When it comes to managing the needs of a condominium’s residents, it can be nearly impossible to find solutions that please every resident all of the time. People take for granted the benefits of the association and consider dues a mandatory assessment. As a result, no one raves to family and friends about the amazing trash collection service their association has selected or the quality of the new vinyl siding on the building. Of course, all of these things are critical to the functionality of the condo, but no one wants to get out their checkbook for a special assessment.
While no one is ever excited to pay a bill, there are ways that residents can get more out of their association. When residents’ perspectives about dues shift from a set of “mandatory fees” to “amenity fees,” their opinion of the association may begin to change. Residents no longer see the association as purveyors of arbitrary code and rubber stampers of fees if the amenities included are suited to residents’ needs and bring a sense of pride to the community as a whole.
Many associations have begun to think outside the box when it comes to which amenities to include in dues. Outside of pools and pet parks, which are amenities that are used occasionally by a subset of the residents, one option to consider is upgrading the property’s entertainment and communications networks. According to a recent survey of homeowners, an amenity package that includes more luxury services, such as a powerful broadband connection, is considered “important to very important” by 35 percent of those polled. By upgrading to a fiber-optic network, which is capable of delivering multiple services to a resident’s door, an association can bring cutting-edge services to the property as well as provide an overall cost savings to residents by including monthly service fees into dues – all without spending any upfront capital.
The value in a technology upgrade
Unlike the copper wiring in most condos, which has many limitations, fiber-optic wiring offers virtually unlimited bandwidth within fine strands of glass. Optical electronics transmit data through each strand at the speed of light, and advances in this technology continue to push more information through the same glass fibers. As future applications drive bandwidth demands, the capacity of fiber-optic networks is readily available to accommodate them.
Fiber does not conduct electricity, so it is more reliable than coax and copper cable. This means fewer service interruptions during storms and power outages. With the growth of bandwidth-hungry technologies, the demand for fiber has risen dramatically. Demand will continue to grow for services such as more HD channels, faster Internet, more Video on Demand content and VoIP and other applications in the future, and fiber is the only way to meet that demand.
Increase convenience
Since dues are a fact of life, many condo residents around the country enjoy the convenience of having services like telephone, television and Internet covered by their dues. By purchasing a set of services for the entire property, tremendous cost savings and performance guarantees can be realized for both the resident and the COA.
“Fiber-optic technology and infrastructure allows our residents the best of worlds, the most advanced performance and services at a cost that cannot be matched in a conventionally engineered building,” said Chris Crosby of SPIRE, a luxury high rise in Denver. “Robust content and ultra-high-speed services are an expectation of our buyers, and we enjoy delivering that technology at a value.”
With a more powerful fiber-optic network, demand will continue to grow to more HD content, faster Internet, as well as almost any new telecommunications amenity that comes to market. In a turbulent market, finding cost effective means to add value and reduce overall monthly spending is not only a performance advantage, but also a means to increase residents’ pride in their community.
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Author Name: Sussan Knowles
Susan Knowles is the media relations coordinator for Connexion Technologies, a fiber-optic amenity company based in Cary, N.C.
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