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FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | NOVEMBER 2021 5 By Kathy Craven, Board Vice President The last couple of articles I talked about our budget, reserves, and investments. As I write this article, the Finance Committee is diligently working on the 2022 budget and it will go to the Board for approval in the November Board of Directors' meeting. Four Seasons Beaumont is not just a beautiful and exciting place to live, it is a multi-million- dollar corporation. We manage a $5.7 million-dollar operating budget, all of which is paid by our homeowners through the monthly homeowner dues, and the Board does not take that lightly. Every $22,236 spent in the budget equates to $1 per household, per month. The Finance Committee looks at many factors to calculate the new budget, such as cost of living, Consumer Price Index (CPI), and inflation. Regional Indexes for July 2021 had the CPI for Riverside County up 1.3 percent over the past two months, and up 6.5 percent from a year ago. Food prices increased 3.9 percent, and energy prices jumped 26.9 percent. The index for all items, less food and energy, increased 4.9 percent over the year. I'm sure you see the price of your groceries, gas, and utilities going up. The Employment Cost Index for Riverside County is another factor looked at as well. Wages and employment costs increased from July 2020 to July 2021 for: professional and business services (up 5.7 percent) and non-farm workers (up 5.6 percent). Last year the dues increase should have been between $5 and $6 per month. Because of COVID closures and savings from those closures, the Board of Directors voted to utilize the money saved to pay down the increase and save our homeowners money this year. The Board of Directors and our contracts team have worked this year to scrutinize every contract that has come up for renewal. The association cannot sign multi-year contracts and must renew every year. We have gone out to bid on several of our contracts this year and have found savings by changing vendors. Pest control is an excellent example where we saved $30k a year by going out to bid. Another savings centers around the CCR changes we worked diligently to accomplish in the last election. We had volunteers and members of the Board going door-to-door, asking residents to return their ballots to ensure we received enough ballots to open. It will save the Association approximately $5k per year between attorney costs, printing costs, and postage. As a reminder, the Board of Directors are all residents who work to keep dues increases to only what is needed to run our corporation and ensure everyone can enjoy the wonderful amenities and common areas — the reason we all moved here! The Board meets the second Thursday of each month in the Ballroom at 1 pm. If you are looking for a more informal meeting to speak with the Board directly and receive answers to your questions, consider attending Meet the Board. Meet the Board is every third Wednesday at 1 pm in the RCN Main Room, or you can reach me at (714) 722-1301 with any questions or concerns. Be kind to one another. Message From The Board

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