Electric Vehicle Charging Capabilities
Ready or not, the future is here. One of the most complex situations every HOA will face, if they’ve not already, is how to handle the quickly emerging demand for electric vehicle (EV) charging capabilities. Per the US Department of Energy, between 2015-2020, the number of EV charging stations installed throughout the country doubled. Between 2021 and 2022, the number of charging stations has doubled again. As electric vehicles become more accessible and affordable, demand has and will continue to increase. The issue associations are currently facing is how they can accommodate residents who make the switch to electric vehicles. Accommodating electric vehicles presents different challenges at each unique Association: Will the underground parking garage of a condo building offer charging stations in each garage stall? Will the association install a common area station somewhere for residents to share? Does the detached garage in the townhome association have an adequate electricity supply to the structure to handle 240-volt charging stations should a homeowner want to install one? Is the transformer to the townhome metered separately, and does it have the bandwidth to allow owners to install a station in their private garage? How will costs be handled? Sharper is excited to announce a recent partnership with the experts at HOAMEV to assist HOAs with answering these questions. HOAMEV is equipped to offer installation, setup, and electrical service upgrades and, perhaps most importantly, are experts in interpreting and working with association governing documents. The first step is to evaluate and audit your association’s existing electrical infrastructure and electricity usage. This electrical audit provides the information that HOAMEV needs to develop a plan to accommodate for the inevitability of being ready for electric vehicle charging capabilities at your association. The cost for the electrical audit is roughly $1,000 per association. The audit takes place over the course of a 30-day period, is unintrusive, and will not affect or interrupt electrical service. Your homeowners likely won’t even know the audit is taking place. If you are interested in exploring this opportunity, speak to your Community Manager and they can connect you with a HOAMEV representative. It is important that associations act soon. While the electrical audits can be conducted now, supplies for installing electric vehicle charging capabilities are currently limited, and installers are already booked into the fall of 2023. If you haven’t started the process yet, you are already behind.