If you live in a condominium, cooperative or homeowner association, you many need to search for qualified individuals or firms to provide professional services. But selecting a community association professional - whether an on-site manager, management company, attorney or reserve specialist - can be a daunting task. Degrees of Excellence, a free consumer booklet from the Community Associations Institute, can help homeowners make an educated decision.

"If you are like most Americans, buying a home is the largest investment you will make in your lifetime. To protect that investment, you should feel confident that your community association has the expert professional guidance necessary to operate and manage its assets effectively," according to the booklet.

Degrees of Excellence provides detailed information on the experience, training, continuing education and ethics requirements for managers, attorneys and reserve specialists who specialize in serving community associations from CAI, the National Board of Certification for Community Association Managers, the Institute for Real Estate Management and the National Association of Housing Cooperatives.

To receive a free booklet, call CAI at 703/548-8600 or visit the Institute's web site.

The Community Associations Institute is a nonprofit association created in 1973 to educate and represent the nation's 205,000 community associations—condominium associations, homeowner associations and cooperatives. CAI members include homeowners, associations and related professionals and service providers.