Good Neighbor Podcast: TN-WNC-SWVA

EP# 336: From Mechanic to HOA Steward: Charlie Meek on Building Better Communities with R&P Property Managers

• Skip Mauney & Charlie Meek • Episode 336

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Think HOAs are all red tape and power trips? We sit down with R&P Property Managers owner Charlie Meek to show how a listening-first, boutique model can quiet drama, protect budgets, and keep neighbors on the same page. Charlie shares the journey from military service to landscaping to leading HOA and condo management, and unpacks what many people miss about the role of a property manager: the board leads, management serves. When managers act as the administrative backbone and trusted guide—rather than the tip of the spear—communities get clearer decisions, fairer enforcement, and better long-term results.

We dig into practical strategies that reduce friction fast: consistent communication in plain English, transparent budgeting and reserves, vendor oversight that matches scope to outcomes, and options-based planning that lets boards and members choose trade-offs openly. Charlie tackles the myths head-on—no, managers don’t wake up plotting to ban pergolas—and reframes compliance as a path to shared benefits like curb appeal, property values, and safety. He also reminds us that boards are volunteers giving their free time, which changes how we might approach conflict: assume good intent, ask questions, and keep perspective.

In a personal twist, Charlie talks about making custom kitchen knives and why craftsmanship matters in both steel and community governance—precision, patience, and visible results. Whether you’re on a board, living under HOA covenants, or running a self-managed community, this conversation offers practical tools to make governance calmer and more effective. Want resources or a second opinion before calling an attorney? Visit rpmgrs.com, reach out, and let’s build communities that work. If this conversation helped you rethink HOA management, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a neighbor who cares about getting it right.

SPEAKER_00:

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Kit Martin.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, hello, everyone, and welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast of Western North Carolina and East Tennessee. So we are very I'm very excited to have a very special guest in the studio for the first time with us today. And I'm sure you'll be just as excited as I am to learn all about him and his business. Because today I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, Mr. Charlie Meek, who is the owner-operator of RP Property Managers. Charlie, welcome to the show.

SPEAKER_02:

Appreciate it. Nice to be here.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, we're thrilled to have you. And like I said, all excited to uh we're all about uh small businesses, and I'm excited to learn all about uh about you and what you do. So if you don't mind, why don't you start us out by telling us about RP property managers?

SPEAKER_02:

Well, I'll give you the nickel tour because it's not the most exciting thing in the world. So just real quick for context, RMP property managers was started by Richard and Perry about 16, 17 years ago. I came and bought the name, to be quite frank. I was just too lazy to change it. And after a while, you look back 10 years later and say, you know what, I'll get to that in 10 more years. So we just get to so that's that's the reason why it's RMP and I'm Charlie. But as far as what we do, uh to try to distill that down in the most interesting thing because it's not very uh very fun stuff, is we manage homeowners' associations and condominiums, and we do maintenance as well, both for the condominiums and the uh the members of the uh associations, too. So we'll deal with their, you know, we're the guys that write the trash can letters and we collect the money, pay the bills, deal with their attorneys, and hope that we don't have to do it on a regular basis, and then try to help boards uh be good stewards of the funds of these communities and try to keep the peace and keep some common ground. So, you know, uh everybody loves HOAs, so we do everything we can to try to make that a simpler, easier, more uh forgiving space for both boards and members.

SPEAKER_01:

Very good. Yeah, everybody loves HOAs and and uh you know love keeping keeping the peace and balance, that's a good thing. So uh Charlie, how and I love the name, and you know, uh from a branding standpoint, I couldn't blame you if if that you've been in business for the the company's been there for 17 years. That there's there's some value in that brand, so I don't blame you one bit. So uh how did you get started in uh this business, Charlie?

SPEAKER_02:

Well, after I got the military, I decided I was gonna be a mechanic, and that lasted for a while, and I realized that hey, this is hard work and it's dirty, so there's got to be something better. So that led me into Trigger and Kim Lon, and then next into my own landscape company, where I started working with homeowners' associations as one of my bigger clients. And that's when I started realizing that you know, homeowners associations can be a really good thing both for members and for vendors once you learn how to work with them, present value, and understand what their needs are. So then I decided at some point in time it was another life change. I'm like, you know what, I prefer to be on the other side of the fence, maybe a little lower key, fewer employees, and not that we don't love our employees, but you know, the managing properties and managing people together, it's like, you know, I think there's an easier way to do it. And that was what brought us to buying into RMP initially. And a year later, I ended up buying all the equity. And we didn't start doing the maintenance right away. Initially, we were out there, you know, just dealing with homeowners' associations, and we felt like there was a little bit of a vacuum here as far as having a more boutique. Um, and I say boutique, but more of a let's make sure that we're listening to our clients instead of taking the HOA template that's all over the place and trying to shove that in our clients' face, is like, well, what do you need? Where are your pain points? What can we do better, and how can we format this business in a way that actually provides value to you and your membership? And that's that's where we've tried to keep it is keeping our ears open. Um, obviously, property management means sometimes you got to tell people no, but you still have to listen and try to understand and find common ground. So that's that's really that's kind of where we ended up, and seeing a community that we started with 10, 12 years ago, and being able to see that visible uh appreciation both in the look, the uh financial stability, and then the overall enjoyment. That's that's kind of why we do what we do.

SPEAKER_01:

Very good. Well, what are some myths or misconceptions in the property management business? Can you think of anything?

SPEAKER_02:

We don't wake up and try to write letters about why you can't have your dream home pergola. We we don't get up on Monday and say, you know what? I I I know Mrs. Jones loves Azaleas, so I'm just gonna go out there and install them all. And I think sometimes that's the misconception that management, and and frankly, some people don't understand the role of management. The management should really be, and I know sometimes me as an owner or managers have years of experience, sometimes forget that we are still at the service of our boards of directors. We are the administrative assistance to the board of directors. So they're still in charge, it's still their community, and I think sometimes both organizations that manage properties, managers, and even ownership need to understand that hey, you know, we're not the tip of the sphere. We're supposed to be out there providing value, providing input, uh, knowledge, information so that boards can make the best decisions that's ultimately going to impact their members in the best way. So, frankly, taking that sideline supportive role, I think, is where sometimes people get it wrong. And sometimes it does create some animosity because now it's not necessarily a relationship between, you know, if you're friends, obviously you usually let people get by with a little bit. So inject this third party who is just the guy that takes the money and says no, but to keep perpetuating that particular archetype is not really helpful. So it really just needs to be that look, I am here as a I'm the glue here. That's my role. I'm supposed to be helping you all work together in a way that is again, keeps the community financially solvent, go, keeps the budget in line, and meets the goals of both members and the board. And that's where I think management needs to be. And I think that's where some of the misconceptions come from because it can be sometimes a little bit of a thankless job, but you know, we didn't sign up to be pop stars. We're we're gonna manage properties. I know every kid, you know, says that's what they want to be when they grow up, but this is the job, you've accepted it. Now understand the real and do it properly, both for the members, the homeowners, and for the board of directors.

SPEAKER_01:

You don't wake up thinking I'm gonna stomp some some azaleas.

SPEAKER_02:

No, not at least not this week. In a few more years, we might think differently.

SPEAKER_01:

There you go, there you go. Well, it sounds like you're an extremely busy businessman. If there is time outside of work, what do you like to do for fun?

SPEAKER_02:

It's an odd, it's an odd hobby, but I make custom kitchen knives. Uh, what I have found is that um you know, being around properties, expecting a high level of precision from both my vendors and and everyone else, and uh it's like, okay, well, I like to walk away with something, I can see my efforts. I like to see improvement, my community, and same thing with a kitchen knife. I mean, once I take that from a lump of steel to a finished product, and I've been fortunate enough, though I I think they give me more credit than what it's worth to be in Blade Magazine once. And uh it's it's uh it's a fun hobby, it's not one that you hear about a lot, but uh I can actually see something that someone can take home, use to feed their family, enjoy their holidays. There's just there's a real it's it's gratifying in a lot of ways.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow, so you you're the first uh custom kitchen knife maker I think I've ever met. That's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_02:

There's not many of us.

SPEAKER_01:

So I guess you gotta you gotta have all the equipment to do that, like a grinder, and that's that's where the other side of it comes in.

SPEAKER_02:

It it can become a rabbit hole. I mean, you know, I tell folks you can start making knives probably for a few hundred bucks. You can't enjoy making knives till about 20 grand later.

SPEAKER_01:

That's funny.

SPEAKER_02:

You know what? I will say it. The knife is one of the oldest tools around, and it still is just such an interesting thing to look at, and and just kind of you think we we figured this out X years ago, but we're still using it, still improving upon it. So, you know, time-honored tools made out of materials that last, it's that's hard to beat.

SPEAKER_01:

Absolutely. Well, if um Charlie, if you could think of one thing that you would like our listeners to remember about you and about RP, what would that be?

SPEAKER_02:

Well, just understand that your your volunteer board of directors are cashing those big checks amounting to zero, and they're taking time away from their family and their kids to do what they're doing. So the only thing I'll say, I don't want it for myself, but think about those neighbors while they're doing it, and maybe approach next time you have your challenges with them, approach it from the mindset of these folks are trying to do something um for us and for ourselves without compensation. And if you just think about that before you have that next uh go around, I think you'll be better off.

SPEAKER_01:

Uh I couldn't agree more, couldn't agree more. Just normal folks, friends and neighbors, you know. So uh for those of us who are intrigued, interested in learning more about what you do, and or possibly even I don't know if you have knife making, but um, for those of us who who would like to learn more about your company, how can we do that?

SPEAKER_02:

Well, uh, we've got a website, it's uh www.rpmgrs.com. Uh you're absolutely welcome to stop there. Uh shoot us an email. My information's there, give me a call. I welcome questions from self-managed communities all the time. And again, I'm not going to tell you I'm the expert, but I'm happy to try to be a resource, point you in the right direction. Because the last thing I want to do is for folks to feel like a, and don't get wrong, I've got a lot of friends that are attorneys, but that they have to start out with the most expensive option. There are tools out there, there's information and resources, and shoot me a text, shoot me an email, we'll share anything that we know because we want people to improve their knowledge base with their communities, and that way HOAs don't get the pad name that they get when they're done prompting, people know how to handle them.

SPEAKER_01:

Very good, awesome. Well, Charlie, I can't tell you how much I appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to hang out with us and uh tell us all about RP property managers and yourself and your knife. So fascinated by that. Um, and wish you and your family and your business all the best moving forward.

SPEAKER_02:

It's my pleasure, and the same to y'all.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, thank you, and uh would love to have you come back sometime. Maybe you could demonstrate some knife making for us.

SPEAKER_02:

Say we and we'll be here.

SPEAKER_01:

All right, brother. You have a great rest of the day.

SPEAKER_00:

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to GMP Cry Dash Cities.com. That's GNP Cry Dash Cities.com or call four two three seven one nine to five eight seven three.