Guest Editor’s Note

By Allison L. Andersen, Esq.

As we move further away from the COVID-19 pandemic, there is one lesson that we have hopefully all learned: effective communication can be the key to success, even during the most difficult times. Community managers are required to understand a significant amount of material to become certified, but a manager’s inability to communicate can thwart even the best plans and projects. Even the simplest of tasks can be doomed if the manager cannot empathize, discuss, and sometimes negotiate with community members.

“Effective communication can be the key to success, even during the most difficult times.”

The Winter Law Journal focuses on how poor communication can serve as an obstacle to success and identifies specific situations where good communication is a must. David F. Feingold’s article on Dealing With Difficult People provides counsel on identifying personality types and providing strategies for working with those personalities. Karyn A. Larko’s article outlines the legal requirements for the Management and Administration of Owner Communications Jasmine F. Hale, Andrew Parslow, and Stephen M. Levine then write about the dirt in the details of Contract Negotiation and Administration 101, How to Best Govern Additional Dwelling Units in a Homeowners Association, and the Management and Administration of Architectural Standards. We thank all the authors for their contributions.

The end of the year is always an exciting time for our profession. We can look back at the lessons we have learned and consider how to implement them in the future. Who ever thought at the outset of the pandemic that Zoom would increase owner participation? We can also look forward to new laws that might streamline certain aspects of community governance! 2024 is going to be a great year!

I hope you all enjoy the holiday season, and I look forward to seeing you at the next CACM event.

Allison L. Andersen, Esq., has spent 21 years working with HOAs. She is an attorney with Angius & Terry LLP in Sacramento, specializing in community association law.