Good Riddance to 2020:

What We Learned and What We Hope For

Goodbye, so long, don’t let the door hit you on your way out. 2020, bless you and the lessons you taught us, but we couldn’t be happier to say adios.

While we never hope to see a year like that again, we did learn quite a lot about emergency procedures, BOD powers and community law while we were hanging on to health, sanity and some semblance of normalcy by the skin of our teeth.

Here’s a look at what we learned:

• We now know how to handle a complete shutdown.

• We learned all about emergency rules and regulations and emergency powers.

• We figured out Zoom and virtual meetings!

• We navigated a drop in dues.

• We figured out better ways of communication within our community.

• We found ways to keep our community safe during a pandemic.

• We worked through construction and renovation delays.

• We worked through difficult closures of common areas and amenities.

The Big Takeaway

If we can handle 2020, we can handle anything. Give yourself a big pat on the back, thank your BOD members, applaud your community and pour yourself a nice double of scotch…we made it!

2021, we’re looking to you for some relief but we’re wary enough not to raise the bar too high. Here are 3 things we are planning for in the new year.

Optimizing the budget

Seeing what a global pandemic can do to the economy, both on a macro and micro level, has made budget optimization a top priority. HOAs and condo associations are going to need to address the budget issues that 2020 may or may not have brought.

Assessments

With many community members facing economic hardships, suspensions and leniencies were provided for those who could not afford association dues. While compassion and understanding should still be practiced, associations are going to need to get back on track with receiving dues. The livelihood of the community depends on it.

Hoping for the best, prepared for the worst

After everything we’ve seen and navigated in 2020, we can confidently say that we are now prepared like we’ve never been before. We’re truly hoping for an upswing in 2021, but we are now prepared to weather the storm.

What will the future hold? No one can say with complete certainty. What we do know is that we rode out one heck of a year together. If we survived 2020, we can survive just about anything!