2009 National Survey
What Americans Say about Their Community Associations
Zogby International conducted telephone interviews in December 2009 with a nationally representative sample of 700 adults residing in homeowners associations, condominiums, cooperatives and other planned communities (collectively called "community associations" in this summary). Zogby International is a respected, independent public opinion research firm based in Utica, NY, and Washington, DC.
Sponsored by the Foundation for Community Association Research, the 2009 results are very similar to the findings from similar surveys conducted by Zogby in August 2005 and November 2007. With a few exceptions, the 2005, 2007 and 2009 data are within the 3.8 percent margin of error. This affirms the validity of the Zogby research as an effective measure of how residents perceive their community associations.
Key Findings
Resident Satisfaction: On a scale of one to five, with one being very bad and five being very good, how would you rate your overall experience living in a community association?
2005 2007 2009
Negative (1 & 2) 10% 9% 12%
Neutral (3) 19 19 17
Positive (4 & 5) 71 72 71
Awareness of the Association: Asked of the 87 percent of respondents who knew they were moving into a community association before they purchased or rented their home: Did the fact that your current home is in a community association make you more likely to purchase or rent your home, make you hesitant about purchasing or renting your home or have no impact?
2005 2007 2009
More likely 28% 30% 26%
Hesitant 9 9 14
No impact 63 61 59
Not sure 1 1 1
Value of Rules: Do the rules in your community protect and enhance property values, harm them or make no difference?
2005 2007 2009
Protect and enhance 78% 74% 70%
Harm 1 3 2
No difference 19 22 27
Not sure 2 2 2
Governing Boards: Do you think the members of your elected governing board strive to serve the best interests of the community as a whole?
2005 2007 2009
Absolutely 54% 47% 44%
For the most part 35 41 45
Not at all 9 10 7
Not sure 2 3 4
Community Managers: Does the manager provide value and support to residents and the community as a whole?
2005 2007 2009
Yes 78% 73% 76%
No 13 21 18
Not sure 6 6 9
Return on Assessments: Considering your overall assessments and the services provided by your association, how would you describe the return for what you pay in assessments?
2005 2007 2009
Great or good 80% 77% 82%
Not so good or bad 19 20 16
Not sure 2 3 2
Government Regulation: The governance of community associations is subject to differing state laws and regulations. Would you like to see more government control of these associations?
2005 2007 2009
Yes 15% 17% 10%
No 78 80 87
Not sure 7 4 3
The Best of Associations in 2009: Asked to name the best aspects of living in an association, residents most often cite neighborhood attractiveness (23 percent), less maintenance for individual homeowners (22 percent), community safety (13 percent) and property values (11 percent).
The Worst of Associations in 2009: Asked to name the worst aspects of their associations, residents most often report nothing is bad (37 percent), followed by restrictions on exterior improvements (14 percent), dealing with neighbors (12 percent) and paying assessments (10 percent).