In response to the cityís rapid addition of condominiums through rental conversions and new developments, Chicagoís Lakeside Community Development Corporation offers comprehensive training and technical assistance to arm new owners with the ability to self-manage their condo associations and enjoy the full benefits of owning a home.

Lakeside CDCís training program is ideal for newly formed associations or those with a significant number of new officers or directors. It includes a popular basics course, which comes with a comprehensive training manual, as well as periodic seminars offered on special topics throughout the city. In 2008, the agency assisted more than 440 unit owners with training and assistance.

Proper training is a critical first step in forming and maintaining a functional condo association. This program helps instill proper policies and procedures for increasing the capacity to self-manage. For developers, having owners trained to assume responsibility for running the association facilitates smoother transitions and less headaches all around. A strong association can also contribute to better relationships between owners, affirming the notion of community. In these troubled times, all associations are looking for ways to reduce costs, improve management controls, and take on some of the tasks that might have been outsourced previously. Doing so without training can be risky.

So many people jump into condo ownership without realizing how a board of directors works,î said Jill Burgin, a realtor with Prudential Preferred Properties. ìA board of directors has to run independently like a business, but the majority of new condo owners have the renterís mentality that someone else will take care of the building, which makes a training program like this very helpful.î

Lakeside CDC has provided both training and technical assistance to condominium associations located in neighborhoods such as Rogers Park, Lincoln Square, Uptown, South Shore, and Bronzeville. Technical assistance has ranged from answering basic questions to working with associations on more complex matters, such as how to manage foreclosures or how to work with an outside receiver when the developer has failed to complete the project in a timely or professional way.

ìAfter the training, as newcomers to condominium ownership, the other owners in my building and I were in full agreement that those few hours of training had well-positioned us for a smooth and orderly assumption of the association,î said Errol Horne, a Bronzeville resident who participated in Lakeside CDCís training session. ìEvery association should have access to this training,î he added.

Lakeside's program is funded in part by the Chicago Department of Community Development. The agency has also partnered with local banks and real estate firms, aldermanic offices, and community associaiton industry groups to make its programs available. For more information on Lakeside's condo program, contact Julio Soriano at (773) 381-5253. Event dates, topics, and locations are also posted to the agency's website.