A contract is a plan for the relationship
A vendor proposal may describe a price without defining the full job. A useful agreement identifies the parties, services, standards, schedule, payment terms, and what happens when something changes or goes wrong.
For a Century Village association, recurring maintenance and occasional major repairs can represent substantial commitments. Directors should understand the complete agreement, including attachments, referenced online terms, renewals, and change orders.
Before signing, ask: “Could a new board understand what the vendor must deliver and how we can end this relationship?”
Contracts a typical association may use
The mix depends on the property and division of responsibility. Some services may be arranged through a community organization, utility, or other provider rather than a separate association contract. Confirm who is actually responsible and who pays.
| Contract or vendor | Typical purpose | Details worth defining |
|---|---|---|
| Property management | Administration, financial coordination, inspections, vendor oversight, and owner communications. | Service frequency, staffing, response standards, fees, spending authority, and transition obligations. |
| Landscaping, irrigation, and tree services | Routine grounds care and scheduled or storm-related work. | Included areas, visit frequency, pruning scope, cleanup, and extra charges. |
| Pest and termite control | Prevention, treatment, and inspections. | Covered pests and locations, retreatment, access, exclusions, and guarantees. |
| Cleaning and janitorial services | Common-area cleaning and related supplies. | Tasks, frequency, supply costs, and inspection standards. |
| Plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and roofing | Repairs, preventive maintenance, and replacement projects. | License scope, permits, materials, warranties, emergency rates, and subcontractors. |
| Engineering, inspections, and reserve studies | Condition assessments, milestone inspections, SIRS where required, and project design. | Deliverables, qualifications, assumptions, site visits, and follow-up responsibilities. |
| Attorney and accountant | Legal representation, collections, tax work, and financial reporting engagements. | Scope, rates, expenses, reporting level, and authorized instructions. |
| Insurance and related services | Insurance policies, brokerage, appraisals, and risk advice. | Coverage, exclusions, deductibles, limits, and separate service fees. |
| Equipment and technology | Laundry equipment, cameras, websites, software, or communications services. | Ownership, data access, revenue sharing, support, subscriptions, and removal at termination. |
| Facility-specific services | Elevator, pool, fire-system, security, towing, or waste services where applicable. | Regulatory requirements, service schedules, access, emergency response, and responsibility boundaries. |
Examples, not a claim that every Century Village association has or needs each contract.
Florida requirements to check before signing
Section 718.3026 requires written agreements for covered contracts and competitive bids when aggregate payment exceeds 5% of the association’s total annual budget, including reserves. The lowest bid need not win. Professional-service, employee, emergency, and sole-source provisions require careful review; associations with 10 or fewer units have a specified opt-out procedure.
Source: Florida Statutes §718.3026. See Association Contract Bidding for more detail.
Section 718.3025 sets specific requirements for covered maintenance and management agreements, including services and responsibilities, reimbursable costs, frequency, minimum personnel, and applicable ownership or financial-interest disclosures. It also includes exclusions. Have counsel confirm the provision’s application and required wording.
Source: Florida Statutes §718.3025.
Check the governing documents, funding authority, required approvals, and any conflict of interest before committing. The ability to sign a document and the authority to approve its obligations are separate questions.
Does an attorney need to review every contract?
There is no general requirement in these provisions that an attorney approve every association contract. Attorney review is a prudent board practice when the potential cost, complexity, or liability justifies it. Other laws, governing documents, or particular circumstances may impose additional requirements.
An attorney has more room to protect the association before it signs, pays a deposit, accepts online terms, or authorizes work.
| Recommended approach | Examples |
|---|---|
| Make legal review a priority | Management agreements; roofing, structural, and substantial construction work; loans; long-term leases; major equipment commitments; related-party transactions; and contracts with significant indemnity, liability limits, or cancellation penalties. |
| Use an attorney-approved process | Routine maintenance and recurring services using a previously reviewed form, provided the scope, price, insurance, and legal terms remain within that process. |
| Return to counsel when terms change | New renewal clauses, significant amendments, disputed performance, termination, unexpected claims, or a vendor’s refusal to use approved protections. |
Even a small contract can contain a costly liability clause. Ask counsel to develop a review policy based on both dollar value and risk, with clear escalation triggers. A manager’s familiarity with a vendor can help the business evaluation; legal review addresses different questions.
Attorneys review legal obligations and remedies. Engineers evaluate technical specifications, insurance advisers assess coverage, and the board decides business priorities. Coordinate these reviews rather than expecting one professional to cover everything.
Terms the board should understand
- Scope and exclusions: locations, quantities, materials, deliverables, cleanup, and work not included.
- Price and payments: deposits, milestones, reimbursable expenses, escalation, and approval of extras.
- Term and renewal: start and end dates, automatic renewal, and the deadline and method for cancellation notice.
- Performance: inspection rights, reporting, response times, corrective work, and warranties.
- Risk allocation: insurance, indemnification, liability limitations, dispute procedures, and attorney-fee clauses.
- Authority and changes: who may give instructions, spending limits, and written change-order requirements.
- Exit and handover: termination rights, cure periods, fees, keys, funds, records, passwords, equipment, and data.
A good agreement explains the work and the way out.
Signing is the beginning of oversight
- Prepare a complete review package. Include the proposal, attachments, specifications, bid comparisons, license verification, insurance evidence, and questions for counsel.
- Document approval and execution. Use the appropriate association process and an authorized signer. Identify the association’s legal name and the signer’s representative capacity.
- Build a contract calendar. Record expiration, renewal-notice deadlines, price changes, insurance renewals, and required service dates.
- Measure delivery. Assign someone to verify work, document deficiencies, and compare invoices with agreed services.
- Manage changes deliberately. Confirm scope, price, approval authority, and funding before accepting extras. Preserve a complete contract file for future boards.
For example, “monthly landscaping” leaves questions unanswered. A more useful scope identifies the serviced areas, tasks, frequency, debris removal, and how additional work is priced. Clear expectations make fair performance comparisons easier.
Related resources
Management & VendorsContractor License SearchAttorney License SearchContract BiddingConflict of InterestEducational guidance for Florida condominium associations. Attorney-review recommendations are practical guidance, not a substitute for advice on a particular agreement. Legal sources checked October 17, 2026.
Give reviewers one complete decision package
Board Synergy recommended practice Before approval, assemble the final scope, price and total commitment, incorporated specifications and online terms, qualifications, insurance evidence, funding source, bid comparison where applicable, conflicts, and unresolved questions. Identify which version the board is approving.
At authorization
Record the approved provider, scope, financial commitment, conditions, signatory, and person responsible for administration. Confirm any required owner vote and distinguish authority to sign from authority to approve the underlying work.
During performance
Maintain a register of notice deadlines, renewal dates, insurance expirations, deliverables, authorized changes, and unresolved deficiencies. Keep the executed agreement and amendments together so the next board can follow them.
For final payment, obtain appropriate completion evidence, permit and inspection status, warranties, manuals, and return of association keys or system access. Ask counsel about any applicable construction-lien and release documents. Do not assume a paid invoice establishes that every subcontractor has been paid.
Florida law Statutory contract and bidding provisions apply according to their scope and exceptions. Governing-document requirement Check additional approval and funding restrictions. Contractual duty Follow the actual agreement’s notice, cure, renewal, and termination provisions. The checklist is a suggested administrative practice, not a new legal requirement.
Contracts
A clear contract helps the board and its service providers understand the work, price, responsibilities, and expectations. Use this BrainyBoard program as a discussion resource while considering scope, payment milestones, insurance, warranties, renewal and termination terms, and follow-through. Discuss how to compare proposals, obtain appropriate professional review, and keep the signed agreement and incorporated exhibits together.
ContractsWatch on BrainyBoard ↗This program opens on BrainyBoard. Access is subject to the provider’s current sign-in and viewing requirements.
Education, not an individual decision. This externally hosted program is offered as a discussion resource; its contents have not been independently verified for this webpart. Program information may reflect requirements or practices in effect when recorded and may address association types with different rules. Have qualified Florida counsel review the actual agreement, incorporated exhibits, applicable law, association authority, conflicts, and required approval process before a consequential commitment. Consult appropriate insurance and technical professionals about their areas of expertise. This webpart does not determine a contract’s validity, interpret a disputed obligation, or authorize signing or termination. Viewing the program does not by itself establish required director education credit. An embedded video does not establish official UCO or WPRF policy.
Define the work. Review the terms. Track the commitments.
Connected Board Synergy guides
- Associations vendors
- Property manager contracts
- Bidding association contracts
- Licensed insured contractors
- Financial controls
- Conflict of interest
Independent educational guidance. Confirm applicable law, controlling documents, current procedures, and the actual agreement before taking action.