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By Erik Sundquist, RS

This article first appeared in our Communicator Magazine, Summer 2025 Edition.

IN THE WINTER of 1914, as explorer Ernest Shackleton and his crew faced the crushing ice of Antarctica aboard the Endurance, they didn’t rely on wishful thinking to survive. They relied on planning, preparation, and constant reevaluation of conditions. Though the ship was eventually lost, every crew member survived thanks to leadership that understood this truth: conditions may be beyond your control, but your response never is.

Today’s California HOAs are navigating a similarly hostile environment – not of ice and isolation, but of inflation, regulatory pressure, and risk exposure. Boards and community managers can’t stop insurance markets from tightening or buildings from aging. But they can lead with foresight, and they can pre‐ pare. In this landscape, the updated reserve study is their map, compass, and survival kit all in one.

Let’s examine four urgent issues facing California H...