HOA Residents Are Happy

We're confident that most residents are happy living in an HOA - and we certainly hope you are among them. But how do the more-than 62 million Americans who live in HOAs or condominium communities feel about their own HOAs? Are they happy with their elected boards? With the rules? What about their association assessments?

The Foundation for Community Association Research, an affiliate of Community Associations Institute (CAI), sponsored a recent national public opinion survey to answer these and other questions. Here are some of the key findings:

• 70% of residents in common-interest communities says they are satisfied with their community association experience, while 8% express dissatisfaction, and 22% are neutral on the question.
• 88% of residents believe their association board members strive to serve the best interests of the community, while 12% disagree or aren't sure.
• 73% of residents say their professional managers provide value to their communities, while 21% say their managers aren't as asset to the association, and 6% say they aren't sure.
• 76% of residents believe their own community association rules "protect and enhance" property values. Only 3% say the rules harm property values, while the rest see no difference.
• 81% of residents say they get a "good" or "great' return for their association assessments, while 18% say the return is "not so good or bad." The rest were unsure.

We'd like to do better than the national averages, so please tell us what you think we can do to make your community an even better place to live. We encourage you to get involved, so let us know how you can help. There is no substitute for active and constructive involvement and no better way to build a true sense of community.

If you're especially pleased about your community, share that too! It's always good to know we're on the right track.

More national survey results, which include comparative data from similar surveys in 2005, 2007, and 2010 are available under "Research Projects" at www.cairf.org.