CAI Report Card

CAI is a 50 year old industry trade organization behind much of what ails common interest communities.  

Condo Connection opposes actions and messaging from CAI that conflicts with homeowner-centric progress for CICs. 

ABOUT CAI & FCAR

The Community Associations Institute (CAI) is an industry trade organization that primarily represents the interests of businesses and individual professionals that derive revenue from common interest communities (CICs), thousands of which pay membership dues and/or receive credentials from CAI and/or CAMICB related to practicing law, managing properties, providing insurance, and conducting reserve studies.  CAI founded the Foundation for Community Association Research (FCAR).

While CAI and FCAR have produced some noble and respectable advocacy, documentation, recommendations and research related to certain common interest community concerns, the myriad conflicting interests inherent in their business model and business practices risk undermining these outcomes.  

CAI derives the majority of its revenue from the following sources:

1) trade advertising and seminars (example 2022 law seminar registration: $599 to $849)

2) annual trade memberships

3) educational catalog courses and webinars ranging from $69 to $699

4) credentialing and required continuing education for management companies, managers, reserve specialists and insurance brokers

5) sponsorship opportunities

CAI's business model disregards some of the most basic concerns of the over 350,000 common interest communities and millions of homeowners and who pay an estimated $109 billion in annual assessments.  These concerns include service delivery failures and ethically suspect practices of businesses and individual professionals who pay CAI for advertising, education and credentialing.  This fatally flawed approach is incapable of adequately representing the best interests of common interest communities and their homeowner members because doing so would mean alienating the largest segment of CAI's revenue base.  In addition to the foregoing, a lack of transparent communication and feedback systems for CICs and homeowner leaders and the overall paucity of homeowner leader positions on committees, councils and Board positions creates an opaque operating environment for CAI and its state chapters.

Learn more by reading Listening to our Homeowners from the Common Ground magazine November/December 2021 edition.  Also read WSCAI Opportunities below.

• How has CAI evolved across across all 54 chapters?  Between 2010 and 2022:

  • CAI lobbying expenses have increased 450%.

  • CAI membership revenue has increased 68%

  • CAI overall revenue has increased about 66%

  • CAI has established 7 political action committees (PACs; FY 2023 Form 990).  You don't have to guess who donates (FEC filings).  2024 data for one PAC.

CAI National Organization by the Numbers (2022)

• 15 member CAI national Board of Trustees: 1 Trustee is a homeowner leader (6.7%)

• 12 member CAI national Business Partners Council

• 12 member CAI national Association Managers Council

• 7 member CAI national Homeowner Leaders Council (HLC)

  • The HLC is controlled by the CAI Board and a CAI staff liaison.  The HLC's most notable contribution in the past 24 months is the Homeowner Leader Survey of which no results were released save for a half page summary in November 2021.  

  • There is no functional conduit for homeowners and volunteer leaders to connect with the HLC or any other CAI councils or the Board.

• 2021 CAI Annual Report

  • 18,282 "Homeowner Leaders" = $919,266 annual membership dues

    1. Combination of individual members ($130), two-person memberships ($240) + 15 person memberships ($305)

  • 14,438 Community Managers = $2,151,262 individual memberships ($149 each) + $647,030 company memberships ($445 each)

    1. Combination of individual managers + 1,454 management company members as of July 2022)

  • 4,213 Business Partners, Students & Honorary Members = ~$2,600,000 annual membership dues ($625/business)

• IRS Form 990 Tax Return for FY 2018

  • $13,334,168 TOTAL (excluding investments)

    1. $6,317,558 -- Membership Dues

    2. $3,112,141 -- Educational Courses

    3. $2,287,049 -- Conferences, Seminars and Workshops

    4. $858,125 -- Affiliate Management Fees

    5. $759,295 -- Designation Program Fees