I'm patiently waiting to see how the HOA's new plan to save money works out. They proposed saving 20K this year by eliminating certain subcontractors and hiring direct employees. I doubt we will really know what the bottom line savings are as the HOA was extremely selective on who would receive RFP's for service and went to only large contractors used in the past.

So far I'm not impressed with the choice to hire a "groundskeeper". I haven't seen a job description for this person but I was told part of his/her responsbility included trash removal. I walk past 8-10 dog stations on different days and it's been more than a month since most have been emptied. With the recent warm weather I don't have to look to know they are still full.

It should be interesting to see how the grand HOA experiment goes. I have a feeling much like everything else, we best lower our expectations for return on investment.