Property Managers: Do they get a a holiday bonus?

[G. Keenan]

My HOA contracts a property management company to manage our association. This contractor assigns a property manager to our account. The property manager is a full-time salaried employee of the management company. We pay the management company a monthly service fee plus admin fees for stamps, letters, mailings, etc.

Every December, they ask us if we want to give our property manager a holiday bonus and I never know what is correct. Our HOA does not employ him. Shouldn't his employer be the entity giving him a holiday bonus out of their own coffers, instead of soliciting bonuses from their clients?

We give the cleaning lady a bonus every year because that is a role where I think year-end tipping is expected. But the property manager is a white collar full time employee who sends emails and runs meetings. It seems weird for his company's clients to be the ones giving him a bonus, no? But maybe property manager is a job where getting bonuses from clients is a norm?

I am not opposed to doing it if that is what's expected in the property management industry -- the clients tip the management company's staff -- but I genuinely have no idea what is correct. It's not just a question of being cheap. The Board has a fiduciary obligation to owners so we should not just be handing out association monies as holiday gifts if that is not a standard practice.

His bonus is in your hands, GRB!

[Leroy]

Make a donation in his name to the human fund.

[CardsofSTL]

My company does not do property management, but we do provide contract services. We give all of our employees a holiday bonus based on longevity but we do have clients that want to do a holiday bonus for the staff that work in their buildings every day. This would not include management staff that work from the office; so I would think clients in the situation of an HOA and property manager would have no obligation or expectation to provide a bonus. The only reason to give a bonus would be if you were exceptionally pleased with the person's performance or wanted to reward them for going the extra mile or something like that.

[cardinalkarp]

GTFO

[heyzeus]

Man. No. Just...no.

[heyzeus]

But do remember to tip your attorney. It's a service industry, y'all.