Can the Management Company hold our association funds?

Practices vary and this is worth being precise about. Association operating and reserve accounts should be in the association's name, with the association as owner, and the Management Company as an authorized signer or agent — not in a pooled or commingled account controlled by the Management Company.

Ask who owns the account, whose tax identification number it uses, who the signers are, what dual-control exists for disbursements above a threshold, and what fidelity or crime bond coverage protects the balance.

Confirm the bond limit is at least equal to the maximum funds handled, including reserves. Several states set minimums; the contractual answer should exceed them.

Reserves deserve their own answer. They should sit in separate accounts from operating funds, and withdrawal should require Board authorization every time without exception. Reserve money moved into operating to cover a shortfall is one of the most common findings in association audits, and it is usually done with good intentions and no vote.

Ask for read-only bank access for the treasurer, direct from the bank rather than through the company's portal. It costs nothing, and it is the only view of the account that does not pass through the party you are checking.