When you think about the most important person to a building or association, the superintendent should rank pretty high up on the list, if not right at the top. Let’s face it, an association or building’s super has a tremendous amount of responsibility, including safeguarding the health and security of residents, maintaining the community’s physical plant, and managing its other staff members.

“The board is made up of volunteers and often have their own interests in mind. The managing agent has a portfolio of buildings that he takes care of,” says Joe Scholes, vice president of Cooper Square Management & Realty Services in Rockville Center. “In a typical co-op or condo, there’s only one person there every day, and that’s the super. The super or resident manager is the only one doing this as a full-time occupation. He is the key guy, and boards need to recognize the value of these employees.”

Generally, the super is hired by, and reports to, the property manager. Hiring the right person for the job—and treating them as a valued member of the community’s administration—is crucial for an HOA’s smooth operation.

Hiring Right

According to Edwin Feliciano, a field representative for Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 32BJ, in New Jersey, which represents building employees in the tri-state area, hiring supers in New Jersey differs somewhat from the process in New York, where building reputations precede interviews and personal references count for everything.

SEIU 32BJ is the largest building service workers union in the country, representing more than 100,000 cleaners, doormen, porters, maintenance workers, window cleaners, security guards, superintendents, and theater and stadium workers in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.