Reserve Study - Creation

Creation

Reserve Studies can be created by volunteer Boardmembers, their professional managers, obtained through a variety of professionals specializing in the preparation of Reserve Studies, or large architectural or engineering firms who complete Reserve Studies as a small aspect of their larger business. Recently, certification criteria have been created to allow for a more ordered system of identifying those individuals who have been specifically trained in the creation of Reserve Studies. One such certification, that of Reserve Specialist (RS), is available through the Community Associations Institute (CAI). To obtain this certification, candidates must have prepared at least 30 reserve studies within the past 3 calendar years, hold a bachelors degree in construction management, architecture, or engineering (or something equivalent based on experience and education), and complied with various other rules and codes of conducts.

Another credential is the Professional Reserve Analyst (PRA), created and promoted by the Reserve Study industry's own trade organization, the Association of Professional Reserve Analysts (APRA). The PRA credential is similar in that it takes many years to obtain due to its educational and experience background requirements.

There are three types of Reserve Studies, differing in how exhaustively the Physical Analysis is conducted. These three types of Reserve Studies allow the association to select the "Level of Service" appropriate to their current budget preparation and disclosure needs. Listed beginning with the most exhaustive, they are: 1) "Full" Reserve Study (creation of the Reserve Study, involving creation of the component list, measuring/quantifying all Reserve components, and development of the Useful Life, Remaining Useful Life, and Current Replacement Cost based on a diligent, visual on-site inspection). Note that for most associations, a "Full" Reserve Study only needs to be done once. After a "Full" Reserve Study has been done, in subsequent years the association can choose between the two Reserve Study update options shown below: 2) "Update With-Site-Visit" Reserve Study (an update of an existing Reserve Study involving a diligent visual on-site inspection, but presuming that all components have been properly identified and quantified). This type of update is often performed every two to five years. 3) "Update No-Site-Visit" Reserve Study (an update of an existing Reserve Study without a site inspection, done by client interviews and interviews with knowledgeable vendors and service providers). This type of update is typically performed in the years in-between With-Site-Visit updates.