Glossary
Property management glossary
The terms you'll see in budgets, governing documents, leases, and board packages — defined in plain English.
Assessment lien
A legal claim an association records against a unit or lot for unpaid assessments, late fees, and collection costs. It must generally be paid before the property can be sold with clear title.
Bylaws
The association's internal operating rules: how the board is elected, how many directors serve, officer roles, meeting procedures, quorum, and voting.
CAM charges
Common area maintenance charges: the share of a commercial property's shared operating costs — cleaning, landscaping, snow removal, lighting, security, and similar — that tenants pay under their leases, usually as monthly estimates reconciled once a year.
Capital improvement
A project that adds something new to a property or significantly upgrades it — such as a new amenity — as opposed to a repair or a like-for-like replacement of an existing component.
Common elements
The parts of a condominium owned in shares by all unit owners rather than by any one owner — typically the land, structure, roofs, exterior walls, hallways, parking areas, and shared systems.
D&O insurance
Directors and officers liability insurance protects association board members and officers against claims arising from their decisions, typically covering defense costs and settlements for alleged wrongful acts in their board roles.
HO-6 insurance
A homeowners insurance policy for condominium unit owners. It covers the parts of the unit the association's master policy doesn't — often interior finishes and improvements — plus personal property, personal liability, and loss assessments.
Limited common elements
Common elements reserved for the exclusive use of one or more units — such as a balcony, patio, assigned parking space, or storage unit — while still owned in common.
Master deed
The recorded document that creates a New Jersey condominium under the Condominium Act. It defines the units, the common elements, each unit's percentage interest, and the basic rules for how the association is governed and how costs are shared.
Master insurance policy
The property and liability insurance the association buys for buildings and common elements. Policies are often described as 'bare walls,' 'single entity,' or 'all-in,' depending on how much of each unit they cover.
Operating budget
The association's plan for its routine yearly income and expenses — insurance, utilities, landscaping, snow removal, repairs, management, and administration — separate from the reserve contribution.
Quorum
The minimum number of members, or board members, who must be present or represented for a meeting to conduct business. Quorum rules are set in the bylaws, within limits set by state law.
Reserve fund
Money an association sets aside, separate from its operating account, to pay for major repairs and replacements of common components — such as roofs, paving, and elevators — when they reach the end of their useful lives.
Reserve study
A professional analysis that lists an association's major common components, estimates their remaining life and replacement cost, and recommends how much to contribute to reserves each year.
Special assessment
A one-time charge to owners, in addition to regular dues, to cover a cost the budget and reserves can't — usually a major repair, an underfunded replacement, or an uninsured loss.
Transition period
The period when control of a new community association passes from the developer to owner-elected board members, typically in stages as units are sold.
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