero, Cpa .................................................................... 4

aSphaltaMS pavIng .................................................................................... 39

attorneySfIore raCobS & poWerS .............................................................. 16

green bryant & frenCh, llp ...................................................... 38

guralnICk & gIllIland ................................................................ 18

laW offICe of peggy redMon .................................................. 26

peterS & freedMan, llp .............................................................. 15

bankSpaCIfIC WeStern bank ................................................................. 15

ConCretegranIte ConStruCtIon CoMpany ............................................ 18

eleCtrIC & WaterCoaChella valley Water dIStrICt .............................................. 9

Suntrek .......................................................................................... 18

graphIC deSIgnJen SMIth deSIgn and graphICS ............................................... 38

InSuranCe labarre/okSnee InSuranCe ......................................................... 3

tIMothy ClIne InSuranCe ........................................................... 26

lake ManageMentdIverSIfIed WaterSCapeS ............................................................ 29

landSCapIngConServe landCare .................................................................... 39

hIgh teCh IrrIgatIon, InC. ............................................................ 3

kIrkpatrICk landSCapIng ServICeS, InC. ................................ 26

o'Connell landSCape MaIntenanCe ...................................... 18

SunShIne landSCape ................................................................... 32

ManageMent CoMpanIeSdeSert ManageMent ................................................................... 15

deSert reSort ManageMent ..................................................... 38

outdoor furnIturepatIo furnIture doCtorS, InC. ................................................. 29

pool plaSterIngthe leak deteCtorS ....................................................................... 2

pool deCk reSurfaCIngCtI of the deSert ......................................................................... 38

roofIngrelIable roofIng ........................................................................... 4

WeStern paCIfIC roofIng ............................................................. 3

SeCurItyallIed barton ............................................................................... 16

SeCurItaS SeCurIty ServICeS uSa, InC. ....................................... 3

advertISIng InforMatIonCAI-CV Executive Director, Wendy Van MesselE-mail: [email protected] Phone: (760) 341-0559

CAI-CV Chapter New & Renewing Membersnew memBers

amerIcan west BanKMs. Tay Fried (760)346-6139 [email protected]

desert resort manaGementMs. Melissa Mezzanatto (760)564-8864 [email protected]

Gerard roofInG technoloGIesMr. Steve Kelchlin (714)529-0407 [email protected] www.gerardusa.com

leGacy vIllas at la QuIntaBoard Member (760)610-7695

mIssIon laKes country cluBMs. Shelly Daily (760)329-6481

servIce 1st lIGhtInGMs. Catherine Gregory (949)336-4336 [email protected] www.service1stlighting.com

renewInG memBers

alBert manaGement corporatIonMs. Lori Albert

aldea “the vIstas”Mrs. Rita Greenwood

allen & assocIatesMr. Doug Bothe

armstronG Garden centers, Inc.Mr. Tracy Densmore

assocIatIon reserves- oranGe county, llcMr. Michael Nash

desert horIzons owners assocIatIonMs. Cheryl Wyatt

GothIc Grounds manaGement, Inc.Mr. Tad Black

GuralnIcK & GIllIland, llpMr. Wayne Guralnick, Esq.

hIGhland sprInGs country cluB homeowners assocIatIonMr. Joe Bonaventura Ms. Rhea Weber

Chapter neWS advertISer Index

IndIan palms country cluB homeowners assocIatIon #9Ms. Helga Dille Ms. Nancy J. Goulston

IndIan rIdGe homeowners assocIatIonMs. Patricia Dykstra, CMCA, AMS

JacK Ivey ranch homeowners assocIatIonMs. Dee Ingram Ms. Janet Mattoon Ms. Barbara Smith

laBarre/oKsnee Insurance aGency, Inc.Ms. Carol A. Fulton, CIRMS

martIn sweepInG/pressure washInGMr. Curtis Oldenkamp

palm desert resortsMs. Sherry Arnswald

palm valley homeowners assocIatIon, Inc.Mr. Pete Browning

pGa west resIdentIal assocIatIonMs. Kelly McGalliard, AMS, PCAM

the leaK detectorsMr. Michael T. Toastado

vIsta paInt corporatIonMs. Blair Loubet Mr. Randyl Kriner, CMCA, AMS


74-040 Highway 111, Suite L200Palm Desert, California 92260www.ConserveLandCare.com

760-343-1433Lic. # 958748

Technologically Advanced Water Management

Practices

Environmentally Friendly Landscape Management

Programs

Water EfficientLandscape Conversions

Design & Installation

Water Audits & Cost Effective Solutions For Tiered Water Rates

en mithDesign & GraphicsJ S

Honest Service, Honest Value

An excellent resource for your business graphics

and communications

[email protected]

www.jensmithdesign.com


DESERT RESORT MANAGEMENT. Providing quality professional management services throughout the Coachella Valley and surrounding areas.

Desert Resort Management

Serving community associations since 1987, Desert Resort Management (DRM) provides services that enrich communities and enhance the associations we serve.

O u R f O c u S i S O N yO u .

SM

• Nationalstrength.Localattention.

• Service-driventechnologybackbone.

• Innovativeprogramstosaveyourassociationtimeandmoney.

• Management,financialanddevelopmentservices.

• Turnkeyservicetoourclients.

• Industry’sbesttrainedteam.

• Commitmenttoclients.

42-635 Melanie Place, Suite 103 ι Palm Desert, CA 92211 ι Telephone 760-346-1161 ι Fax 760-346-9918 Web www.drminternet.com ι Email [email protected]

country western round-up when: October 7th, Registration 5:30pm where: Sunshine Landscape, Thousand Palms

BreaKfast proGram topIc: Associations, Managers & Business Partners, with Julie Adamen – Walk a Mile in My Shoes when: October 14th, Registration 7:30am where: Palm Valley Country Club, Palm Desert

caI leGal forum: calIfornIa communItIes when: October 21st where: The Queen Mary, Long Beach

palm desert Golf parade when: October 23rd, Parade Start, 1:00pm where: El Paseo Drive, Palm Desert

annual awards evenInG – Gems of the desert when: November 4th where: Desert Willow Golf Resort, Palm Desert

leGIslatIve update and mInI-trade show when: November 11th, Registration 11:30am where: Heritage Palms Country Club, Indio (note change of location)

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events

caI-cv

Join CaI! there are many benefits to being a part of our chapter, including a free copy of the Quorum! Call (760) 341-0559 today!

41-905 Boardwalk, A.2Palm Desert, CA 92211

preSort Stdu.S. poStage

paIdSan bernardIno, Ca

Permit # 2968

Documents

Coachella Valley Community Associations Institute Magazine · It’s October and I hope all allergy and hay fever sufferers have left the area because we are right in the middle of