HOAs are responsible for a variety of tasks within a community of homes, villas, apartments, or even condos. One of the responsibilities that an HOA will face within a community is to ensure that the roads are appropriately maintained throughout the neighborhood or development. This includes the maintenance that is required, over time, on the roads that run throughout the community. Reasons like this are why it is very important for homeowners to understand what their homeowners association covers and what their fees are covering.
The costs entailed with maintaining the roads or roadways in an HOA will require over time varies from neighborhood to neighborhood. However, some of the following can be counted on as typical costs and repairs that most communities will have to face in over the course of time, including:
- Maintaining Parking Lots: Many HOAs, especially condos or apartments will have parking spaces for each resident to use. Many of these parking spaces are not in garages, but rather are outside and subject to the elements that can cause the pavement to require maintenance to keep the parking lots in working order. This can include anything from filling in ditches to repaving the lot every few years to keep it in working order.
- Filling Potholes: Potholes are an inevitable part of life, especially in communities that experience various weather conditions such as hot and cold temperatures throughout the year. Filling any massive holes that come up in the road can help keep residents safe and also protect them from things like tire blowouts or risking the fact that their wheels may become unaligned if they hit a hole hard enough or at a high enough rate of speed. It also provides a smoother ride through the neighborhood or development for all residents - literally.
- Painting the Roads: Painting lane dividers and dotted lines on the road is another expense that many communities must account for. Ensuring drivers know which lanes are turn-only lanes, which way you are allowed to turn from which lane, and where other traffic may go is vital to ensuring the safety of all drivers. While the pavement painting can last and it is not just chalk on the concrete, eventually these lines will need to be repainted as paint will fade over time and need to be repainted every few years to keep the lines bold and fresh, as well as easy to read.
- Remove Debris/Roadkill: Removing any sort of debris that falls on the roads such as fallen tree branches or stray pieces of trash that litter the roadsides will help keep the roads looking clean and fresh as possible. Moreover, also look for roadkill that can be spotted throughout the community including small animals that may have been hit on the road. Removing such debris will make the community look cleaner and more appealing to everyone, especially visitors and potential buyers in the community.
Clean Neighborhoods/Developments Improve Home Value:
Keeping the entire neighborhood, including the parking lots and roadways clean and clear can help increase the values of homes within the community. No one wants to come driving through their neighborhood to find potholes that could cause damage to their vehicle driving through them or roadkill on the side of the road. Clean, debris-free streets that are well-maintained and clearly marked through painted notations, however, can help make the neighborhood a safe, accident-free place to drive and park. This makes that community a more desirable place to live and the residents of it will appreciate an easy commute to and from their homes, no matter where they are going.
Maintaining Roads Now Saves in the Future:
Maintaining your community's roadways and parking lots now will help save time and money in the future. Ensuring that the community is well-kept and clean now ensures that you do not have to do a total road re-do in the future. It might cost more now, but it will save money in the future when in 10 years the entire road system in the neighborhood or development needs reconstructed because they are so far beyond repair. Plan the costs into the HOA fees and keep the maintenance up every few years.
Final Note: Include the Cost of Labor:
It's easy to determine how much it will cost for the materials to resurface the parking lot or to patch a few potholes, however, being sure to include the labor costs is what will really set the budgets apart as far as accurate estimates on how much maintenance will cost. Be sure to include the cost of labor in the estimates for what you will need to spend to keep your road system maintained.
Camille Moore
Mary Arnold, CMCA®, AMS®
Jennifer Harvey
