CAI-NJ December 2021

Managing to

for

By Benjamin Basch, American Pool Enterprises

...the most reliable contractors are booking up earlier than ever and you don’t want to be left without a critical service for your community.

Andrii Yalanskyi/ iStock/Getty Images Plus

W hile some aspects of our lives could be described as “more normal” than they were just a year ago, the COVID -19 Pandemic continues to cast a long shadow on our society. Disrupted supply chains, price inflation, and an extended labor crunch have challenged every community both operationally and finan- cially. The conditions described in the September 2021 Community Trends Article ® article “Budgeting for the New Normal” by Eric Lecky of SageWater (https://user-cainj.cld.bz/CAI-NJ-September-2021/15/) have not abated and so we are following up with some further guidance for the coming year. Executing Service Agreements & Projects Lining up services like swimming pool, landscaping, pest control, janitorial and capital improvement projects are all

likely part of your 2022 plan. You did the work to collect the pricing and entered the numbers on the budget line, but did you get around to actually signing the agreement? Be sure to tie up loose ends and ink those deals because contractors won’t be able to hold prices for long in this dynamic environment. You may also find that the most reliable contractors are booking up earlier than ever and you don’t want to be left without a critical service for your community. Manage Resident Expectations The New Jersey minimum wage is set to rise another dol- lar in January 2022 to $12 per hour. In a tight labor market with rapidly rising wages, it may make sense to cut back on operating hours and service dates for some categories. Often there are hours of operation seldom used and those CONT I NU E S ON PAGE 20

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