VIOLATION TRACKING, P.2

Many of the firms simply pass on the cost to their clients. "I find it's a reasonable cost," Lehr says. "It's a minimal cost — I think we're paying 85 cents a unit — and allows us to better manage their facilities. I would have to assign somebody full-time to track all these things. A violation hits the system, and we see it in real time."

But others are not as sanguine, saying that they cannot, in good conscience, add thousands of dollars to their management fees to pay for the service. "We started using SiteCompli on a limited basis," reports Peter Von Simson, president of New Bedford Management. "The problem is there's a charge of a dollar per unit to use it, so for a large building, is it really worthwhile to spend an additional $5,000 a year to track a violation?" To absorb the cost is also difficult: "To take a 10 percent hit on your management fee is hard to do," Von Simson notes. "[Profit] margins are pretty slim in general."

Some executives argue that, at a time when competition is fierce and the economy is soft, raising your fees is not the ideal action you want to take. Besides, aren't managers supposed to be monitoring these things anyway? Isn't that part of their basic service and fee structure?

"I don't use these systems," says Louis Sandberg, president of Sandberg Management. "I have the managers and the back office tracking [the violations and regulations]. We do it internally. We're pretty much covered that way. It's not that having [the outside] services wouldn't be useful. It's just that I don't want to pay for it and pass that on to the client. I feel that tracking deadlines and violations is part of our job description." As well, he notes, "Most co-ops and condos would think that's something management should keep on top of — compliance issues."

Still, those who have the systems are unfazed by those who do not, arguing that the positives outweigh the negatives. "How many times do you get a private elevator violation and the superintendent doesn't give it to the manager?" says Lehr. "Well, we know this is in the system. We know it's out there. We know we have to get the elevator company and the company has to respond quickly and get the paperwork in. And all of this stuff is being tracked in real time. It makes a lot of sense. It's a great tool and makes you manage better." 

"For a small, self-managed building, this would be very helpful," adds Von Simson. "The fear is that you put some sort of liability on the building by missing important dates — you fail to register your oil tank, or you don't do an elevator inspection. For some, this clearly makes a lot of sense."

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