What is an evergreen clause and should we accept one?

An evergreen clause renews the agreement automatically unless notice is given inside a defined window. It is administratively convenient for the Management Company and it is the mechanism behind most of the "we did not realize we were locked in" stories Boards tell.

It is not predatory on its own. The problem is that association Boards rotate, and the person who knew about the notice window is often off the Board by the time it matters.

You can ask for it to be struck, or converted to a renewal that requires affirmative Board approval. Boards ask for this more often than they get told no.

If it stays in, add a reminder obligation: the company must give the Board written notice thirty days before the notice window opens. That single clause converts an evergreen from a trap into an ordinary renewal, and firms rarely refuse it because it costs them nothing but a calendar entry.

Then keep your own reminder anyway. The clause protects you against forgetting; it does not protect you against a company that forgets too.