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HOA Stormwater Management & Pond Maintenance

We handle the stormwater so your board can focus on the community. Pond maintenance, BMP inspections, erosion repair, and full compliance documentation, from one team that does the work directly.

Your board didn't sign up to be stormwater engineers.

HOA board members are volunteers. They signed up to help their community, not to manage retention ponds, deal with SCDHEC compliance requirements, or figure out why the outfall structure behind lot 47 is eroding into the creek. But stormwater compliance is a legal obligation that falls squarely on the association, and the consequences of ignoring it are serious.

We work with HOAs across coastal South Carolina and Georgia, and the same problems come up again and again. The previous management company lost the stormwater maintenance agreements. The ponds haven't been inspected in three years. A new board took over and discovered a backlog of deferred maintenance that's going to cost six figures to address. A resident is calling every week about standing water in their yard. The municipality sent a notice of violation, and nobody on the board knows what to do next.

The fines for stormwater non-compliance aren't abstract. In Beaufort County alone, we've seen HOAs facing penalties that could reach $25,000 per month or more for unresolved violations. And that's before you factor in the cost of emergency repairs, legal fees, and the special assessments boards have to levy on homeowners to cover them.

The communities that avoid these problems are the ones that treat stormwater maintenance as an ongoing program, not something they think about when a violation letter arrives. A documented inspection history, a routine maintenance schedule, and a contractor who actually shows up and does the work. That's what we provide.

What we do for HOAs and community associations.

BMP Inspections & Compliance

Annual and semi-annual inspections of retention ponds, detention basins, bioretention areas, and all stormwater BMPs in your community. We deliver inspection reports formatted for your municipality's requirements, not a generic template.

Pond Maintenance

Sediment removal, vegetation management, outlet structure cleaning, bank stabilization, and aesthetic upkeep. We keep your ponds functioning as designed and looking the way residents expect them to look.

Erosion Repair & Stabilization

Pond bank erosion, outfall scour, slope failures, and shoreline collapse. We stabilize with riprap, bioengineered solutions, regrading, and native plantings, whatever the site requires.

Compliance Documentation

Complete inspection reports, maintenance logs, before-and-after photo documentation, and regulatory correspondence. When the municipality asks for records, you have them.

Drainage Correction

Standing water in yards, overwhelmed swales, clogged catch basins, and pipe failures. We diagnose drainage problems and fix them: regrading, pipe replacement, catch basin repair, or full system reconstruction.

Annual Maintenance Agreements

Scheduled inspections, routine maintenance, priority repair scheduling, and emergency response. All under one agreement with one contractor. Predictable budgeting for your board, consistent compliance for your community.

The problems we solve every week.

Management company transitions

When a community changes management companies, stormwater records frequently disappear. Inspection reports, maintenance agreements, repair histories, municipal correspondence. Gone. We've walked into communities where nobody can locate a single piece of stormwater documentation. AUE Land rebuilds your compliance file from the ground up: we identify every BMP on the property, assess its condition, cross-reference municipal records, and create a baseline from which to maintain going forward.

Deferred maintenance backlogs

Ponds that haven't been dredged in a decade. Outlet structures buried under sediment. Erosion that started as a small washout five years ago and is now threatening a retaining wall. Deferred maintenance compounds. What would have cost $5,000 to fix three years ago now costs $50,000. We help boards prioritize: what needs immediate attention for safety and compliance, what can be scheduled over the next budget cycle, and what the total remediation plan looks like.

Resident complaints about flooding and aesthetics

Homeowners don't understand why their yard floods after every rain. They see an overgrown pond and assume nobody is maintaining the community. They attend board meetings and demand answers. The board needs a stormwater partner who can diagnose the problem, explain it in plain language, and fix it, so the board can give residents a real answer, not a vague promise.

Violation notices and enforcement actions

A notice of violation from the municipality means the clock is ticking. You have a defined timeframe to correct deficiencies, document the repairs, and demonstrate compliance. Most stormwater companies can inspect and report, but then you need a second contractor to do the physical work, and you're coordinating two companies against a regulatory deadline. AUE Land handles both. We assess, repair, document, and close out the violation with one crew, one timeline.

Common HOA stormwater costs.

Typical cost ranges for stormwater services that HOAs and community associations encounter across the coastal Southeast.

Service Typical Cost Range Frequency
Annual BMP inspection $1,500 - $3,000 Yearly
Routine pond maintenance $3,000 - $8,000 Yearly
Sediment removal/dredging $25,000 - $100,000+ Every 10-20 years
Erosion repair (per site) $5,000 - $25,000 As needed
Emergency storm response $10,000 - $50,000+ As needed
Full compliance remediation $50,000 - $200,000+ As needed

The AUE Land advantage for HOAs.

One contractor for everything

Most stormwater companies inspect your ponds and hand you a report. Then you have to find a separate contractor to do the excavation, grading, pipe work, or stabilization. AUE Land does the inspection and the physical work. One company, one proposal, one point of accountability.

We speak board language

Your board doesn't need an engineering lecture. They need clear answers: what's wrong, what it costs to fix, what happens if we don't, and when it'll be done. That's how we communicate: direct, no jargon, with documentation the board can present at meetings and share with homeowners.

Built for annual agreements

We structure maintenance agreements that align with your budget cycle and your municipality's inspection schedule. Predictable costs, scheduled work, compliance documentation delivered on time, year after year. No surprises for the board, no scrambling before inspection deadlines.

Local and responsive

Based in Bluffton, SC, we serve communities across the Lowcountry and coastal Southeast every day. We know Beaufort County's inspection requirements. We know the Town of Bluffton's stormwater utility. We know what Chatham County expects in Savannah. When something goes wrong after a storm, we're local enough to respond, not dispatching a crew from three states away.

How it works for your community.

01

Community assessment

We walk your entire property. Every pond, every BMP, every outfall, every drainage structure. We identify what's working, what's failing, and what's at risk. We review your stormwater maintenance agreements and current compliance status. No obligation to hire AUE Land for any service work.

02

Prioritized proposal

You get a written proposal that separates urgent compliance issues from routine maintenance and long-term improvements. Clear pricing, clear timelines, and a recommended maintenance schedule going forward. Something your board can review, vote on, and budget for.

03

We do the work

Our crew shows up with excavators, skid steers, and whatever equipment the job requires. We perform the inspections, maintenance, and repairs ourselves. No subcontractors, no surprise crews, no finger-pointing.

04

Documentation delivered

You receive completed inspection reports, maintenance records, before-and-after photos, and any compliance paperwork your municipality requires, formatted the way they want it. Your compliance file stays current, and your board has documentation to present to homeowners and regulators.

HOA stormwater services by location.

We serve HOAs and community associations across coastal South Carolina and Georgia.

The services behind HOA compliance.

Stormwater Management

BMP inspection, maintenance, and compliance documentation

Pond Dredging

Sediment removal and pond restoration

Erosion Control

Bank stabilization and shoreline protection

Storm Drainage

Catch basin repair, pipe replacement, outfall work

We also serve.

Commercial Properties

Retail, office, and multi-site portfolios

Golf Courses

Course drainage and pond maintenance

Developers

New construction stormwater and grading

Municipalities

Public infrastructure maintenance

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is legally responsible for stormwater maintenance in an HOA? expand_more
In nearly every case, the HOA itself is the legally responsible party. When a subdivision is developed, the developer records stormwater maintenance agreements with the local municipality that transfer to the HOA upon turnover. These agreements are tied to the land, not the management company. That means the HOA board is on the hook for annual inspections, routine maintenance, and any repairs required to keep stormwater systems functioning, regardless of whether the board was in place when the agreement was signed.
What kind of fines can an HOA face for stormwater non-compliance? expand_more
Fines vary by municipality, but they can be severe. In South Carolina, SCDHEC and local stormwater utilities can impose penalties ranging from several hundred dollars per day to tens of thousands of dollars per month for ongoing violations. Beaufort County, for example, has escalating fine structures that can reach $25,000 or more per month for unresolved stormwater violations. Beyond fines, communities can face mandatory remediation orders that require expensive emergency repairs on compressed timelines.
How often do HOA stormwater ponds need to be inspected? expand_more
Most municipalities require annual inspections at minimum. Some jurisdictions, particularly in the Lowcountry, require semi-annual inspections for certain types of BMPs. Your stormwater maintenance agreement with the local municipality specifies the exact frequency. AUE Land reviews your maintenance agreement as part of our initial assessment and builds an inspection schedule that meets your specific requirements.
Our management company changed, how do we find our stormwater records? expand_more
This is one of the most common problems we encounter. Management company transitions frequently result in lost or incomplete stormwater documentation. AUE Land can perform a baseline assessment of all stormwater systems in your community, identify each BMP, document its current condition, cross-reference it against municipal records, and rebuild your compliance file from scratch. We also set up ongoing documentation so this problem doesn't recur with future transitions.
Can AUE Land handle both the inspection and the physical repairs? expand_more
Yes, and that's the core of what makes us different. Most stormwater companies inspect your ponds and BMPs, hand you a report listing deficiencies, and then refer you to a separate contractor for the actual repair work. AUE Land does both. We inspect, document, and perform the physical repairs with our own crew and equipment. One company, one point of contact, and no gap between identifying a problem and fixing it.

Ready for a site that thrives?

Got a violation notice, a deferred maintenance backlog, or a management company transition that left you with no records? We'll assess your community and give you a clear plan to get compliant and stay that way.

fact_check Site Health Audit

check_circle Structural BMP Integrity Scan
check_circle Soil Erosion Risk Analysis
check_circle Regulatory Compliance Status
check_circle Written Findings & Recommendations

No obligation to hire AUE Land for any service work.