How to switch HOA management companies in Palm Beach County

A board changes management companies by following four things in order: read the management contract for its term and termination clause, give the written notice that clause requires, make sure the association's records and money come back to the board intact, and tell the owners. Everything else, from interviewing a new firm to moving vendor accounts, hangs off those four. Florida law sets the rules for HOAs in Chapter 720 and for condominiums in Chapter 718; your declaration, bylaws and management agreement add the rest.

Boards usually start looking because of slow answers, budgets that do not tie out, or a manager who changes every year. Whatever the reason, make the change on the contract's timetable and with the paperwork in your hands, not in the middle of a dispute. If you would rather talk it through, call (561) 779-3213. Our HOA and condo association management page shows what a licensed CAM does for a board day to day.

The agreement decides how and when you can leave. Pull the signed copy, not a summary, and find these clauses:

• Term and renewal. Many agreements renew automatically unless someone gives notice before a stated date. Missing that date can lock a board in for another term.
• Termination for convenience and for cause. Some agreements allow either side to leave on written notice; others allow it only for a stated breach, with a cure period.
• Early-termination fees. Look for any charge for leaving before the term ends, and what it is calculated on.
• Transition duties. Does the outgoing firm owe the board a handover of records, accounts and keys, and by when?
• Who signs for the association. Confirm which officers or what board vote can authorize notice under your bylaws.

Have the association attorney read the clauses that matter. A short review before notice goes out is far cheaper than a dispute afterward.

Notice is a formal act. Follow the agreement's method exactly: written, signed by the person the contract names, sent to the address it names, by the delivery method it names. A board vote to terminate belongs in the minutes before the letter goes out, and the letter should reference the clause relied on and the effective date. Keep proof of delivery with the minutes.

Do not announce the change to owners or vendors before notice is delivered. The outgoing firm should hear it from the board, in writing, first. And do not stop paying the current firm for work it is still doing while the notice period runs; a payment dispute is the easiest way to turn a clean exit into a fight.

The association's records and money belong to the association, not to the management company. Chapters 718 and 720 set out what an association must keep and what members may inspect, so ask your attorney which records the statute names for your type of community. Plan the handover as a checklist that both firms sign:

• Governing documents, minutes, resolutions, and the current owner roster and mailing addresses.
• Financial records: general ledger, bank statements, budgets, reserve schedules, audits or reviews, tax filings, and the latest reserve study or SIRS where one applies.
• Account control: signature cards, online banking access, and the status of operating, reserve and any lockbox accounts. The board should confirm in writing that the accounts are in the association's name and who may sign.
• Owner accounts: assessment ledgers, open delinquencies and any accounts already with the association attorney.
• Insurance policies, certificates and claim files, and contracts, warranties and permits for ongoing work.
• Keys, gate and access credentials, website and portal logins, and the association's domain and email accounts.

Ask for the closing financial position as of the last day of service, and have the new manager or an independent accountant reconcile it. Any gap is far easier to resolve in the first weeks than a year later.

Landscaping, pool, security, elevator, waste and repair vendors are usually contracted in the association's name, but invoices, scheduling and insurance certificates often run through the management company. List every vendor, its contract term, its renewal date and its certificate of insurance expiry. Decide which contracts stay, which get rebid, and who the vendors will call going forward.

Open repair projects need extra care. Confirm the scope, the permit status, what has been paid and what is owed, and who is supervising the work. Randolph also holds a Certified General Contractor license (CGC1528750), so a board changing firms can have a licensed contractor read the scope of an in-progress repair rather than taking either firm's summary on trust.

Owners should hear about the change from the board, in plain words, before they notice a new name on a statement. A short notice should say who the new manager is, the date of the change, where to send payments, whom to call for a maintenance problem, and where to find the association's documents. Follow the notice method your documents and the statute require, and keep a copy with the minutes. A short notice with the dates, and no commentary about the outgoing firm, keeps the transition calm.

Interview at least two firms against the same written scope. Ask each one to name the licensed Community Association Manager who will be responsible for your community and to show the firm's license. In Florida, community association managers are licensed under Chapter 468, Part VIII, and management firms hold a firm license. Randolph Scott Bell holds CAM34850 as an individual manager and BeacCorp holds CAB3255 as a Community Association Management Firm.

Then ask how the firm handles the things that went wrong with the last one: how quickly the books close each month, how board packets are prepared, how vendor bids are collected, and what the transition plan looks like. For how fees are usually structured, see our property management fees guide. If your building is subject to milestone inspection and reserve-study rules, ask how the firm tracks those clocks; our milestone inspection and SIRS guide covers them.