Whether you are on the board of a condominium or a homeowners association, your work can involve numerous challenges. One of these challenges is to attract new buyers while keeping current residents happy. Current and potential residents want an attractive environment, and this includes well-maintained pavements. Deteriorated, faded and unsafe pavements will not make residents happy, especially if they believe that the condition of the streets, sidewalks, tennis courts, walking trails or parking lots negatively impact property values. However, residents will also be unhappy if fees rise dramatically or they incur unexpected assessments. If you want to control spending, please your current residents, attract new buyers and help residents maintain their property values, you might want to consider safeguarding your investment in asphalt paving.
HOA & Condos – Your Asphalt Pavement Can Affect Property Values
What Is the Connection Between Pavement Condition and Satisfied Residents?
Virtually all residents want to be proud of their properties. When they return home from their jobs, they want to enter an environment that is aesthetically pleasing. Dingy, gray or severely cracked asphalt pavement is not appealing.
Residents also want to feel that they and their possessions are safe. Potholes and other pavement defects can endanger their vehicles as well as the health of their families. Pedestrians might step into a pothole and twist an ankle, or they could fall and break a bone. Pavement breaks could cause a bicyclist to incur a nasty fall. Potholes can cause damage to a car’s suspension system, hubcaps, tires or rims.
Residents could incur expenses for medical treatment and car repairs that relate directly to a pavement that is in poor condition. They could also suffer financially if they must pay an assessment to replace a parking lot or street that is only a few years old. Any paving contractor can tell you that if asphalt pavement does not receive professional repairs and proper maintenance, its life will be dramatically reduced. Many studies show that merely neglecting crack repairs and asphalt sealcoating frequently results in a life of less than 10 years for typical asphalt pavement. However, reputable asphalt companies can often help customers obtain a life of 20 or 30 years for their pavements.
How Can HOAs and Condo Boards Protect Their Pavement Investments?
If you want to maximize the life of your asphalt pavement, you will need to create and fund a plan that will ensure timely, professional care. You might want to consult a reputable asphalt contractor for help with this; he can assess your needs and recommend a schedule.
• Be sure to budget enough to repair minor cracks before they worsen. Repairing a small crack is economical, and although it might initially seem unimportant, it will quickly deepen, widen and lengthen. Water will flow into the crack, and once it reaches the foundation, it will erode and destabilize the base that supports your pavement. It will cost significantly more to repair the foundation than the price an asphalt contractor charges to repair a crack.
• Hire a professional to seal your pavement periodically. Sealcoating is an extremely economical procedure that is a highly effective way to protect and beautify your asphalt pavement. How frequently you will need new sealcoating depends on your pavement’s use, so ask a reputable contractor to recommend an appropriate schedule.
• When your initial contractor designed your pavement, he based the depth of the asphalt and the construction of its foundation on certain factors, including the weight of vehicles parking on or driving across the pavement on an average day. If his calculations excluded truck traffic, you should not allow heavyweight vehicles to access your pavement.
Alpha Paving is a well-respected asphalt and concrete contractor serving HOAs, condos, subdivisions, municipalities, retailers, health care facilities, churches, schools, shopping centers, industrial facilities, office parks, airports, hotels, and restaurants in Austin, TX. Our services include the installation and repair of asphalt and concrete pavements as well as sealcoating, parking lot striping, road construction, asphalt milling, street maintenance, speed bump installation and parking lot maintenance. If you want superior results, outstanding customer service and competitive prices, call our office at 512-677-9001 or complete the online form to receive a free quote.
