HOA Legi-Slate

We have received many responses to our July 9, 2010, blog entry on manager credentialing.  Of all of the interesting responses we have received, one thread in particular caught our attention.  That has to do with CAI mandating manager credentialing and benefiting financially from such a credentialing program.  While HindmanSanchez has no formal position on manager credentialing and believe this issue is one primarily for managers to debate, we did some research on the concerns expressed in this thread and here are some facts we gathered:

1. CAI has a Public Policy addressing Community Association Manager Credentialing.  While the CMCA designation is the preferred credential to be used in legislation, it is not mandated by CAI.  Likewise, the M-100 is the preferred prerequisite educational class for managers seeking a state-approved certification.  However, the Public Policy does not mandate that legislation include the M-100 as the required course.


2. One of the most consistent legislative trends we have seen across the United States is the mandatory regulation of community association managers.  To date, ten states have a regulatory scheme in place for managers with several more states considering regulation.  In those states mandating the regulation of community association managers, cottage industries have arisen which provide educational coursework for managers.  CAI is not the only vendor in these states which is approved to provide education.  In fact, CAI has to compete with other providers for attendees at educational programs. 


3. The National Board of Certification for Community Association Managers (NBC-CAM) created the Certified Manager of Community Associations credential (CMCA).  The CMCA is the only national certification program designed exclusively for community association managers.  Also, based upon our research, we believe it is the only credential for managers that is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies.  

While our research was not exhaustive, we believe these facts may be of interest in these discussions.

Thanks for the informative info. But we're still interested in knowing something. Is not the CMCA designation bestowed by CAI (regardless whether it profits or not) and doesn't one have to be a member of CAI in order to obtain this designation (from which CAI does profit)?

In response to Mr. Felice's question:

The Certified Manager of Community Associations® (CMCA) certification is awarded by the National Board of Certification for Community Associations Institute (NBC-CAM) not by CAI. NBC-CAM is a separate organization than CAI; NBC-CAM exists for the sole purpose of administering the CMCA certification. NBC-CAM does not have members. Therefore, NBC-CAM does not have a membership requirement for the CMCA credential. www.nbccam.org

NBC-CAM supports self-regulation of the profession. We support the use of appropriate credentials; including both NBC-CAM and CAI credentials to demonstrate professional competency to consumers. However, if a regulatory program is considered by a state, NBC-CAM supports the use of a program like the CMCA program that was created for the community association management profession by community association management experts.

Side note: CAI offers other designations; including the Association Management Specialist (AMS) and Professional Community Association Manager (PCAM) and several others. See their web site for the full list - http://www.caionline.org/CAREER/DESIGNATIONS/Pages/default.aspx Nevertheless; CAI does not have a membership requirement either. However, the fee structure for the CAI designations is different for members vs. non-members.