Reserve studies for Pittsburgh HOAs and condos.
Professional reserve study for your Pittsburgh HOA or condo association, backed by 20 years of experience. Know what's coming. Know what it will cost. Plan with confidence.
- Draft study in 10 business days1
- Every report reviewed and approved by credentialed RS
- Board presentation included at no additional cost
Tell us about your community and we will prepare a proposal for your property.
1 Delivery requires a completed 30-minute onboarding call before the site visit and property access within four days of signing. Ten business days refers to the draft study, not the final report.
Your board shouldn't have to guess what the next major repair will cost.
Most boards are volunteers with day jobs. The roof, the pavement, and the building systems all have a replacement date, and without a roadmap the first sign of it is a bid that nobody budgeted for.
What gets replaced, and when?
We inventory every important component the association is responsible for and estimate how much useful life is left in each one.
What will it cost?
Each component gets a current replacement cost, escalated forward to the year the work is likely to happen.
How much should we be setting aside?
The funding model runs your balance and contributions forward so you can see which contribution level keeps you ahead of the schedule.
A reserve study your board can actually use.
Delivered as a PDF report plus the underlying spreadsheet model, written for a board to read.
Component inventory
Every reserve component the association must eventually replace, with quantities and condition notes from our own site visit.
Replacement timelines
Remaining useful life for each component, so the board can see the order the work arrives in.
Projected costs
Current replacement costs escalated to the projected year, sourced and documented rather than guessed.
30-year funding plan
Your reserve balance projected forward, with contribution scenarios so you can weigh the options before a vote.
Board-friendly executive summary
The findings in plain English, short enough to send to owners without translation.
Board presentation
We present the study to your board, explain the recommendations, and answer questions. Included, not an add-on.
Your draft reserve study in 10 business days.
Boards work to budget deadlines and meeting dates. We commit to the draft in writing so you can plan the vote before the season closes.
The two conditions
- A 30-minute onboarding call is completed before the site visit.
- Property access is provided within four days of signing.
The commitment covers the draft study. The final report follows your board's review and any revisions you ask for.
20+ years of experience behind every report.
Mike Bentley is our Senior Advisor and a CAI credentialed Reserve Specialist (RS #152) with more than 20 years of professional reserve study experience and a Civil Engineering degree from Columbia University. He personally reviews and approves every report before it reaches your board.
More about the teamSee exactly what you're getting before you hire us.
Our full sample study is published: executive summary, component inventory, 30-year expenditure forecast, and funding plan options. Read it before you ever speak to us.
Executive summary
One-page overview of current reserve balance, funding status, and key findings for the board.
Component inventory
Every important reserve component the association must maintain, with useful life and replacement cost.
Funding projections
30-year expenditure forecast and contribution scenarios to keep the association ahead of expenses.
Reserve planning built for Pittsburgh communities.
Western Pennsylvania building stock and terrain push certain components to the front of the reserve schedule. These are some of the components we pay particular attention to on Pittsburgh properties.
Roofs, masonry, and exteriors
Freeze-thaw cycling is hard on shingles, flashing, brick, and mortar. We look at the condition we find, not just the age on paper, because a roof on the shaded north slope of a hill rarely ages like the one across the street.
Hillsides, retaining walls, and drainage
Many local communities are built into grade, which puts retaining walls, swales, and storm drainage on the reserve schedule. These are expensive when they fail and easy to leave out of a budget.
Private roads, asphalt, and sidewalks
Where streets and parking areas are association-owned rather than municipal, paving is often the single largest line in the plan. We separate seal and overlay cycles from full reconstruction so the timing is realistic.
Shared systems in condominium buildings
Elevators, boilers, common corridors, and garage structures belong to the association even when unit interiors do not. We map responsibility against the governing documents before anything enters the model.
Not every property has all of these. What goes into your study depends on what your governing documents make the association responsible for and on the scope we agree in the proposal. A reserve study is a planning document and does not replace a specialized structural, geotechnical, or environmental investigation where one is warranted.
From first contact to a clear financial plan.
- 01
Tell us about your community
Association name, ZIP, and roughly how many units. Two minutes.
- 02
Review your proposal
A fixed-fee scope and price, prepared by hand for your property.
- 03
Onboarding and site visit
A 30-minute call, then we inspect the property ourselves.
- 04
Receive your draft study
Ten business days from signing, when the conditions are met.
- 05
Review it with your board
We present the findings and answer questions. Included.
More detail on the schedule is on the process page.
Pittsburgh reserve study questions we hear most.
How much does a reserve study cost in Pittsburgh?
Fees depend on unit count, the number of buildings, and how complex the components are. Every proposal is a fixed price agreed before work starts, with no hourly surprises. Send the association name, ZIP, and unit count and you'll have a price back within one business day.
How long does it take?
We commit to the draft study within 10 business days of signing, provided a 30-minute onboarding call happens before the site visit and property access is given within four days of signing. The final report follows your board's review.
What's included?
A component inventory, remaining useful life and cost projections, a 30-year funding plan with contribution scenarios, an executive summary written for a board, the underlying spreadsheet model, and a board presentation.
Does our association need one?
Pennsylvania does not impose a blanket requirement, but your governing documents, your lender, your insurer, or a loan review may each call for a current study, and boards carry a duty to plan for known future expenses.
Can a reserve study prevent a special assessment?
Not necessarily. If an association is already significantly underfunded, a special assessment may still be necessary. But identifying major expenses years in advance gives your board more time to adjust contributions, prioritize projects, and consider funding options before those expenses arrive.
Do you serve communities outside Pittsburgh city limits?
Yes. We work throughout Allegheny, Beaver, Washington, and Westmoreland Counties, and we are open to work in Eastern Ohio and Central Pennsylvania as well. Please reach out.
More answers are on the FAQ page, and service levels are explained under services.
Your community's future expenses are coming. Have a plan ready.
A reserve study gives your board a dated roadmap of what gets replaced, what it should cost, and what to set aside so the money is there when the invoice arrives.
- Reviewed and approved by a Reserve Specialist with 20+ years of experience.
- Draft study in 10 business days, subject to the two conditions above.
- Board presentation included at no additional cost.
Prefer to talk first? Call 412-339-6131 or email john@ironcityreserves.com.