After you send the form
- Your request reaches us. The ZIP code, your role and the number of homes come first, then your name and a phone number or email, then any detail about the property you choose to add.
- We choose one firm. We look for a firm that says it works in that part of Oregon and handles that kind of association. Within one business day, we tell you its name.
- You decide. Agree, and the request goes to that firm. Decline or stay silent, and it goes nowhere.
- The firm takes it from there. They confirm the scope, ask for documents and send a fee proposal. The contract, if there is one, is signed between the association and that firm.
Who pays us
Firms pay Oregon Reserve Studies a fee for introductions. Associations, boards, managers and owners pay us nothing, and the firm's fee to you is set by the firm. We are not owned by any reserve study firm, and we have no tie to any firm with a similar name.
Where the information on this site comes from
Legal points come from the Oregon Revised Statutes on the Legislature's website. Fee ranges come from fees published by firms and fee guides, labelled as a guide and not a quote. Credentials and kinds of study come from CAI and APRA. Firm details are what each firm says on its own website. None of it is legal advice; for questions about your declaration or bylaws, ask the association's attorney.
Questions managers ask
Does Oregon require a reserve study every year?
Yes, in effect. Both statutes tell the board to set the reserve requirement each year by conducting a reserve study or by reviewing and updating the one it has (ORS 100.175(3) for condominiums, ORS 94.595(3) for planned communities). A full new study every year is not required; a careful annual update is. More on the annual review.
Who is allowed to prepare an Oregon reserve study?
Neither statute names a license or credential. The duty sits with the board. In practice most boards hire a specialist firm, and many look for the Reserve Specialist (RS) designation from CAI or the Professional Reserve Analyst (PRA) designation from APRA. See who does reserve studies.
Is a maintenance plan the same thing as a reserve study?
No. The reserve study puts a life and a cost on each component so the board can fund replacement. The maintenance plan, which Oregon also requires, schedules the upkeep that helps those components reach their lives. Many firms prepare both together. Read about the maintenance plan.
How much does a reserve study cost in Oregon?
Going by the fees firms publish, a full study including a site visit runs from about $1,500 for a small association to $20,000 or more for a large or high-rise one. Updates cost a fraction of that. The cost page breaks it down. All figures are a guide, not a quote.
Our HOA is small. Does the reserve law apply to us?
Possibly not. One- and two-unit condominiums are exempt from the study and plan rules, and a Class II planned community created on or after January 1, 2002 falls outside ORS 94.595. Whether your community is Class I or Class II depends on its lot count and assessments, so check with the association's attorney. Planned communities explains more.
Can owners vote to stop funding the reserve?
Only narrowly. After the turnover meeting the board may skip funding for the following year, but only with the approval of all owners, and only one year at a time. Otherwise funding can stop only if the board finds the reserve will be adequately funded. See condominium rules.
I manage several associations. Can I send one request?
Yes. Use the form for the first association and list the others in the notes on the last step. We look for one firm that covers the areas involved and tell you who it is before anything is passed on.
Changing your mind
You can ask us to delete your request at any time, before or after an introduction. The privacy notice explains how, and how long we keep anything.