Homeowners Associations, commonly known as HOAs, are the governing body of a neighborhood, community or complex, and are tasked with making and enforcing neighborhood rules and deed restrictions. In addition, HOAs are also responsible for ensuring that the neighborhood landscaping, common green space, and surrounding trees are maintained. Unfortunately, some Houston area HOA’s make poor decisions regarding the landscape and tree maintenance of their community, damaging curb appeal and threatening property values. In today’s blog post, we’ll look at three common landscaping mistakes HOAs can make, and how these mistakes impact the neighborhood.
Neglected Entryways and High-Traffic Areas
One of the biggest mistakes HOAs make is neglecting the entryways and exits of a community by choosing substandard and amateur landscape crews to maintain the area. Poor landscaping and maintenance in the highly visible areas can quickly cause property values to plummet as these prominent areas are typically viewed as a reflection of the community at large. HOAs that choose mom-and-pop or unskilled landscape crews often end up with overgrown landscaping covering neighborhood signage, wilted plants and flowers, and persistent weed growth in prominent areas around the community.
Dangerous Trees Threaten Communities
Another common HOA mistake is not getting proper maintenance and care for shade trees throughout the community and in neighborhood green spaces. Overgrown, damaged or poorly maintained trees can cause personal injury or property damage, and the entire neighborhood can be held liable for these damages, causing a spike in HOA maintenance fees for residents. In addition, overgrown trees with heavy drooping branches are a community eyesore, and can even diminish the visibility of the neighborhood drivers.
Hiring Unsafe or Uninsured Landscape and Tree Crews
Some HOAs make the mistake of hiring the cheapest landscape maintenance crew they can find, which can often lead to disastrous results. Many amateur tree crews plant trees in poor health or lower quality, leading to more maintenance and higher costs down the road for the HOA and their residents. In addition, many amateur tree and landscape crews perform their work in an unsafe manner, failing to utilize industry-standard safety practices or required personal safety equipment. They are often uninsured or underinsured, and because of their unsafe work practices, the community can be held financially liable for any workplace accidents or injuries that are likely to occur.
HOAs can avoid these mistakes and ensure they have a beautiful, healthy community by choosing LMC to handle their HOA landscape and tree care needs. LMC is one of Houston’s premiere tree and landscape service companies, and offers exceptional HOA maintenance services for communities of all sizes. LMC’s team of Certified Arborists and Landscape Professionals can perform a full range of HOA maintenance services, including landscape maintenance, tree pruning, tree planting, tree removal, weed control services, irrigation installation, and seasonal planting and mulching. Contact LMC today for more information, or go online to request a free HOA consultation today.
