In this week's tip, we reveal the secrets of "selling" a special assessment to your "buyer" owners.

Start by understanding that owners will need to process the idea of a special assessment. "Give the owners lots of time to catch up and understand what the needs are and why," says Debra A. Warren, principal of Cinnabar Consulting in San Rafael, Calif., which provides training and employee development services to community association management firms and training and strategic planning sessions for association board members.

"Give yourself a nice time frame, say six months. Most boards say, 'Oh, my gosh, we can't wait that long!' But to be successful, if it's not an emergency, you have to give yourself that time."

That's true, says Elizabeth White, a shareholder and head of the community associations practice at the law firm of LeClairRyan in Williamsburg, Va. "This is one area where the longer the rollout, the better," she says. "Some boards think that's a bunch of hoo-hah. They say, 'Let's just do our job. We don't have time to meet with all the homeowners.'"

That's a mistake because owners must process their feelings about a special assessment. "Owners have to go through that same five-step process that happens in grieving," says Warren. "First they'll be in shock, then they'll be angry, and then they're going to blame somebody before they're willing to say, 'OK, I'm ready to look at the options and make the reasonable decision.' It's important to give them that time. If you try to have the meeting for the vote too soon, owners will still have the anger and won't vote for it."

To learn more, see our new article on Tips for "Selling" a Special Assessment.

Best regards,

Matt Humphrey

President