Condo Media - November 2014 - 38

E ssex Management Group ...

we listen to our
clients and develop a strategy to support their needs and
objectives. We combine personal communication, state-of-the
art technology, courtesy and mutual respect to achieve
optimum results for our client communities.

Why Essex Management Group?

Innovative Financial Reporting & Capital Planning
"User Friendly" On Line Support Services
21 Years of Specialized Condominium Mgmnt.
Commitment to Client Satisfaction
Website Management Support
Paperless Options
Investor Supported Services

After going through two
management companies, I was
amazed to see the unit owners
actually stand up and applaud
the eﬀorts of Essex Management
Group. They are really the
cream-of-the-crop when it
comes to property management.
-Joe Arone,
Home Association Annual Meeting

Representing Condominium Associations, Homeowner
Associations and Management Companies throughout
New Hampshire and Northern Massachusetts.
Providing representation in all areas of condominium
law from drafting and execution of condominium
instruments, amendments, collection of assessments to
litigation from trial through appeal.
For specific questions and to find out how we can
service your particular needs, please contact our office
and speak with one of our attorneys.

(603) 627-5997

45 Bay Street
Manchester, NH 03104

(603) 742-1052
3 Webb Place
Dover, NH 03820

(800) 828-3200

565 Turnpike Street
North Andover, MA 01845

www.fenigeranduliasz.com
Serving clients in all of NH and northern MA
38

Condo Media * November 2014

than "X" for management services. "I
tell them best of luck with that," he
says. "I'm honest - I say we can't do
the work you need [and provide the
service you want] for that fee."
This board would hear a version of
the same speech from Abel. "If I lower
my fee, I'll have to make that up somewhere" - by paying managers less or
reducing the time they spend on the
property. "But it's hard to make board
members understand that they will lose
in the long run if we don't charge them
enough," he says. "The managers we
hire will be less experienced, turnover
will be high, and the quality of the service we provide will be lower. If we cut
our fees, we're really negotiating with
ourselves," Abel continues. That strategy isn't sustainable, he says, and the
results aren't desirable for the company
or its clients.
As Keegan and Ragosa both noted
earlier, some boards get that message
and others don't. When Abel requested
a small increase recently to renew a
contract with an existing client, a board
member complained: "I didn't get a
raise this year, why should you?"
Abel responded by trying to explain
the value of the service his company
provides. He reminded the board that
four years before, when a light fixture
had to be replaced, instead of spending five minutes arranging to have an
electrician do the work, he spent more
than 20 hours researching LED lighting, laying the groundwork for the
community to capitalize on cost-saving
technology that will reduce its lighting
bill by half.
"I could have just made a five-minute phone call, and you would never
have known the difference," he told
the board, suggesting that they "think
about that" when his contract comes
up for renewal again.
How did the board respond? "The
room was silent," Abel says. CM
Nena Groskind is president of eContentplus, providing editorial content for
websites, print and electronic newsletters,
and magazines.
Condo Media - November 2014

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