Five Important Outdoor Spring Maintenance Tasks

Nothing like getting outside after a long winter. It’s so invigorating, even household chores are refreshing. So while you’re reveling in clean spring air, get after these simple maintenance jobs that fend off potential moisture problems, prevent costly repairs, and pave the way for a trouble-free summer.

Clean Out Gutters and Downspouts

It is really important to make sure gutters and downspouts remain bonded to the home. Every spring it is necessary to check for loose downspouts and sagging gutters.

Inspect Your Roof

It’s always a good idea to inspect your roof annually for wear and damage. Winters are often hard on roofs. Check to make sure that shingles are all in good condition. Look for areas where moisture may have crept in. Be on the lookout for algae, fungi and mold, all of which can cause serious damage if not removed. Certain types of mold also cause health problems. Be especially vigilant for wear near your pipes.

Clean Your Siding

Clean siding with a pressure washer to keep mold from growing. Check all wood surfaces for weathering and paint failure. If wood is showing through, sand the immediate area and apply a primer coat before painting. If paint is peeling, scrape loose paint and sand smooth before painting.

Inspect Your Windows

Leakage around windows will admit warm summer air and let cooled indoor air escape, so be sure to check that any caulking and weather stripping you have in place has remained intact. “A tight seal is the first line of defense against air and water,” says Marty Davis, marketing manager, Simonton Windows, Columbus, OH. If you experienced condensation inside the glass on double- or triple-glazed windows during the winter months, the weather seal has been compromised, and either the glass or the window will need to be replaced.

Inspect Driveways and Paths

Freezing and thawing is rough on concrete, asphalt and other hardscaping materials. Take a walk around your property to look for damage to walkways, paths and driveways, and schedule repairs as needed. Asphalt can often be patched, but damaged concrete may need to be replaced entirely.

Ideas For Spring Community Gatherings

Spring community gatherings can bring in front a lot of excitement and fun, but at the same time, they can also be time-consuming. This does bring in the question, though, how can you bring the community together and how can the HOA create some great community gatherings? Here are some great ideas to keep in mind!

Community dog walk

If your neighborhood is full of dog owners, it can be a very good idea to opt for this type of event. It’s a pleasant experience for sure, and it will impress you with the great results that it can deliver. Everyone will be able to enjoy the time off, not to mention that all dogs can have tons of fun. So, it can be a great bonding experience for everyone.

Spring themed porch flags

You can organize workshops that will help create and install porch flags. This can be a nice way to showcase the strength of your community. If possible, you can also add the neighborhood name or logo on these flags. It’s an exciting and delightful experience that you can try out!

Porchfest

You can organize a local musical talent event that consists of performers which are assigned to different porches. You can invite the local talent to walk around the neighborhood and showcase their musical talent to the entire community.

Gardening contests

These contests are always fun because they encourage residents to increase the curb appeal of their home. Each resident has 1-2 days to prepare their garden, and then a jury selected by the HOA will select the winner. It’s a nice initiative and one that perfectly matches spring and its unique appeal.

Cook-offs

Cook-offs are amazing; the idea is to pick a type of meal that anyone will be able to enjoy. Some opt for chili cook-offs, while other people want something simpler. No matter what you pick to cook, make sure that, each contestant has fair chances. Plus, each person that attends this event has to be from your community.

Bonfires

Evening bonfires are great since they allow the community to share stories and have fun. It’s by far one of the best options that you can focus on if you want to connect with people in your neighborhood and find out more about them.

Outdoor movie night

You don’t need that much for this activity, just chairs, a computer, projector and lots of time. The result is magical, and it can be a delightful way for the community to spend time together. It’s certainly worth a shot!

As you can see, there are many great activities that you can focus on during the spring community gatherings. If you want to make community gatherings stand out, you should consider giving them a shot; you will not regret it. Plus, these are one of a kind activities that everyone can join, so they can quickly bring joy, happiness, and fun to everyone. It’s a good idea to put all these ideas into effect, as they can easily pay off.

The Benefits of Volunteering in Your Homeowners Association May Include Health And Well-Being

“One of the great ironies of life is this: He or she who serves almost always benefits more than he or she who is served.”  Gordon Hinckle

There are many benefits to volunteering in a Homeowners Association.  The benefits of volunteering in an HOA can be helpful to you, your family, and your community. The right match can help you to reduce stress, find friends, reach out to the community and learn new skills. Giving to others can also help protect your mental and physical health. Learn more about the many benefits of helping others and find tips on getting started.

It’s no secret that volunteering in your homeowners association can be a time and energy consuming endeavor. The role of the HOA board member is often a thankless one, but that’s not to say it can’t also be rewarding. It is also a necessary role.

There are great health benefits to volunteering in general. Volunteering and helping others can help you reduce stress, combat depression, keep you mentally stimulated, and provide a sense of purpose. While it’s true that the more you volunteer, the more benefits you’ll experience, volunteering doesn’t have to involve a long-term commitment or take a huge amount of time out of your busy day. Giving in even simple ways can help others those in need and improve your health and happiness.

Another benefit of serving in an HOA is the ability to protect your investment. One of the top priorities of every homeowner is to protect the value of his or her home.  Being involved with an HOA will put you in a better position to make and implement rules in your community. Some of these regulations will directly affect property value, especially if they require decisions about the association’s budget or routine maintenance.

Everyone needs to have a sense of belonging, and volunteering can meet that need.  An HOA meeting is the best place to meet your neighbors and to know more about them. It gives you a chance to socialize and make friends with others living in your neighborhood. If you’re new to the neighborhood, getting more involved can be an effective way of meeting new people. Not only are you getting acquainted with how the HOA is run, you’re able to put together names and faces when you see people around. Depending on what committee you volunteer for, you have the opportunity to interact with a wide range of HOA members and community organizations.

Perhaps the biggest benefit people get from volunteering is the satisfaction of incorporating service into people's lives and making a difference in their community.

10 Tips To Secure Holiday Packages Delivered To Your Door

Burglars scout neighborhoods prior to the holidays looking for easy targets. Packages sitting on doorsteps , on lawn chairs or sticking out of mailboxes are all a sign of the residence being unattended. Most HOA's struggle with crime during the holidays. While it is not the responsibility of the HOAs to secure or accept  delivered packages, they can assist residents with support, resources and tips to reduce burglary during the holiday season.

Around 23 million people said their packages have been stolen from their homes, according to a December 2015 survey from insuranceQuotes.com.

UPS delivers 17 million packages around the world every day and much more during this time of the year. In fact, during December, they will delivering some 585 million packages, with single-day volume surging as high as 34 million on their peak day December 22.  

Here are a few tips that all of your neighbors can use to help keep your community free of crime this holiday season.

1. Ask a neighbor to watch your home for the delivery of holiday packages and to retrieve the packages until you arrive home.
 
2. Consider an alternate destination. Have your packages delivered to work, family or friends. Encourage residents to use different delivery options or addresses during the high-crime season. Have packages delivered where someone can accept them, or require a signature.
 
3. Instruct the delivery company. Find a non visible place at your home and leave detailed instructions as to where to hide the package. FedEx and UPS drivers will place packages behind a gate, shrub, or other location; residents should contact their carrier.

4. Be diligent about tracking your expected holiday packages. Residents can often receive a text message when their package is delivered. This will eliminate your package sitting in the open for long periods of time.
 
5. Help your HOA by volunteering a few hours in your Neighborhood Watch program. Extra eyes can help deter crime and stop burglary in progress.
 
6.  Require a signature so that your item won't be left unattended. It may be a little inconvenient, but you can have the package redelivered or go pick it up at the local station.
 
7. Most homes have a security camera so that, if a theft occurs, you have proof for insurance purposes and to help police find the burglar.
 
8. Customize your deliveries. Use FedEx Delivery Manager® to customize your residential deliveries. You can change the time of delivery. You can select the actual time you will be home from work. During the holidays they deliver late evening hours.
 
9.  Signs for security systems can be a great deterrent for thieves. Post a security warning sign near your front door. These warning signs can help protect your packages and your whole house as well. 

10. Insure your packages if they are valuable. At least if your holiday package goes missing you will recover the money for valuables. 

Security cameras may work well, but check with your HOA about policies regarding security cameras and where they can be located. Some HOAs may restrict usage of cameras (especially "dummy" cameras) for reasons of liability. If your community has a serious crime problem ask your HOA to support asking local law enforcement to patrol the neighborhood more frequently.

Strong communities can reduce crime. Owners who know their neighbors are more likely to report suspicious behavior. Although midway through the holidays may be too late, boards should try community-building events throughout the year. At minimum, make sure that everyone has the appropriate police phone number.

Help your neighbors have a great holiday season by stopping burglary of holiday packages. Involve your HOA and at least ask them for recommendations on how to handle the issue in your neighborhood.

Association Management Group Offers Community Safety Tips For Halloween

  

     Fall celebrations like Halloween and Harvest Day are fun times for children, who can dress up in costumes, enjoy parties, and eat yummy treats. These celebrations also provide a chance to give out healthy snacks, get physical activity, and focus on safety.

    Halloween is a popular time of year for kids and families. But Halloween comes with its own set of safety risks. Make sure you check with your homeowner's association for any specific rules pertaining to Halloween activities.

At AMG we would like to offer these 10 tips to make sure your community takes measures to help little ghosts and goblins stay safe while trick-or-treating.

1. Make sure your community has proper outdoor lighting so drivers can see costumes in the dark. It’s a startling fact that children are twice as likely to be hit by a car on Halloween than any other day of the year.

2. If there is no lighting provide children a glow-in-the-dark costume or a reflective trick-or-treat bag. Children should use a flashlight or glow stick when walking at night.

 3. Get together with neighbors and Trick-or-treat in a group. Kids younger than 13 should go with an adult. Older kids always should go in a group on a planned route that the parents have scheduled.

4. Before Halloween teach kids to cross streets at crosswalks and intersections, stop at street corners, look left, right and left again before crossing to make sure a vehicle is not coming.

5. Instruct children to only visit homes of people they know and only accept treats at the door. Enforce to children to never enter a home or car.

6. Make sure facial paints, cosmetics, masks and costumes are safe for walking. If a mask is used, make certain the eye and nose openings do not restrict vision or breathing.

7. When walking with children enter and exit driveways and alleys carefully

8. Tell your children not to eat any treats until they return home.

9. Have your neighborhood watch volunteers ready to be the eyes and ears of the neighborhood on Halloween night. Have someone on patrol.

10. Schedule an after Halloween volunteer clean up crew to go through community streets to clean up candy, paper and items from the big Trick-or-treat night.

 
Practice safe Halloween tips for the health and safety of families. AMG wishes your family a safe and happy Halloween