How to Change HOA Management Companies

Changing management companies is one of the bigger decisions an HOA or condo association board makes. Done carefully, owners notice better service and little else. Done in a hurry, records go missing and bills go unpaid. This guide walks a board through the decision, the contract, what has to change hands and how to compare proposals.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Have your association’s attorney review your management contract and any termination notice before you send it.

Signs it’s time to switch

Every manager has a bad week. A pattern is different. Boards usually start looking when they see several of these:

• Financials arrive late, incomplete or hard to read, or bank reconciliations and reserve balances are never shown.
• Maintenance requests stall, and the board ends up chasing vendors itself.
• Owners can’t get answers by phone or email, or they hear different answers from different people.
• The board doesn’t trust the numbers: unexplained charges, late fees owners didn’t expect, or collections that never seem to move.
• Meetings aren’t prepared: no agenda, no packet, minutes that come late or not at all.
• Turnover: a new community manager every year, each starting from scratch.
• Compliance gaps: governance policies nobody has reviewed in years, a lapsed state registration, or an annual disclosure that never went out.

Before you decide, raise the problems with your current company in writing and give it a chance to fix them. If nothing changes, you will at least have a clear record of why the board moved on.

Read your management contract

Your management agreement sets the rules for leaving. Read it, and ask your association’s attorney to read it, before the board votes. Look for:

• The term. Is it a fixed term, does it renew automatically, and when is the next renewal date?
• Termination without cause. Many contracts allow either side to end the agreement with written notice. Find the notice period and the exact way notice must be given.
• Termination for cause. What counts as cause, and is there a cure period first?
• Fees on the way out. Look for termination fees, charges for copying or delivering records, and how the final month is billed.
• Return of records and funds. Good contracts say the association’s records, money and passwords must be turned over promptly when the agreement ends.

CCIOA lets the board discuss the managing agent’s contract in executive session (C.R.S. 38-33.3-308(3)). Ask your attorney how and where the board’s final vote should be taken and recorded.

Time the switch with care. Changing managers just before a budget is due, an annual meeting or the end of the fiscal year adds work for everyone, so plan the start date around those deadlines where you can.

What has to transfer

Association records and money belong to the association, not to the management company (CCIOA lists the records an association must keep in C.R.S. 38-33.3-317). Before the outgoing manager’s last day, the board should have a written list of what will be handed over. A typical list:

• Money and bank access: operating and reserve accounts, signers, online banking, and a reconciliation through the transfer date. If an association with 30 or more units uses a managing agent, its funds must be kept separate from other associations’ funds, and reserves separate from operating accounts (C.R.S. 38-33.3-306(3)).
• Financial records: the general ledger, budgets, financial statements, tax returns, audit or review reports, and accounts payable.
• Owner accounts: each owner’s ledger and balance, payment plans, and the status of any delinquent account that is with a collection agency or an attorney.
• Governing documents and policies: the declaration, plats and maps, articles, bylaws, rules, and the responsible governance policies.
• Minutes and records of actions taken by the owners, the board and committees.
• Contracts and vendors: current service contracts, warranties, certificates of insurance and vendor contacts.
• Insurance: current policies, the agent’s contact details and claim history.
• Property files: the reserve study, building plans, maintenance history, keys, fobs, gate and alarm codes.
• Owner and portal data: owner contact lists, mailing preferences, architectural requests and approvals, and violation history.

Once the new manager starts, update the association’s registration with the Colorado Division of Real Estate, including its designated agent (C.R.S. 38-33.3-401), and the management company details in the annual disclosure to owners.

What to expect from a new manager

A new management company should give the board a clear plan for the transition: who your community manager will be, when the board and owners will hear from them, and how owners will pay assessments and reach the office from the first day.

At Mountain Valley, onboarding runs in phases, and our operations manager, community manager and accounting team each own their part:

• In your first week: a transition meeting with your board; the management agreement, Articles of Incorporation and Tax ID on file; your owner roster imported into Vantaca; your insurance policies reviewed; and your registered agent updated with the Colorado Secretary of State. Your board approves a welcome letter, and we send it to every owner by email and by mail.
• Your records: we request the association’s history from the board and the outgoing manager in a shared checklist the board can follow, from governing documents and insurance to bank accounts, minutes, legal and collections history, financials, keys, site plans and vendor contracts. Every document is reviewed by our team, not just collected.
• In the first weeks: new operating and reserve accounts, funds moved from the old bank, and owner payments routed to the new accounts. We set up assessments, late fees and your budget in Vantaca, give owners portal access, train your board and owners on the portal, and send the first owner statements.
• In the first months: our accounting team rebuilds your opening balances from the prior manager’s records and documents the transition. We switch every utility and vendor account over and rebuild the autopays, move your DORA registration to us, and review your governance policies against current Colorado law with your attorney and board. Before the first snow we walk the property, develop its snow plan and set up its preventive maintenance schedule, and we hold the first board meeting to review the budget. Your board receives a full financial package by the 20th of each month.
• Close-out: we walk the property, complete a final document review and sit down with your board for a review meeting.

If records are missing, we give the board a written list of what is still outstanding and why it matters. If the outgoing manager is slow to respond, we follow up in writing, work from the records the board already holds, and bring in the association’s attorney if records are withheld. Onboarding is done when your books are reconciled, every account is switched over, your policies are reviewed, and your board has had its review meeting.

In the first months, expect your new manager to ask the board a lot of questions. The answers become the community’s calendar, vendor list and priorities, and they are worth the time.

Questions to ask in proposals

Ask every company the same questions, in writing, so you can compare answers side by side:

• Who will manage our community day to day, and how many other associations does that person manage?
• What credentials does the team hold? Colorado has had no state license for community association managers since its licensing program expired in 2019, so voluntary credentials such as CMCA and AMS, and CAI membership, are a useful signal.
• What does the base fee include, and what is billed separately? See our guide to HOA management fees.
• When do monthly financials arrive, and what is in the package?
• How are association funds held? Ask whether reserves are in separate accounts and whether the company carries crime and fidelity coverage.
• Who does the maintenance? In-house staff, outside vendors, or both, and how after-hours emergencies are handled.
• What can owners and board members do in the portal?
• How does the handover work, and what will the board need to do?
• May we speak with boards you currently manage?

Mountain Valley manages HOAs and condo associations across the Vail Valley, Summit County and the Roaring Fork Valley from our office in Eagle-Vail. Our HOA management page explains how we work with boards, and you can ask for a free assessment of your community below.