AboutMyHOA.com
Here are four simple
tips to heed when it comes time to paint the common areas in
your Community:
(1) Don't let
the contractor supply the paint. The Association is
much better off supplying the paint for a variety of reasons
-- (i) no delays while waiting for paint to arrive on the
jobsite; (ii) better control over where and how the paint is
applied (and whether all the paint earmarked for your
community gets USED in your community - not always a given);
(iii) ensure paint quality.
(2) Don't agree
to a "time and materials" approach to bidding the paint
project. With a "time and materials" approach,
costs can go spiraling out of control, leaving the
Association with a bloated paint bill and a hole in its
pocketbook. The bill will always be higher if you allow the
contractor to charge for all hours spent on the job as well
as every item procured. This method also fails to account
for hidden costs and other potentially costly variables such
as weather conditions or pre-paint preparation. Try securing
a contractor via a fixed-price bid instead and avoid the
money pit. A fixed-price bid also eliminates the need for
heavy-handed monitoring of the contractor to ensure that the
job is finished in a timely manner. With a fixed-price bid,
the contractor is incentivized to finish in the shortest
amount of time to maximize profit.
(3) Don't bite
off more than you can chew (don't paint too much at one
time.) If the Association plans on painting several
buildings in the Community, try limiting active painting to
three buildings or less at any one time. Expanding the scope
of the job may cause lapses between the time a building is
cleaned/prepped for painting and the actual paint job (this
could lead to a less effective paint job if the buildings
get dirty again.) Also, limiting the scope of the project
minimizes resident inconvenience and reduces the incidence
of complaints from members.
(4) Don't
forget about waste disposal. Make sure that the
Association and contractor agree upon who will be
responsible for the cleanup and removal of waste generated
throughout the painting project. Make sure that the
contractor is well versed in the location of the Community's
dumpsters and/or local laws regarding disposal that could
get the Association in legal hot water if compliance is not
observed.
*Thanks to the Insider's Guide to Managing Community
Associations for excerpts used in the compilation of this
article.