Two Teams, One Building
Understanding the People Who Make Your Condo A Home
November 16, 2025
Did you know that in high-rise condo associations, two teams of employees work every day, and they are hired in two distinct ways?The EMPLOYEES (door staff, maintenance, receiving room) work straight for you, the owners. The CONTRACTORS (property manager, Chief Engineer, and office team) work for an external property management company. It’s a key distinction, but they all share one goal: keeping the building running smoothly and effectively.
Brought to you by Drew McManus, your neighbor in 7908.
Our Building Team
The Association’s Direct Employees
Let’s apply this structure to the association where I live: 175 E Delaware Pl HOA home. Imagine the essential personnel you see throughout the building, like the door staff, maintenance, and receiving room team. These wonderful people are the EMPLOYEES, which means they are hired by the 175 E Delaware HOA, or put simply, they work directly for you, the owners.
The Association hires, manages, and pays this essential team directly, because their jobs are dedicated to physically running, maintaining, and protecting our building.
The Door Team
The Receiving Room Team
The Maintenance & Cleaning Team
These people are dedicated to the physical structure and smooth operation of our shared space we call home.
Contracted Staff
Sudler’s Office Team
Now, let’s talk about the team in the main office, the people who handle the business side of things, like the Property Manager, Chief Engineer, the Assistant Manager, Accountant, and Service Desk Representative.
These key individuals are actually hired and employed by Sudler Property Management. Think of Sudler as the firm we hire to handle the day-to-day administration of our Association.
- They Work For Sudler: Sudler hires them, pays them, and provides all their benefits, insurance, annual bonuses, and everything else that comes with a full-time job. They can also be moved to other properties they manage at Sudler’s discretion.
- They Manage For Us: We pay Sudler a fee for 100% of all costs related to those individuals (including benefits and bonuses), and in return, they put these professionals in place to run our office, manage our finances, and execute the decisions made by the Board of Directors.
In addition to handling administration, these CONTRACTORS are responsible for managing the EMPLOYEES on behalf of the Board. This includes:
- Ensuring the Association’s EMPLOYEES are trained properly and making sure compliance among staff and the building is met.
- Performing annual performance reviews for all EMPLOYEES.
These CONTRACTORS handle all things related to administration, from keeping track of our expenses and paperwork to vendor contracts and owner communication.
Why This Matters
Understanding The Compensation Difference
At the end of the day, both the EMPLOYEES and the CONTRACTORS are connected to this building. But understanding their difference is crucial because of how things like payroll and oversight are handled:
- EMPLOYEES: Hired, paid, and receives benefits directly from our Association budget. The Board is provided with full, detailed transparency regarding compensation, benefits, and how all rewards are calculated and distributed.
- CONTRACTORS: Hired, paid, and receives benefits directly from the management firm, Sudler. The Board is not provided with compensation, benefit, or bonus details for these employees. Since the Association pays 100% of the fees for Sudler staff, and is contractually required to pay any submitted costs, can you imagine any justifiable reason why an Association would treat this information as proprietary?
This dual structure, where the CONTRACTORS are responsible for managing and reviewing the EMPLOYEES, creates a unique challenge for HOAs, especially their elected board of directors.
Knowing these facts is the essential first step toward demanding a structure that ensures proper independent oversight and accountability within the Association.
It also helps everyone better understand how the Association makes important decisions, like deciding how to reward all these incredible people for the work they do, especially around the holidays!
Have Questions
If you’re curious to learn more about the employment structure, how it intersects with transparency, or the need for stronger oversight, feel free to reach out directly using the dedicated contact form here at 175Delaware.com. In the end, open discussion is vital to improving our association.
