What does a Community Association Manager do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read

Community association managers are responsible for managing the common property and services of condominiums, organized communities, and cooperatives. Their tasks include preparing financial statements and budgets, collecting monthly assessments, negotiating with contractors, and assist in solving complaints. Also, they communicate daily with homeowners and other residents and supervise the maintenance of properties and facilities. Additionally, they help the board and homeowners in observing with the association and the government laws and regulations, administer the association's budget and financial records, and solve legal issues or disputes.

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Community association manager responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real community association manager resumes:

  • Manage numerous capital improvements, including elevator modernization and HVAC upgrades, delivering projects on time and in budget.
  • Manage segment's treasury function including equity forecasting and investment requests as well as lender relations in a difficult banking environment.
  • Process payroll tax payments and payroll-relate IRS forms.
  • Process checks for payment and process bi-weekly payroll.
  • Attend several training programs and create the accounting system in Quickbooks for association.
  • Maintain all accounts QuickBooks proficient, confident phone demeanor/presence and take charge of a collection position.
  • Coordinate with various entities including contractors, security and landscaping to ensure standards of home associations (HOA).
  • Prepare and mail community newsletter and all correspondence pertaining to HOA business
  • Update and track tenant lease abstracts and conduct month end closing procedures including journal entry preparation and reconciliations.
  • Prepare charge-back reconciliations, identify existing and potential problems, and develop detail positions for presentation to management.
  • Prepare and deliver all collection notices, process evictions on delinquent residents, underpayments and NSF reimbursements as required.
  • Plan and organize special CE events and awards luncheons.
  • Formulate annual budget with CPA.
  • Assist with financial audit with CPA and generate all year end adjusting entries.
  • Set up semi-annual preventative maintenance visits for HVAC, plumbing, fire alarm inspectors, and back up natural gas generator.

Community association manager skills and personality traits

We calculated that 16% of Community Association Managers are proficient in Customer Service, Property Management, and Cam. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Interpersonal skills, and Listening skills.

We break down the percentage of Community Association Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Customer Service, 16%

    General customer service interaction with homeowners, Directors and vendors.

  • Property Management, 12%

    Close relationships with several vendors and other corporations that have proven beneficial to the property management industry.

  • Cam, 7%

    Promoted from Builder's Assistant to a Builder's Manager within the Department CAM's Responsibilities:.

  • HOA, 6%

    Prepared and mailed community newsletter and all correspondence pertaining to HOA business

  • Meeting Minutes, 5%

    Assist in preparation of the Annual Budget and coordination of board meetings; capable of taking board meeting minutes if necessary.

  • Provide Management, 5%

    Provide management, direction, and leadership to ensure the property is maintained and operated in accordance with Company objectives.

Most community association managers use their skills in "customer service," "property management," and "cam" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential community association manager responsibilities here:

Customer-service skills. One of the key soft skills for a community association manager to have is customer-service skills. You can see how this relates to what community association managers do because "property, real estate, and community association managers must provide excellent support to keep existing clients and expand their business with new ones." Additionally, a community association manager resume shows how community association managers use customer-service skills: "acted as liaison between the licensed community association manager and property owners, tenants and guests on a daily basis. "

Interpersonal skills. Another essential skill to perform community association manager duties is interpersonal skills. Community association managers responsibilities require that "property, real estate, and community association managers interact with different types of people every day." Community association managers also use interpersonal skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "key achievements: utilize stellar interpersonal skills to communicate escalating property/client concerns to hoa and lmr management. "

Listening skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of community association managers is listening skills. This skill is critical to many everyday community association manager duties, as "property, real estate, and community association managers pay attention to residents and proprietors in order to understand and meet their needs." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "communicated with association owners and managed the owner satisfaction between management, the association board, vendors and contractors. "

Organizational skills. For certain community association manager responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "organizational skills." The day-to-day duties of a community association manager rely on this skill, as "property, real estate, and community association managers must be able to plan, coordinate, and direct multiple contractors at the same time, often for multiple properties." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what community association managers do: "collaborated with retained attorneys and provided organizational structure of covenants rules, restrictions, regulations, and bylaws. "

Communication skills. A commonly-found skill in community association manager job descriptions, "communication skills" is essential to what community association managers do. Community association manager responsibilities rely on this skill because "property, real estate, and community association managers must understand contracts and must be able to clearly explain the materials and answer questions raised by residents, board members, or service providers." You can also see how community association manager duties rely on communication skills in this resume example: "act as the liaison between the association and the management company, maintain positive communication. "

Problem-solving skills. Another skill commonly found on community association manager job descriptions is "problem-solving skills." It can come up quite often in community association manager duties, since "property, real estate, and community association managers must be able to mediate disputes or legal issues between different groups of people, such as residents and board members." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day community association manager responsibilities: "investigate conflicts, violations and/or complaints and resolved issues in accordance with the governing documents and regulations of the community association. "

Most common community association manager skills

The three companies that hire the most community association managers are:

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Compare different community association managers

Community association manager vs. Leasing agent

A leasing agent primarily works to assist and represent property owners when finding and managing tenants. They are in charge of advertising and promoting the properties in different areas or platforms, developing marketing strategies, coordinating with applicants, gathering their requirements, verifying the applicants' paperwork and references, and negotiating leasing terms. Moreover, a leasing agent also acts as the landlord because they serve as the tenants' point of contact regarding issues and concerns, conduct property inspections, and manage the properties' maintenance operations, coordinating with the owners regularly.

If we compare the average community association manager annual salary with that of a leasing agent, we find that leasing agents typically earn a $23,942 lower salary than community association managers make annually.While their salaries may differ, the common ground between community association managers and leasing agents are a few of the skills required in each roleacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities. In both careers, employee duties involve skills like customer service, property management, and residential properties.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, community association manager responsibilities require skills like "cam," "hoa," "meeting minutes," and "provide management." Meanwhile a typical leasing agent has skills in areas such as "yardi," "rent payments," "background checks," and "apartment homes." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Leasing agents tend to make the most money working in the retail industry, where they earn an average salary of $36,389. In contrast, community association managers make the biggest average salary, $57,608, in the start-up industry.On average, leasing agents reach similar levels of education than community association managers. Leasing agents are 3.5% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Community association manager vs. Leasing consultant

A Leasing Consultant specializes in helping property owners secure tenants for their rental properties. Most of the responsibilities include coordinating with landlords to find suitable occupants, posting rental notices and advertisements on various platforms, and monitor the quality of every rental property. Furthermore, Leasing Consultants must ensure that the tenants will be able to uphold the leasing agreements by screening potential applications through particular requirements, evaluating and verifying the applicant's documentation, and negotiating the contract terms.

On average, leasing consultants earn a $24,873 lower salary than community association managers a year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Community association managers and leasing consultants both require similar skills like "customer service," "property management," and "strong customer service" to carry out their responsibilities.

Each career also uses different skills, according to real community association manager resumes. While community association manager responsibilities can utilize skills like "cam," "hoa," "meeting minutes," and "provide management," leasing consultants use skills like "yardi," "data entry," "product knowledge," and "apartment homes."

Leasing consultants earn a lower average salary than community association managers. But leasing consultants earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $33,561. Additionally, community association managers earn the highest salaries in the start-up with average pay of $57,608 annually.In general, leasing consultants achieve similar levels of education than community association managers. They're 3.1% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Community association manager vs. Leasing professional

A Leasing Professional is responsible for handling and coordinating with potential tenants for rental purposes. Leasing Professionals discuss the leasing terms and agreements with the clients, conduct property inspections, and identify possible repairs and renovations. They also evaluate the current market performance to negotiate pricing and payment procedures. A Leasing Professional must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in processing lease documents efficiently, responding to clients' inquiries and concerns, and adhering to state regulations and policies.

An average leasing professional eans a lower salary compared to the average salary of community association managers. The difference in salaries amounts to leasing professionals earning a $24,658 lower average salary than community association managers.By looking over several community association managers and leasing professionals resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "customer service," "strong customer service," and "phone calls." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from community association manager resumes include skills like "property management," "cam," "hoa," and "meeting minutes," whereas a leasing professional is more likely to list skills in "yardi," "property tours," "lease renewals," and "work ethic. "

Leasing professionals earn the highest salary when working in the finance industry, where they receive an average salary of $35,035. Comparatively, community association managers have the highest earning potential in the start-up industry, with an average salary of $57,608.leasing professionals typically earn similar educational levels compared to community association managers. Specifically, they're 3.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.8% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Community association manager vs. Director of property management

A director of property management oversees and directs the property management programs and projects of an organization. They take the lead in identifying and meeting the needs of different facilities, researching client and business opportunities, gathering and analyzing data from annual and monthly reports, coordinating with suppliers and contractors, and making significant decisions. They also participate in managing tenants, overseeing marketing procedures, and solving issues when any arise. Moreover, a director of property management sets goals, establishes timelines and guidelines, empowers employees, and implements company standards and policies.

Directors of property management average a higher salary than the annual salary of community association managers. The difference is about $39,747 per year.While both community association managers and directors of property management complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like property management, cam, and hoa, the two careers vary in some skills.While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "customer service," "meeting minutes," "provide management," and "strong customer service" are skills that commonly show up on community association manager resumes. On the other hand, directors of property management use skills like financial reports, yardi, hvac, and financial performance on their resumes.The average resume of directors of property management showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to community association managers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 1.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.2%.

Types of community association manager

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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