SECURITY FOR
COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONS
BEST PRACTICE:
Of the many good reasons for moving to a residential estate, the one most often
cited is security. Residential estates are seen as safer places to live, and places
where children and adults alike can walk and play in public open space.
So security is extremely important.
Your association’s
obligation to undertake
security measures
Security
System
Security
Optimisation
Security is a major selling point of
many residential estates, so the
board has an obligation to make
every effort to minimise crime.
The board’s legal obligations in the
exercise of its management powers
are to:
•
Security
Guarding
comply with the governing
documents
• conduct its activities diligently
• effectively carry out its fiduciary duty to the association
and its members.
The community association may be liable for third-party Assuming that a community is faced with real – as opposed
criminal acts in the case of: to perceived – crime, the association can begin to address the
• breach of duty to provide adequate security impact of that crime by asking several fundamental questions:
• breach of contract • Has crime increased resident instability?
• misrepresentation. • Has crime affected property values?
• Has crime affected the quality of life within the community?
Both the community manager and the board should
understand how to properly discharge their responsibilities When crime in a community association is real and increases
under the standards of reasonableness and the duty of care. in frequency, a board of directors will often take a look at its
The manager and the board also need to analyse the scope of own efforts and response and determine if additional action is
their overall authority and legal obligation, as laid out in the necessary. A community’s response to crime can be assessed in
governing documents. several steps. To identify and measure a community’s response
to crime, four basic questions may be asked:
Impact of crime on the community • What is the community doing to prevent crime?
• How does perceived crime influence the community’s
Community associations have a responsibility to protect the • Is the crime response successful?
investments of the community members. A person’s home • What are the side effects of the community’s crime
crime-prevention efforts?
or unit is typically his or her largest physical investment, thus
prevention activities?
protecting property value should be a main concern of any
association. In addition, perceptions of personal safety influence
current residents’ decisions regarding relocation, and also rank
Developer considerations
high in prospective buyers’ relocation choices. Sometimes it is
necessary for the individual to relinquish certain freedoms for Developers often construct community associations with a
macro-level protections, which could impact on quality of life. wide variety of amenities that are designed to entice potential
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