Two-person account model
A community association manager and a dedicated assistant on every account — so boards know more than one name and coverage never depends on a single person being in the office.
Home Services
Full-service community management across Connecticut.
For condominium associations, HOAs, and co-ops in Greater New Haven, the Shoreline, Fairfield, and Middlesex Counties — built on communication, planning, and execution, run by a team that knows your community by name.
2 people on every account 87-step transition checklist CMCA · CAM-licensed · CAI-CT
What full-service actually means
Community management isn't property management with a friendlier voicemail.
Property management focuses on physical assets — the building, the grounds, the mechanicals. Community management adds the human dimension that condos, HOAs, and co-ops actually run on: board governance, covenant questions, owner concerns, financial planning tied to real conditions, and the dozens of small decisions a year that compound into property values either rising or quietly slipping.
CPE was built around that distinction. Every community we partner with gets a primary community association manager and a dedicated assistant — two people who know the property, the board, and the documents — backed by an in-house accounting team, a structured onboarding playbook, and a leader who's been published in Common Interest magazine and chairs the Connecticut CEO Council. This page walks through what that partnership looks like in practice.
Two governance models. Two dedicated approaches.
Condominium associations and HOAs have different needs. We manage them differently.
Connecticut runs on CIOA, the Common Interest Ownership Act — which means most of the work boards do every year is written into statute. Condominiums and HOAs operate under different governance structures, so we've developed distinct management approaches for each.
Condominium associations
Condominium association management — built for Connecticut's mid-rise stock and the boards governing it.
For Connecticut's 1980s–90s mid-rise stock and the volunteer boards governing it today. CIOA fluency, layered master/HO-6 insurance strategy, reserve studies kept live month to month, capital project oversight for roofs, paving, elevators, and mechanicals.
Condominium association managementHOAs & townhome communities
HOA management services — covenant work that earns trust.
For single-family, townhome, and master-planned communities. Documented covenant interpretation, architectural review committee support, a 5/10-year amenity refresh cycle, and the same operating discipline we bring to our condominium portfolio.
HOA management servicesWhat's included
A single management agreement, twelve disciplined practices.
No à-la-carte upsells. Every item below is part of the standard management relationship.
Board meeting preparation & facilitation
Pre-meeting prep, structured agendas, minutes within 5 business days digitally signed, and a post-meeting survey to track effectiveness over time.
In-house accounting integration
A dedicated accounting manager works directly with your board. Monthly packages by the 10th, variance flags raised proactively, receivables actively monitored.
Reserve study coordination
We don't just file the study — we keep it live through monthly one-page tracking with Smart Properties, so the board sees actuals against projections.
Insurance strategy & coordination
Risk-profile reviews, competitive quoting, and proactive guidance on premium-reducing measures — including water mitigation amendments that have delivered tangible savings.
Vendor & contract management
Standardized scope-of-work documents so every bid comes back comparable. Licensing, bonding, and insurance verified before bids are solicited.
Capital project oversight
Our team brings hands-on construction, maintenance, and design experience to project scoping. From roofs to paving to amenity renovations, projects are managed end to end.
Owner communication platforms
ONR concierge platform plus the CINC owner portal for statements, documents, and work orders. Designed so residents without computers still get full service.
Covenant interpretation & enforcement
Consistent, documented, framed as protection — not policing. We reset expectations at community orientations during onboarding and stay consistent after.
Board education & succession
Financial-literacy coaching, governance best practices, and succession planning built into the relationship. Subject-matter experts brought in regularly.
Routine community inspections
Performed by the assigned community manager — the person who knows the property best. Frequency tuned to community needs, not a one-size schedule.
In-house maintenance (optional)
A small in-house maintenance team for situations where responsiveness matters most. No incentive on our side to push you toward us over independent vendors.
The team you'll work with
Two on every account. Senior leadership accessible directly. The Supporters team behind both.
Our staffing model is the part of CPE we're least willing to dilute. Payroll is intentionally our largest expense — because faster response, deeper community knowledge, and seamless coverage during vacations aren't slogans. They're hiring decisions we made on purpose.
- Primary manager + dedicated assistant assigned to every community. Boards know multiple team members by name.
- Senior leadership accessible directly for higher-level board questions and routine check-ins — not gatekept behind an executive assistant.
- The Supporters team meets every Wednesday to refine best practices, then with the full team weekly with rotating subject-matter experts.
- 4.8 out of 5 average board-meeting satisfaction score across recent reporting periods — tracked through structured post-meeting surveys.
Transition & onboarding
An 87-step checklist, owned by us — not handed to you.
Transition anxiety is the #1 reason boards stay with underperforming firms. Our onboarding team runs a structured, timeline-driven playbook from the day the contract signs through day 45 — built as a best practice with the Connecticut CEO Council and recognized annually in Common Interest magazine.
01
Days 1–3
Contract, banks, vendors
Notify the incumbent, open new operating and reserve accounts, line up vendor introductions, lock the legal handoff window.
02
Days 4–15
Records & financials
Digitize legacy records, import the prior year's GL, reconcile to bank statements, stand up the owner portal.
03
Days 16–30
Community orientation
Meet-and-greet with owners, reset rules and communication expectations, walk the property with the board.
04
Days 31–45
Settling the rhythm
First financial package delivered, first board meeting in the new cadence, post-meeting survey baseline established.
Where we work
Most of our communities are within an hour of our New Haven office.
Proximity matters — for site inspections, capital project walkthroughs, and same-day board coverage. We don't manage anywhere we can't be in person within a reasonable drive.
New Haven County Branford · Guilford · Madison · Hamden · East Haven · North Haven · New Haven
Shoreline CT Clinton · Westbrook · Old Saybrook · Essex · Deep River · Chester
Fairfield County Bridgeport · Stratford · Milford · Shelton · Trumbull
Middlesex County Middletown · Durham · Portland · Cromwell
What boards tell us
The reviews we're proudest of are the ones from boards three years in.
"Doug doesn't tell us what we want to hear — he tells us what we should be doing. That's exactly why we hired CPE, and why we've stayed."
Board President Mid-rise condominium · Branford, CT
"Our reserve study went from a binder on a shelf to a one-page report we look at every month. The funding conversations are completely different now."
Treasurer 65-unit HOA · Guilford, CT
"Transition was the part we dreaded most. CPE ran the whole thing on a checklist — we didn't have to chase a single old record."
Board Secretary Townhome community · Madison, CT
Frequently asked
Questions boards ask before they get to a proposal.
How much does HOA or condo management cost in Connecticut?
Management fees in Connecticut typically run between $20–$45 per unit per month depending on community size, building complexity, and scope. Larger communities and self-managed associations using us only for accounting have different structures. We provide a written proposal once we understand your community — there's no published flat rate because every community is different.
How long does the transition from our current management company take?
Active onboarding runs through day 45. Days 1–3 handle contract notification and bank setup; days 4–15 cover records digitization and prior-year reconciliation; days 16–30 are the community orientation and first inspection; days 31–45 establish the new financial and meeting rhythm. The 87-step checklist runs the same way for every community we onboard.
Will our community keep its existing vendors?
Yes — unless you ask us to rebid. We don't push CPE-affiliated vendors. Where contracts are coming up for renewal, we'll run a standardized scope-of-work bid process so the board sees genuinely comparable proposals. Our in-house maintenance team is optional, never required.
Do you manage HOAs and condos, or just one?
Both, and we treat them as distinct service lines. Condominium associations are our primary line of work — Connecticut's market is condo-heavy and most of the communities built in the 1980s and 1990s are condominium associations. We also manage HOAs (single-family and townhome) and co-ops. The legal framework changes; the operating discipline stays the same. See the linked condominium and HOA pages above for the specifics of each.
Is CPE accredited?
Doug Newman holds the CMCA designation and is licensed as a Connecticut Community Association Manager (CAM). CPE is a CAI-CT member. Doug serves on the CAI-CT Education Committee, chairs the Connecticut CEO Council, and participates in the CAI PAM Leadership Institute (CLI) alongside our operations lead. We're not the largest firm in the state — we're one of the most active in the professional community.
What happens at board meetings under CPE management?
Agendas are prepared in advance with the board president. Materials and financials are delivered in time for genuine review. Minutes are completed within five business days and digitally signed — so we don't waste time re-approving them at the next meeting. After every meeting, board members receive a short survey so we can track and improve effectiveness.
Can you manage our community's reserve study?
Yes. We coordinate with independent reserve study firms — we don't perform the study ourselves, which keeps the analysis independent. We do, however, keep the study live through a monthly one-page tracking sheet (in partnership with Smart Properties) so the board sees actual contributions, interest, and expenses against projections in real time.
Are you open to managing self-managed associations?
Yes — and we can also support self-managed associations with accounting and financial reporting only, without taking over full management. Many boards start with the accounting relationship and expand into full-service management over time once they see the operating cadence.
For boards considering a change
Your board deserves a partner — not an order-taker.
If your community is ready for clearer communication, stronger planning, and dependable execution, we'd welcome a conversation. No pitch deck — just a candid discussion of where you are and where you'd like to be.