Frequently Asked Questions

Why should our neighborhood or homeowner association join UNSCC?

There are many reasons why associations join UNSCC. The most popular reasons are:

• Low-cost member services
• Neighborhood Education Workshops
• Annual Neighborhood Conference
• Neighborhood Best Practices procedure manuals and policies
• Networking with other neighborhood leaders who have successfully solved common neighborhood problems so you don't spend volunteers' time "reinventing the wheel"
• Working with other neighborhood leaders on multiple neighborhood association work groups to efficiently develop consensus recommendations so we can speak with one voice about local issues, planning and land use, public policies or procedures for local city or Santa Clara County government, elected officials and community groups to improve neighborhood quality of life

Who are UNSCC members?

The Member Organizations page lists the neighborhood and homeowner associations that belong to UNSCC. In addition, the volunteer members of UNSCC are the Officers, Directors, other active leaders and our member association regular members who work on UNSCC's committees, events, meeting activities and educational topics to improve our neighborhood and community's quality of life.

How can you provide member services with such a low cost for annual membership dues and provide other services, such as educational workshops and the annual conference, at such a low cost?

We are able to provide low-cost member services and fulfill our mission because United Neighborhoods is 100% volunteer staffed and managed. Without our member leaders and volunteers, we could not provide many of our low- cost membership services without hiring staff. If our member leaders and volunteers did not provide their services, many member associations could not afford the substantially increased membership dues that would be required to provide a similar level of service (estimated to be $700-1,000 or more per year). UNSCC had paid staff for about three years but due to a substantial decrease in funding after November 2003, UNSCC is now 100% volunteer-staffed, as it was for the first six years.

Why can't member associations pay higher dues so UNSCC can hire staff to provide member and administration services?

Many UNSCC member associations have no membership dues and very low operating costs. They depend on member and local merchant contributions or grant funding. In prior years, UNSCC received funding to subsidize membership services costs for these groups, but that funding is no longer available.