Prince George’s County Community Association Conference: A Growing Success
The 3rd annual Prince George’s County Community Association Conference was held September, 11 2010. Themed, “Associations Thriving In Today’s Economy,” it was held at Prince George’s Sports and Learning Complex in Landover, MD. The event draws real estate professionals and HOA board, as well as, association members. Attendees and participants were welcomed by Program Manager of Common Ownership Communities, Daria Bailey. Following the welcome, the Prince George’s County Office of the Sheriff performed the Presentation of Colors and County Executive Jack Johnson lead a moment of silence for national reflection. Delegate Aisha Braveboy delivered some words of welcome and set the day’s events into motion. The opening concluded with door prize giveaways sponsored by D.H, Bader Management Services, H & E Management Associates, Legacy Investment & Management, Nagle & Zaller, Pro Com and T&A Covenant Solutions.
The exhibition included service providers of HOA relevance including realty, management and engineering groups, attorneys, building maintenance, landscaping, restoration inspection, architectural groups and banks. Some companies represented were Bect Engineering,T&A Covenant Solutions, Legacy Investment & Management, and Construction Defect Attorney Nick Cowie. The workshops began with Attorney Craig Zaller addressing Community Covenants & Rules Enforcement. CEO of the Community Association Institute, Thomas Skiba and Community Manager of the Montgomery Village Foundation, Aimee Winegar addressed the topic of Hope for Condominiums in the current economic climate. “Budgeting in Today’s Economy”, was presented by Kyndall Franicis of Legacy Investment & Management, and Howard Goldklang of Goldklang Group CPAs. The Town Hall Annex housed the workshop for Online County Resources. Presentation contributors were Carol Terry of the Department of Environmental Resources, Erv Beckert of the Department of Public Works & Transportation and Lauren Oliphant of the Maryland National Capital Park & Planning Commission.
The workshops proved to be successful, informative events for participants and the conference continues to grow in attendance and is inline to be even more successful next year.
2010 Prince George’s County Community Association Conference Announced
Prince George's County, Maryland - Delegate Aisha Braveboy of the 25th District has formally announced that the 2010 Conference Associations Sustaining Livable Communities Conference will be held on September 11, 2010 at the Prince George's County Sports and Learning complex, conveniently locatedat 8001 Sheriff Road, Landover, MD 20785.
This annual event, hosted by Ms.Aisha Braveboy is one of the most important events in the community association industry. This year's event will have a unique opportunity for common ownership communities as well as federal, state, county and municipality's and their officials to spend a full day learning and collaborating with those who make the decisions in the county and work exclusively in the industry. Ms. Braveboy's focus will be on the continued need for change and the practical ways to increase success within the community association industry. This year's partners in facilitating this event are the Prince George's County Government, Legacy Investment and Management, and the Olde Mill Foundation. They will all be working exclusively and directly with delegate Aisha Braveboy and the COC (Common Ownership Commission). At this time, confirmed conference guest speakers include Jack B. Johnson, County Executive; Roberto Hilton, Acting Police Chief; Kyndall Francis, Principal and CEO of Legacy Investment and Management; Douglas Gansler, Maryland Attorney General; Samuel J. Parker, Jr., Chairman of the Prince George's County MNCPPC Board; and construction defects attorney, Nick Cowie of Cowie and Mott. It is encouraged that all Maryland, DC and Virginia residents, homeowners and members of community associations attend this all important event.
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Homeowners Charged for Winter's Snow
Reprint Permission: USA TODAY Updated: May 10, 2010
By Katharine Lackey, USA TODAY
The unusually heavy snowstorms of last winter may be melting into memory, but the cold reality of what it cost to clear all that snow is hitting some homeowners in the pocket. Home-owners associations in states where the storms hit hardest, including Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Delaware, as well as in Washington, D.C, are charging owners extra fees for the snow removal and putting projects on hold as they scramble to cover the extra expenses.
"In many cases, the snow removal was five to 10 times what people budgeted," says Mel Herzberger, president of American Community Management, which manages 170 communities in the Baltimore-Washington area.
Kyndall Francis, CEO of Legacy Investment and Management, estimates about half of his 54 community association clients in the Washington area needed to charge residents a one-time assessment. Most charge $75 to $150 and $200 is the highest amount, Francis says. "What we don't want to do is we don't want to run at a deficit, and we don't want to postpone important maintenance," he says.
Many associations were fighting the tough economy and housing crisis when the winter bore down on them, says Frank Rathbun, spokesman for the Community Associations Institute, a national organization that provides education and resources for residential associations."Where heavy amounts of snow fell during the winter, I'm sure many associations were set back," he says.
Feb. Blizzards Drained Home Associations' Budgets
Now they face unpopular choice of raising fees or cutting services
Reprint Permission: The Baltimore Sun Published: March 23, 2010
By Jamie Smith Hopkins, The Baltimore Sun
The Dorsey Hall Condominium Association in Ellicott City overran its snow-removal budget by about $30,000 in back-to-back blizzards last month - the equivalent of $200 extra for each of the 132 households in the neighborhood.
Snow expenses are piling up across the Baltimore area. The February storms that dumped more than 40 inches on the region in the space of a week have strained homeowner and condo associations, draining reserves and leaving many with a tough choice: Cut services or raise residents' fees. "Something will suffer, that's for sure," said Vivek Mehta, Dorsey Hall association president.
Once the bills are tallied for homeowner and condo associations, half of those in this area might be forced to ask members to pay more to cover the expense of Baltimore's snowiest winter on record, according to Kyndall Francis, principal and chief executive of Legacy Investment & Management, a Columbia-based firm that has 52 community-association clients in the Baltimore- Washington region.
Maryland has at least 2,400 condo associations. It's unclear how many homeowner associations are here because they aren't required to register with the state, as condo associations are. "I've been doing this for 15 years, and I've never seen anything like this before," Francis said. "Nobody is in a position to be able to handle this right now. ... There's going to be some people paying snow bills in July."
Dorsey Hall board members are discussing whether to pass the costs on to residents. Its $50,000 snow-removal tab this winter isn't the whole of it - there's also about $10,000 in snow-related damage to fix, Mehta said. That comes to nearly $300 for every household in the community.
If board members don't want to bill themselves and their neighbors, the other option would be to slow the pace of roof replacements and postpone projects, such as playground upgrades, that were slated to start within a couple years.
Legacy Investment & Management, Maryland's Leading HOA Management company receives both National and State recognition
Reprint Permission: News Blaze Published: December 8, 2009
COLUMBIA, Md. - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Legacy Investment & Management, Inc., Maryland's premiere management firm and current number one rated management company according to www.mdpmr.org has recently announced that Portfolio Manager Michele Mergner and Associate Manager James McPherson, amongst others have earned the esteemed credential of Certified Manager of Community Associations (CMCA), which was awarded by the National Board of Certification for Community Associations (NBC-CAM). Principal and CEO Kyndall Francis says "the backbone of any company, and in turn community, is the quality of the individuals that represent them." Mr. Francis continues by saying "we are extremely proud of Michele, James and our entire staff but we take even greater pride in the people that they are and the level of service that they provide. Certifications, yes, are extremely important, but I'd rather have good people ten out of ten times. The fact that we have both here at Legacy Investment & Management is exceptional."
In a recent interview held at Legacy's corporate offices, both Michele and James stated that it was hard work but the support of the company and the staff made this an easy and enjoyable accomplishment. Ms. Mergner who has been in the industry approaching 10 years covers the Montgomery and Howard County areas for Legacy. She is a local resident who has received many past awards for her individual contributions to Community Associations. James, who is also a local product, handles Legacy's Prince George's County and Washington, DC clients and heads one of the company's major divisions. Mr. McPherson has immediately become one of the areas most sought after agents due to his commitment and customer service to the clients and communities that he represents.
As a company, Legacy Investment & Management has also been bestowed with the Maryland General Assembly's Citation for contributions to the Community Associations and specifically the supporting of the recent Prince George's County Homeowner Association Conference. The Citation was awarded to the firm by Senator Ulysses Curry, Delegate Aisha Braveboy, Delegate Derek Dabies, and Delegate Melong Griffith; all of the Prince George's County's 25th Legislative District. In speaking with Kyndall Francis regarding this award, he advised that he was "honored and humbled" by the acknowledgment. He also personally thanked Delegate Aisha Braveboy, the conference sponsor, for being a driving force behind bringing Association management to the forefront. He stated "without her, so many of these things that people are enjoying in the State of Maryland would not be possible." In addition to the aforementioned honor, Legacy Investment & Management also received a citation for service related to the Community Association industry from Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley, Lt. Governor Anthony Brown and Secretary of State John McDonough. "This simply validates the business model and is an example of the fact that every management company is not the same. People can now want and afford the best with Legacy Investment & Management, Inc." Mr. Francis said. The owner closed by saying, "this is what we mean when we say when you need us, we'll be there." With so many honors being bestowed upon Legacy Investment & Management, Inc. it's no wonder they continue to be the fastest growing management company in the DC Metropolitan area.
Legacy Investment & Management Named Area's Best Property Management Firm Resulting in Change from LLC to Incorporation
Reprint Permission: EUROINVESTOR.co.uk Published: March 9, 2009
COLUMBIA, Md. - Legacy Investment & Management, Inc. Principal/CEO Kyndall Francis today announced the change of the company from an LLC to Incorporation. "Our unprecedented growth created a unique situation that dramatically tips the scales in favor of Incorporating," explains Kyndall Francis. With a portfolio quickly approaching 70+ community associations in Maryland alone, in less than 18 months, coupled with a staff of over 40 managerial and support team members, Kyndall states "it just made sense for us to do this now."
Legacy Investment & Management is currently the fastest growing property management firm in the DC Metropolitan area and with additional offices in New York City is quickly become the preferred management company in the upper Northeast.
Maryland names Legacy Investment & Management area's best
management firm for 3rd straight quarter
Legacy Management has been named Maryland's top management firm for the last three quarters by Maryland Property Management Rankings -www.mdpmr.org-. No other company has ever accomplished this since the inception of the rankings. "Selecting the best management company to service your community is both art and science," says Kyndall Francis, "While we are humbled and honored by this achievement, as a industry professional I am happier to know that there is a viable resource available to all members of community associations to assist in this very important process." Legacy Management's offices can be found in Columbia, Maryland.
