A grounds maintenance checklist for condo boards
Whether or not it is us, these are the things worth confirming before a contract is signed.
Grounds maintenance contracts are often renewed rather than reviewed, and the review usually happens after a bad season rather than before one. Here is what we would want confirmed if we were sitting on the other side of the table.
Insurance, before the first visit
Ask for confirmation that the contractor is fully insured, and ask for it before work starts rather than after an incident. Any contractor who hesitates at this question has answered it.
A written scope that names what is excluded
Most disputes are not about quality, they are about whether something was in scope. A good scope document says what is included and, more usefully, what is not. If the contract does not mention bed weeding frequency, someone will be unhappy by July.
Read the scope for what is missing, not for what is promised.
A published schedule
You should be able to post the season's service dates in the lobby. If a contractor cannot produce a schedule in advance, they are not running a program, they are running ad hoc work and calling it a contract.
One named point of contact
Find out who answers when something goes wrong at 4pm on a Friday. A name and a direct number, not a general inbox. On multi-crew operations, also ask whether the same crew lead is assigned to your property week to week.
The equipment list
- Ask what the crew will actually be running on the property
- Most contractors will not have this prepared
- It determines your noise complaints for the next three years
- It also determines what happens if municipal rules change
Walkthrough frequency
Agree in advance how often the contractor walks the property with you. Quarterly is a reasonable minimum. Without it, small issues become spring capital projects.
How pricing responds to change
Ask what happens if a section is redeveloped, a bed is enlarged, or a storm creates a week of extra work. A contract that has no answer will produce a negotiation at the worst possible moment.
References you can actually call
Not a logo list. Two property managers at comparable buildings who will take a phone call. If those do not exist, ask why.