How do we hire a window washing contractor for our HOA condo buildings?

By OurHOA · General information · Revised September 27, 2026

How an HOA board hires window washers for condo buildings: which glass the association cleans, lift vs rope access, the OSHA anchorage letter, bids and notice.

Part of the HOA board handbook: vendors, projects and upkeep.

Three decisions before you call anyone

Settle which glass the association cleans, how a crew can safely reach it, and whether you can hand over the roof anchor paperwork a rope crew needs. Get those right and the bids come back comparable. Skip them and you get three prices for three different jobs. On a two-story building the whole thing can be done from the ground with a water-fed pole. On a four- or six-story building, the board's answer about roof anchors decides whether the crew hangs on ropes or rents a lift, and that is usually the biggest swing in price. Maintenance duties and safety rules vary by state, by building and by your governing documents, so treat this as general education and not legal advice.

Which glass belongs to the association

Lobby doors, stairwell and hallway glass, elevator lobbies, the clubhouse and the fitness room are common elements, so the association cleans them. Unit windows are less clear. Texas Property Code section 82.052(4) and Colorado Revised Statutes section 38-33.3-202(1)(d) both say that exterior doors and windows designed to serve a single unit but located outside the unit's boundaries are limited common elements allocated to that unit. Both rules give way to the declaration. Under Texas section 82.107(a) and Colorado section 38-33.3-307(1), the association maintains the common elements and each owner maintains the unit, again unless the declaration says otherwise. In Florida, start with how your declaration draws the unit boundaries, because Florida Statutes section 718.113(1) makes the association maintain the common elements and lets the declaration assign maintenance of limited common elements to the owners. So read three things: the unit boundary definition, the limited common element list and the maintenance chart. A common result is that the association washes the outside of every window as one building-wide job, because nobody can reach a third-floor exterior safely alone, and owners clean the inside. If your documents make the whole window the owner's, the board can still offer the exterior wash as an optional service, but price it, bill it and say so in writing, or it becomes a free service owners expect every year.

How the crew will reach the glass

There are four ways up, and the building decides which ones work. Ladders suit single-story glass and little else. A water-fed pole lets a worker on the ground clean glass three or four stories up, which removes most of the fall risk. The National Glass Association's cleaning bulletin, FB01-00, says the pure water for this method must have 20 parts per million or less of total dissolved solids, and that tap water is not acceptable. Ask what the crew uses to filter it. An aerial lift reaches higher glass and works well on buildings with open lawn or parking on every side. Under 29 CFR 1910.67(c)(2)(ii), only trained persons may operate one, and 1910.67(c)(2)(v) requires the worker in the basket to wear a fall arrest or travel restraint system attached to the boom or basket. Lifts need firm ground, so plan for tire marks in the turf and closed parking spaces. Rope descent, where a worker sits on a seat board and lowers down the face of the building, is the usual answer for tall buildings with landscaping or balconies below. It needs roof anchors, and that brings the board in.

The anchorage letter only the board can give

OSHA put a duty on the building owner here, not only on the contractor. Under 29 CFR 1910.27(b)(1)(i), the building owner must tell the window washing company in writing that it has identified, tested, certified and maintained each anchorage so it can support at least 5,000 pounds in any direction for each worker attached. Under 1910.27(b)(1)(ii), the company may not let anyone use an anchorage until it has that written information, a requirement that took effect November 20, 2017. For a condo building, the owner of the roof is almost always the association. A rope crew that shows up without asking for your letter is a warning sign. Here is how to get it. First, look in the turnover files and the developer's drawings for roof anchor locations and any test or certification report. Second, if there is none, or nobody can say when the anchors were last tested, hire a professional engineer or an anchor testing firm to find, test and certify them and to mark which ones are rated for rope descent. Third, ask that report to state how often the anchors should be inspected, because the rule says the owner maintains them but does not set an interval. Fourth, sign a short letter on association letterhead listing each certified anchor and attach the report. The same section limits rope descent to 300 feet above grade unless the employer shows another method is not feasible, requires each worker to use a separate, independent personal fall arrest system, and bars rope descent in storms or gusty or excessive wind. Put the anchor test on the maintenance calendar and in the reserve study notes, since damaged or missing anchors take rope access off the table.

Scope the job so the bids compare

Give every bidder the same sheet: building numbers, stories, approximate count of window panes per building or elevation photos, which surfaces are included (exterior only, or common interior glass too), screens, sills and frames, and the access method you expect for each building. Note glass that can only be reached from inside a unit or from a private balcony. Ask for a price per building per cleaning and separate unit prices for hard water stain removal, construction residue and screen repair, since those take far longer than a routine wash. Then write glass care into the contract. The National Glass Association bulletin says to test clean a small area first and inspect it in daylight, not to use razor blades or metal scrapers in routine cleaning, to avoid acid cleaners, and to clean from the top of the building down. Scratches on tempered glass cannot be buffed out, and a crew that scrapes a lobby storefront can cost you more than the whole contract. Also check whether any glass has a reflective or low-E coating on the exposed side, and pass the window maker's cleaning instructions to the bidders. Our guide on how to write an HOA request for proposal covers scoring bids and calling references.

Insurance and contract terms

Collect a certificate of insurance for general liability that names the association as additional insured, plus workers' compensation and auto liability, before anyone climbs, and read the policy dates. Our guide on how to check a vendor certificate of insurance walks through the form line by line. For rope descent work, ask the contractor for its written rescue plan, since 1910.27(b)(2)(viii) requires the employer to provide for prompt rescue of each worker. Add a clause making the contractor repair or replace any glass, screen, frame, sealant, plant or vehicle it damages, and a weather clause that moves the date without penalty when wind shuts rope work down. If you also pressure wash the buildings, schedule the window washing afterward, and see our guide on hiring a pressure washing contractor for HOA common areas.

Sample timeline, owner notice and motion

January: find or order the anchorage certification. February: send the scope sheet to three contractors with a three-week deadline. March board meeting: award the contract. Four weeks before the first date: sign and send the anchorage letter, and confirm the crew's plan building by building. Two weeks before: notify owners. Washing week: a director or the manager checks the first finished elevation in daylight with the crew lead before the crew moves on. Two weeks later: pay after any missed or streaked panes are redone. Repeat in the fall if the contract calls for two cleanings. Notice owners can adapt: 'Exterior window washing is scheduled for Buildings [list] on [dates], weather permitting. Crews will work outside your windows on ropes or lifts during daylight hours. Please close windows and blinds, remove items from balcony railings and ledges, and move plants and furniture away from the railing. Interior glass is the owner's responsibility.' Motion: 'Move to accept the proposal of [contractor] dated [date] for exterior window washing at Buildings [list] for $[amount] per cleaning, [one or two] cleanings per year, paid from the operating fund, subject to receipt of a certificate of insurance and a rescue plan, and to authorize the president to sign the anchorage letter based on the certification report dated [date].'

Mistakes boards make

Hiring a rope crew without ever asking where the anchors are, then learning the crew tied off to a vent pipe. Signing an anchorage letter the board cannot back up with a test report. Letting a crew use scrapers on tempered glass to save time. Pricing 'the windows' without saying which ones, then arguing over balcony doors. Forgetting that people live behind the glass, so owners find a stranger outside the bedroom window with no warning. Paying before anyone has looked at the glass in daylight.

Sources

These guides are general education for HOA boards and residents, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules vary by state and by your community's governing documents - check with a professional for your situation.

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