Community Associations Provide Value to Residents and Local Governments

Floor Speech

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Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, community associations are an expanding phenomenon and the preferred form of new residential developments approved by local governments across this country. These developments consist of planned communities in the form of condominiums, cooperatives, and single-family homes. Local governments appreciate these developments because they offer residents private amenities such as pools, sport courts, parks, walking trails, and other amenities that would otherwise be provided and maintained with public dollars. In fact, an estimated $88 billion is collected annually in dues from community association residents to pay for essential association obligations including the installation and maintenance of amenities.

The growth of planned communities is showcasing a residency choice selected by more and more Americans each year. As of 2017, approximately 70 million Americans reside in nearly 350,000 community associations across the country. Residents enjoy this type of living for a number of reasons including a sense of community, access to aforementioned private amenities, enforcement of aesthetic standards set by the community, and regular maintenance of common areas. With democratically elected resident board members who volunteer to serve their community, this is arguably the most local form of government (quasi) that exists. Related to this, an estimated 2.36 million residents volunteer for service on their community's board of directors or other committees performing 80 million hours of volunteer service valued at $1.93 billion. Those are significant numbers.

The financial benefit enjoyed by residents in planned communities is that home values are historically four to five percent higher than homes that are not in planned communities. That translates into the positive protection of property values in these communities and a higher return on investment when it comes time for owners to sell.

Mr. Speaker, it is worth noting that approximately half of these communities are self-managed either with just volunteers or professional staff hired and managed directly by the association's board of directors. The rest of these associations hire professional management companies to manage the operation of their communities and/ or their finances and provide counsel to the board of directors.

Personally, I'm proud of the fact that the largest community association management company, Associa, is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, in my Congressional District. Associa employs nearly 10,000 people across North America in 180 office locations operating in 35 states as well as Canada and Mexico. Associa manages roughly 10,000 communities, comprising more than 2.5 million units, and housing more than 5 million residents. Associa is a privately-owned company that was started by John Carona more than 40 years ago and he continues to lead the industry with constant innovation and unparalleled customer service. John is not only a successful businessman, but he is a humble public servant having served 24 years in the Texas State Legislature. I am proud to call him a supporter and friend of mine.

Mr. Speaker, I offer these comments today because as community associations continue to grow they also continue to evolve as does the community association management industry. I am pleased that management companies like Associa are not satisfied with business-as-usual but rather choose to invest in world-class employee training and cutting edge technologies for their clients. By doing so, they help ensure well-run community associations and well-informed board members and residents. I extend my appreciation to Associa's employees and to the volunteers in community associations around the country for their service to their clients and communities.

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