Page 13 - New England Condominium August 2019

185 Devonshire Street, Suite 401, Boston, MA 02110 Quality Representation at Reasonable Rates. (617) 988-0633 Contact Attorney Frank Flynn: FRANK@FLYNNLAW-NE.COM Flynn_E4C.qxp:Layout 1 12/8/14 2:30 PM Page 1 NEWENGLANDCONDO.COM NEW ENGLAND CONDOMINIUM -AUGUST 2019 13 Learning Experiences While dealing with an unreasonable board or association may feel like having teeth pulled at the time, a manager will ideally come out of the experience with a better idea of what is and is not accept- able in regard to professional conduct, and will have greater insight about which associations might be a good fit going forward. “If an association is hindering you from focusing on other business, taking too much of your time, or is simply not profitable, it’s probably in your best in- terest to leave,” says Kornfeld. “Given the extremely long hours we put in – longer than many other business of which I’m aware – and the amount of effort this takes, it’s just sometimes not worth it to deal with an association that is running you ragged for little return.” At the end of the day, what price should a manager put on maintaining a healthy work environment? Mileage var- ies based on the individual. But if some- one who has managed many associations over the course of many years is dread- ing going to work, that’s a good sign that a professional relationship may be un- healthy and is worth a reevaluation. n Mike Odenthal is a staff writer/reporter with New England Condominium. of Pride Property Management Corp., which has offices in New York and New Jersey. “We met with a roofer who said, ‘I will do whatever it takes to get this job,’ and Glenn inquired as to what that meant, exactly. The roofer replied, ‘I’ll give you 10%.’ Now this was a while ago and I don’t advocate doing this now, but, as soon as the roofer said that, Glenn smacked that contractor straight across the face and said, ‘If you ever say any- thing like that again, I will put your a** in jail.’ So we never used that contractor.” Assuming Good Faith As stated previously, kickbacks and bribery definitely do happen. But while it's important to not be naive about that reality, it's also important to keep in mind that given the many thousands of co-op, condo and HOA communities across the country, fraud is a relatively rare occur- rence. Because of that rarity – and the se- riousness of the allegation – association members must do their due diligence before pointing fingers, lest false accusa- tions fly. “I often see board members accused of playing favorites or getting benefits that the rest of the community did not – but these claims are mostly baseless,” says Scott J. Sandler, Managing Partner at Sandler, Hansen & Alexander, a law firm in Middletown, Connecticut. “So- ciety has just degraded to a point where everyone is accusing each other, pointing fingers, assuming the worst. We do live in a world where every now and again you encounter a bad actor; a manager walks away with association funds, or a board member tries to convince the board to hire his buddy – but thankfully those are the exceptions to the rule. It’s up to the community at large to remain diligent. Boards serve at the pleasure of the own- ers, and if those owners decide that the board is not diligently serving its com- munity, then it’s up to those owners to remove the board members and install new ones.” Those individuals who do get caught accepting kickbacks face jail time and forced restitution as proposed by the courts, notes Reilly. “Board members can be removed for cause, and managing agents can be fired, which may in turn ruin the reputation of their employers,” he says. Of course, it stands to reason that those willing to break the law and en- gage in kickbacks or bribes may also be amenable to violating contracts or agree- ments. That’s a big part of why it falls to that ethical board member, manager, res- ident to identify and call out transgres- sive behavior when they see it. “I believe that most people, presented with the opportunity for a kickback, are just going to feel weird about it,” says John Kadim, a portfolio property man- ager with Thayer & Associates in Cam- bridge, Massachusetts. “Generally, if you have that weird feeling about something, it’s likely not something that you should be doing. It’s really that simple.” Hopefully, it shouldn’t take more than a reminder that the risk inherent in corruption outweighs the reward for someone to think twice and stay on the straight and narrow. n Mike Odenthal is a staff writer with New England Condominium. COMBATTING... continued from page 11 ers, says Thomas O. Moriarty, a principal at the law firm of Moriarty Troyer & Mal- loy LLC, which has offices in Boston and Braintree, Massachusetts. “Some trustees take calls at home or on their cell phones and receive and respond to e-mails from their personal computers. Others boards adopt a more formal approach. The deci- sion can sometimes be one of personal preference, but in some instances more formal and focused direction of commu- nication may be the only way to effectively manage those communications. “One can imagine how difficult it would be to track and respond to unit owner communications in a 400-unit associa- tion with a seven-member board if every board member accepted and responded to communications independently. The most critical factor to consider is not how the ciation’s board. Open meetings, posting of communication is required to be directed, meeting minutes, maintaining a website are but whether the communication is effec- tive. Admittedly, when barriers are placed even where direct communication is fun- which prevent direct communication, even neled through a single point person. with good reason, it can raise a legitimate question with an owner about whether tant is more straight-forward. The ac- their concerns are being heard. Associa- tions that limit communications in such by the board. The board must be in a posi- manner should be careful to ensure that tion to control and direct the activities of there are mechanism in place not only to the professionals it hires, including the ac- respond to contacts but to ensure that unit countant. Allowing unit owners to commu- owners feel that they have a means of ex- pressing themselves to their elected board. prevent the board from containing its costs. Nothing is more sure to sow seeds of dis- content than an owner that feels his or her concerns are not being heard by the asso- all ways to open lines of communication “The question of access to the accoun- countant works for the board and is paid nicate directly with the accountant would The accountant, like any of the board’s pro- Q&A continued from page 5 continued on page 14