Preparing Your HOA for Hurricane Season

Florida has the dubious honor of being the state with the most hurricanes in the nation. Each year, HOA leaders need to review their hurricane plans to ensure they are up-to-date in the event a severe hurricane hits. Never be complacent – even if your community has escaped unscathed from hurricanes in the past, there is no guarantee that your luck will continue in the future. As you review and update your plans, here are some key tips to keep in mind:

• Before the season starts, inspect the roofs, windows, hurricane shutters, and gutters of all common buildings and make any needed repairs. A missing shingle here or there or a gutter clogged with debris can have a catastrophic effect on your building if a hurricane hits.
• Take photographs of all the common buildings and common areas so you have photographic evidence for your insurance company of how the property looked before the hurricane hit. This may come in handy later on if you end up in a dispute with the insurance company over the value of the settlement that they offer.
• Inspect the community’s landscaping for any dead trees or large plants that could become a projectile during the storm and remove them. Determine which outdoor furniture and decorations will be tied down and which will be brought inside and note this in your HOA hurricane plan. The more details that you can plan for in advance, the smoother your preparation will be if a hurricane hits.
• Create a communication plan. Who should homeowners contact after the storm if they need a status update on the community? Who will send out updates to homeowners? How frequently will you communicate with them? How will you communicate – will messages be posted on the community Facebook page, emailed, or texted? Once you have the communication plan established, make sure all homeowners know the plan by posting it on flyers, on the website, on social media pages, in the community newsletter, etc. This can help alleviate confusion and frustration in the aftermath of the storm.
• Make sure your contact information for each home is up-to-date with the proper cell phone numbers and email addresses for each resident. Each HOA director, the community manager, and the designated communication manager should have a copy of this contact directory.
• Don’t assume that all your homeowners know what to do during a hurricane. While some may have spent their lifetime living in a hurricane zone, for others, this may be their first time. Consider developing a hurricane preparation checklist for your homeowners to help them prepare. Be sure to include a list of essential items, evacuation routes, home preparation steps, and how to exit the community in an orderly manner.

CCM’s property managers are experienced in developing effective HOA hurricane preparation plans. Call us today to learn how our experts can assist your HOA with hurricane preparation as well as learn about our full array of property management services.  

Consolidated Community Management (CCM) is a full-service property management company specializing in condominium and homeowner association management in Broward and southern Palm Beach Counties.  We are committed to working together with community Boards of Directors to develop management plans tailored to the unique requirements of each community and their residents.

CCM provides a quality of service that is unique to our industry and consistently delivers a distinct competitive advantage.  Our concentrated, extensive local presence and knowledge of community associations results in lasting partnerships and superior service.  We have built our industry reputation on employing the best in the business and assigning only a limited number of properties to each Property Manager Team.

Our team at Consolidated Community Management provides expert property management services at competitive prices.  Contact us today by calling (954) 718-9903 or clicking on ccmfla.com.