Deck / Lanai systems have a high failure rate and are much more costly to replace when not appropriately maintained over the life of the component. A common budgeting mistake is relying on Unit Owners to maintain the decks / lanai systems thinking it is saving the Association money. In the long run we have found this is not to be accurate for the vast majority of communities we encounter. 

Installing fire sprinklers or earthquake retrofits into a building can significantly improve the safety of the building and potentially save lives -  but the cost can be extremely high. Should these expenses be paid for from the reserve account? 

Special assessments and loans do not typically address the real issue when they are implemented and secured. These are usually temporary band aid type fixes to a much larger issue - not adequately funding the reserve account. 

Working with older HOA and Condominium communities carries significant challenges as we are generally working from a position that was created from many years of inadequate budgeting. A community may have gone many years or even decades of underfunding the reserve account only to finally find themselves in a position where the true financial position of the reserve account is apparent.

FHA has made some changes to the approval of condominium communities. There is now a way for approval for communities with as low as 35% owner occupancy.