maintenance technician

associate manager

hoa manager

administrative assistant

property manager

UNITED PROPERTY ASSOCIATES

UPA is a family owned management company that employs over 300 people. The company does not give bonuses for good performance, only a shiny statue or paper. The corporate treats workers harshly and has abusive policies that causes a high employee turnaround rate. For insurance, their premium is absurdly high so that they do not have to pay almost anything by forcing you to find your own insurance.
 Regarding time off, there is no ACL time (Annual Accrual Time) for the first annual year, meaning no days off. Zip, zero, none, and NO additional sick days or personal days. The second annual year, starting Jan. 1st, you get only 7 days ACL time, NO sick days or personal days. The company uses this to create a loop hole where if you start February, you end up waiting over a year to get any time off.  They cheat the system against workers to their benefit. When you finally have vacation days, it is still your responsibility to find a substitute to cover emergency calls. This is not really a vacation, it is being on call and not getting paid. 
This company keeps about 100 units per maintenance worker. By the industry’s standard it should be ~50 units per worker. This is another way they try to not pay workers, and you are on call 24/7/364 because you are the only person on property.
 Corporate orders all maintenance personnel to work 1-2 days every week on the other properties that are located far from your house, up to 30-40 miles, and it takes a long time to drive in traffic. No parts or supplies are ordered for the jobs and many times each worker is forced to make separate trips to the hardware store, thus wasting work time and later can be accused of bad performance.
 At the same time, the company policy requires that you have to keep the vacancy rate on your property no more than 2%. This is ridiculous in this situation, because with so many units, and being on other properties 2 days a week, there is no time to prepare each unit and complete residents’ requests.
The company policy made it illegal to use a power saw so projects are done with a hand saw and look terrible. All of the mentioned shortages in property maintenance quality are so low that a company was forced to change one of the property’s name because there were too many negative comments on review websites. So, they changed the name to fool people.
The company policy does not allow you to have lunch in the office kitchen area or in the maintenance shop. They want you to eat lunch in your car in the parking lot, or away from the property. Also, you will get fired for playing the radio at any time other than break. 
The company required all maintenance employees to use their private vehicles for company needs, to move any materials, like doors, boards, plywood, sheet rock, cement, water heaters, etc., and you have to carry all trade tools in your vehicle. My family van was turned into a contractor's truck. The interior was scratched all over, for which the company would not compensate. They do not pay for the car, tools, any work-related car or tool maintenance, or even being required to upgrade my car insurance to business use. These, and other expenses, the company forces you as the worker to pay from your own pocket.
The company reimburses you for only $0.32/mile for gas. The IRS pays $0.56/mi, but you cannot file twice for the gas credit. The company makes money on you driving around, while you lose money. 
The company requires a jack of all trades worker working for a penny, then fires them for no real cause. A fired employee can’t be eligible for unemployment benefits—another way they do not pay workers.
During the hiring process, the HR office does not inform you about these abusive policies until it becomes handy to use these tactics against you in order to fire you when needed, then hire a new worker that they can abuse.

Stay away from this company!

I have worked here for a little over six months. Managing a portfolio is hard work and let’s face it, as the manager you are the complaint center for many people. It is up to you as the manager to create an organizational system that works and to handle negativity well. If you do not take responsibility for the things you’re required to do then you will fail. Not every job is perfect, and you’ll have hard days. UPA promotes the best work life balance I have ever experienced in a job. Taking personal time is easy to do as long as you are managing your workload. You are taught what you need to know but you are not micromanaged. You come up with what works for you. The amount of value you will feel as an employee is the amount of value that you bring to the table. There are growth opportunities that you can take part in at your pace. Everyone is willing to drop what they are doing to help. If you listen to negative employees and fixate on their perspective then no, you will not enjoy your job. Persistence and a positive attitude go a long way in this industry. If you see all of the good this company has to offer then I promise you won’t want to leave.

UPA is an excellent company to work for and grow with! They give you the tools and training necessary to succeed in your position. If you work hard, ask questions and do your best then you will succeed. It is a fast paced environment with many growth opportunities. Everyone is friendly and they do an amazing job engaging employees by celebrating achievements, giving constructive criticism and truly listening to each and every employee's opinion. Being a family owned business, they truly care about the employee and they even have an idea generation program! UPA has a unique and diverse workplace culture, embodying the owner's own family values. Some of the company Core Values include; making it fun, being nice and showing others that you care. It is refreshing to work in such an inclusive and positive atmosphere! Overall, working with UPA has been a rewarding and beneficial experience. I am continuously learning and encourage anyone looking for employment to apply!

UPA is offering $5 gift cards to all employees who give reviews in order to increase their rating, that should tell you something! 

UPA offers it's employees some good benefits. The stress level is extremely high at this company, whether it be the high workload, understaffed departments, policies that change depending on who you are talking to or the fear of being reprimanded if you speak to other employees. You must apply for a promotion. They do not give promotions out unless you are apart of the senior management click. The company has an open door policy, but be careful it could be used against you. If you ask for assistance most of the time it goes unanswered or you are told you should know the answer already. In other words, ask for help so UPA can know you are incompetent. Although that does not apply to the Owners of the company, they actually try to help employees succeed. Too bad the rest of the senior management team do not follow in their footsteps.

I started at UPA as a temporary employee while in school, I asked questions and offered to take on more responsibilities and was kept on and promoted twice in four years. They even paid for me to attend an HR seminar. If you work hard and ask questions there is no reason you shouldn't excel in your career with UPA. There is plenty of opportunity for growth! The Virginia Beach office is inclusive and welcoming, everyone is friendly and pleasant. They have an idea generation program where employees can help suggest ways to improve the company's efficiency and overall atmosphere. They host blood drives, monthly charity drives, holiday events, volunteer opportunities, employee appreciation days and door decorating contests. I really enjoy working with UPA!

United Property Associates is, in my opinion, the most efficient property management company in the area. The internal structure of the company is organized to provide clients with a specific department to contact when assistance is needed. For example, property managers do not manage the financial aspect of their communities - the accounting department addresses any issues with clients regarding their individual accounts. That being said, the compensation is not adequate for the volume of work required to successfully complete all required tasks. There is absolutely NO JOB SECURITY! When management receives a complaint on an employee, the employee is automatically guilty until proven innocent. The employee turnover rate is high (except for key executive employees) because this company simply doesn't "have your back".

I changed careers after 20 years to join UPA. The onboarding and training were the best I’ve experienced. There are two trainers who continue to support you after onboarding as you learn your responsibilities and face new challenges. The owners come desk to desk regularly just to say hello and get to know staff. The company is employee centered with several employee appreciation events throughout the year. The staff are supportive, fun, and build each other up. The work life balance is wonderful. There is opportunity for growth. They want to hear your ideas, listen and put them into action. I just completed my one year anniversary and don’t regret the career move. Hands down the best company I have ever worked for! 

From the time you get to work you don't stop. There is always something to do. If you take five minutes to talk with a co-worker you almost fee guilty. I am taking with me a new skill set and an even greater desire to help people. My immediate co-workers were great. Always ready to lend a helping hand. The management team had some issues in my opinion. Taking responsibility for their directions is something they had a hard time with. The best part of my job was the sense of accomplishment. I could see the good or bad job I was doing on a daily basis and could set goals for myself and look for ways to improve.

Family owned company that is slow to upgrade systems and become more efficient.  Unfortunately clients have left for the competition due to out dated systems.  Employee feedback is not taken seriously and employees are often treated as a number.  Typical work day is handling homeowner complaints and communicating with board members and vendors.  Co-workers are wonderful and give a family feel which makes the negative aspects easier to digest.  Hardest part of the job is explaining to boards the inefficiencies beyond the manager control without speaking negative about the corporate arm of the company.

Association Management is not for everyone.  You have to like talking to  and be willing to help people.  If you don't like to do that, you will not like this job.  The training here is top notch and others will go out of their way to help you.  It is a very collaborative environment.  Each situation is different and is not cookie-cutter.  But, that is where the collaboartive environment comes in handy.  Again, if you want to just get told yes to everything and are not teachable/coachable, then you will not want to work here.  If you don't have semi-thick skin you will sink.  If you have great organizational skills and enjoy a challenge on a daily basis, then you will like it here.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Maintenance technician 12 salaries reported	$23.71 per hour
Associate manager 17 salaries reported	$48,059 per year
Hoa manager 1 salary reported	$50,000 per year
Administrative assistant 11 salaries reported	$19.36 per hour
Property manager 5 salaries reported	$51,500 per year

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