By Mitch Drimmer, VP Association Financial Services

Community associations are faced with having to deal with collecting delinquent assessments in good times and bad. If a community association were to advertise for a collections company this is how it may appear.

HELP WANTED FOR COLLECTIONS

The board of directors of our community association is looking for a collections solution that will not only help us recover our delinquent assessments, but will not cost us five dollars to collect one dollar. We have been working with our community association attorneys, and although they know the community association business well, they are not effective with their collections efforts. We need more than an attorney placing a lien and then maybe foreclosing on said lien. We need action and we need it now because our collections are costing us an arm and a leg, and we are not seeing any return on our investment with our current solution.

Lots have been said and asked about the wisdom of working with delinquent owners in community associations, and allowing them to catch up using payment plans.  Some see it as a kind and wise decision and advocate that it is the correct approach.  Others seem to feel that it is unfair, and if a member of the association cannot pay on time they should be out.  Still others are convinced that most people who engage in payment plans wind up “falling off the wagon” and don’t finish up making the association whole.  My take on the subject simply is to consider the alternative.