Frequently asked questions.

Common Interest Developments (CIDs), usually referred to as homeowners associations or HOAs, are communities that are built with one or more things in common or shared among the homeowners. These things can vary quite a lot from just a few to many. How much and what your community has in common was determined when it was first planned by the developer and agreed to by the city you live in. For example, you may live in a community that just has some common area landscaping, a wall, and a marquee sign out front. Or you may live in a gated community with a security service, private streets, and common area landscaping. You may even live in attached town homes with common roofs, common exterior siding, private streets, common area landscaping, a pool, etc. All of these examples represent various types of CIDs, and all require management services to function on a day-to-day basis.

The specifics about what you and your neighbors have in common can be found in the documents that govern your community and are recorded with the County. These documents are legally binding and transfer responsibility from one homeowner to the next. The document that you should become most familiar with is the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions, commonly known as the CC&Rs. This document spells out what your homeowners association is responsible for and what you are responsible for. It also details what rules must be followed within your community for the good of all the homeowners. Not everyone likes to live in a neighborhood where they have to abide by specific rules when it comes to their home, lot, and way of living, which is why living in homeowners associations is not for everyone. Fortunately, there are still plenty of single-family home communities around that are not part of CIDs. But others like knowing that someone (i.e. their association) is looking out to protect their property values and providing consistency within the neighborhood.

The association is a non-profit corporation that is made up of all the homeowners who own homes within that community. Each homeowner is a member in the association. Therefore, the association is an entity unto itself. Frequently, homeowners mistakenly think of HOA Quality Management, LLC (the management company) as their association instead of realizing that the management company is paid by the association to help manage the various tasks that a particular association is responsible for. HOA Quality Management, LLC (HOA QM) manages not only your association but several others as well. They are hired by the Board of Directors, which is made up of homeowners within the community who are elected to help govern the community, making whatever decisions are needed at the regular Board meetings. The Board members are volunteers and usually serve in their role for terms of one or two years at a time (depending on the association’s Bylaws), after which they may run for election again if they wish. Because they are volunteers, they have their own busy lives and do not have the time or the expertise to manage the day-to-day activities of the association. In addition, Board members come and go. Some may serve for several years and become very familiar with their community, but others may only serve for a year or two. Having a professional management company who continues to serve a community for many years provides consistency and history when new Board members are elected who do not have that history.

Decisions are made by the Board members and according to the governing documents and also the laws that govern CIDs. Because Board members are not experts in homeowners associations, they rely on management to help keep them in compliance with the laws that govern CIDs. HOA Quality Management does not have any legal expertise but does keep abreast of the laws that govern HOAs and does help to advise a Board as to when consulting with an attorney may be necessary.

If you live in a newly built community, you may have a tendency to confuse HOA Quality Management with the developer who built your home. The developer does choose and hire the management company initially, but they typically work with several different management companies for the various communities they build, and management companies frequently work with different developers as well. If you have concerns with your home itself, you should direct those concerns to the builder of your home (assuming it’s still new enough to be under some sort of warranty). However, if your questions or concerns have to do with the community in which you live and the common things you share with your neighbors in that community, then you should contact HOA Quality Management. Of course, if you need the number for your developer, HOA QM will be happy to provide you with that number.

HOA QM takes direction from the elected Board of Directors and helps to oversee the day-to-day activities of the community. Besides providing expertise consultation to the Board of Directors in regard to CIDs and compliance with the laws and governing documents, there are many other functions that HOA QM performs, most of which would probably bore you to read through in this already-lengthy article :); however, some of the most common tasks that may interest you are: answering homeowner questions and concerns; facilitating the architectural approval process; administration of maintenance for common buildings, landscaping, trees, streets, pools, lights, fencing, roofs, etc. (depending on what’s included in your particular HOA); supervising other vendors who work for the association; helping with CC&R enforcement; preparing a draft budget; providing bookkeeping services, including billing and collecting the assessments and paying the monthly bills for the community; site inspections; acquiring bids as needed; overseeing Annual meetings at which the elections are held; preparing Board packets and helping to administrate the Board meetings; preparing minutes and newsletters; handling escrow transactions, and much, much more!

One other common misunderstanding homeowners have has to do with the finances for their community. There is an annual budget that is approved by the Board of Directors and is designed, as best as possible, to cover the expenses needed to keep the community functioning not only in the current year but also in the years to come. It is not designed to make a profit. In fact, if there are excess funds left at the end of the year, there is a vote taken at each annual meeting to use those funds to offset expenses in the next year. Just like individual homeowners should have a budget to help meet their day-to-day needs and a savings to meet future needs, the association has both an operating budget for monthly expenses and a reserve budget to cover future expenses on the common things that must be made to last and, eventually, replaced. When homeowners pay their assessments (commonly referred to by homeowners as “dues”), they are paying to fund both the operating budget and the reserves needed for the future. That budget is relatively simple in a community that doesn’t have many common things they are responsible for, according to their CC&Rs, and it can be quite lengthy in a community which is responsible for more maintenance items, such as common roofs, roadways, a pool, etc. HOA QM, like other vendors who serve the community, receives monthly compensation for their management services. That compensation is listed as a line item on the operating budget.

Documents, board meeting agendas, financials, and past newsletters live in your community’s resident portal.

Visit the resident portal →

Title companies and escrow officers find everything they need on our Escrow page — the documents to order, fees, turnaround times, and where to send checks. Send your title company or escrow officer there directly.

Call (925) 625-1518 and use extension 52, then follow the instructions carefully.

Make your check payable to your homeowners association, not to the management company or bank, please.

It is the 15th of the month. Please schedule your payment to arrive between the 1st and the 15th.

The late fee is 10% of your assessment amount or $10, whichever is greater.

Please mail your payments to:

(Make payment payable to your homeowners association, not to Heritage Bank or HOA Quality Management.)

Yes; however, please include your account number on the memo portion of your check and be sure it is payable to your homeowner’s association (not Heritage Bank or HOA Quality Management). If you don’t have your account number, please email bookkeeper@hoaqualitymgmt.com.

While that is not preferred, it is allowed, but it does create more work for the bookkeeper.

Yes, you may, and there is no charge for this service. Sign up for Heritage Bank of Commerce Auto Pay →

Yes, you may, but you will be charged service fees by Heritage Bank of Commerce.

Email Heritage Bank at HOASpecialtyBanking@herbank.com or call (844) 489-0999 for assistance.