today’s modern, social media-centric world, reputations can be built up or destroyed in an instant. A video clip captured on cell phone of a good Samaritan pulling a trapped puppy to safety from an open drainpipe goes viral and instantly propels them to hero status (at least for their 15 minutes of fame); while a drunken celebrity shown sprawled out, eating a cheeseburger off the floor can knock him down to the D-list instantly. The internet is a virtual wasteland of pages devoted to the appreciation – or denigration of – celebrities, “normal” people, products and yes, even homeowner associations.


IN


A terse phone exchange between a resident with an issue to report and a property manager can quickly be recounted in a Yelp post and blow up into a drawn-out gripe fest against


an entire community. While Hollywood agents will tell you that “any publicity is good publicity,” we know that this is not so for common interest realty associations.


So what can an association or board do to turn opinions around and create a positive image for their community?


Communication is the key.


A frequent complaint that board members will hear from homeowners is that their association lacks transparency; they want to know where their money is going and how it’s being spent. To this point, board members should remind everyone that they are all homeowners in the


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