Created with a desire to improve the homeowners association experience, Arizona-based Desert Vista Community Management specializes in full-service community association management. With over 15 years of combined experience in the community association management industry, Desert Vista is committed to delivering superior service and products to all clients.
We sat down with the Owner & CEO Michael LaPoint, CMCA®, AMS®, PCAM® to chat more about his company’s vision, and how they work collectively as a team to help elevate the standards of how community management companies operate and adapt to change.
Q: What makes Desert Vista Community Management different than other management companies?
“We’re different because we are a boutique company that tailors our services to fit the needs of each client. We offer a robust array of services but understand that a “one-size fits all” approach is not beneficial to our partner communities. We offer all the processes and technology a community desires with the personal touch, support, and true partnership many communities feel they are missing. Our partner communities choose to work with us because of our partnership approach, our high level of care, proactive methodology, and our commitment to sincerity.
We, at Desert Vista Community Management, also differentiate ourselves through our approach with internal team members. We focus on education, team member engagement and improvement, as well as constant improvement of our processes, products, and services for the benefit of both our partner communities and our valued team members. Everything we do is designed to acquire and retain top level talent, ensuring our partner communities benefit from the best service the industry has to offer.”
Q: What drives the philosophy and purpose to your business, making it stand out from other management companies?
We founded Desert Vista Community Management to improve the homeowners association experience.TM We want our communities, our company, and our industry to be focused on so much more than enforcement. We strive to find creative ways to engage, and build a sense of pride within, every community we serve.
Q: How does your company culture help your success?
“Our success is dependent on the success of each one of our team members. We constantly strive to create a culture of success, improvement, professional development, fun, and pride of work, all of which lead to employee satisfaction and retention. When this culture is successful and is carried out to our partner communities, it helps them succeed as well.”
Q: What role do people play in your organization?
“Our team members are our organization. They not only provide excellent service and value to our partner communities, but they bring great ideas and opinions to the organization, shaping the way we grow. Our goal is to offer unique benefits, great benefit packages, constant opportunities for professional development and education, and consistently strive to improve such offerings.
We cannot, and will not, continue to grow or succeed without our team members. Therefore, our team members are our top priority.”
Q: What types of changes have you seen in the industry that you are addressing or working toward solving?
The industry is constantly changing, whether at a local level or on a broader scale. The biggest change we have seen recently has been the needs, wants and demands of potential employees. We’re in a challenging industry – if we, as a collective, want to bring in professional talent then we have to find ways to make a career in community association management as appealing as possible. This includes [but is not limited to] providing a flexible, hybrid, or even remote work environment when possible, thinking outside the box with regard to schedules and coming up with creative benefits. We are constantly evaluating our options and investigating creative alternatives!
Q: What do you see as the future of the industry?
“The future of the industry will involve a continued push toward digital solutions and a stronger focus on aging infrastructure. We expect legislation to step in and require communities to have detailed reserve studies and fund according to those studies, a direction we already push our partner communities. The days of deferring maintenance to keep assessments low are coming to an end, and educating Board and homeowners alike regarding the importance of proper funding is going to be a bigger and more prominent part of our roles in this industry.”
Q: How has Desert Vista Community Management helped raise the standard of property management on a local/regional level?
“We have helped raise the standard of community association management through our honest, open, and proactive approach to the industry. We provide an unrivaled level of transparency to Board members, homeowners, and vendors alike. The positive feedback we receive from all three groups tells us we are truly on the right track and doing things the right way.”
Click here to learn more about Desert Vista Community Management and how they are helping community associations throughout Arizona thrive.
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