Reference letter. Please help.

[bigwillq]

I was asked by my man to write a reference letter for him. He is applying for a new job. I never wrote a reference letter before and my first attempt is below. The * represents when my man's name appears in the letter.

Please tell me what you think.


October 26, 2007

Dear (need to find out their name still)

I have known * for the past six years. I consider him a good friend and during the course of our friendship I’ve been witness to *'s involvement as his residence’s condo association president.
In this capacity, * is in charge of the daily operations of the association. His many duties include collecting monthly condo fee payments, preparing a yearly budget, which includes making projections on how much the association will spend and collect, forming amicable working relationships with representatives from the local water and electric companies, handling fellow residents’ questions, complaints and concerns and overseeing the proper maintenance of the outside grounds, among other things.
These duties are often time consuming but * does an outstanding job of committing himself to this task while balancing his responsibilities at work and in his household. * has learned about the importance of proper and efficient management. When * inherited the role of condo association president, the association was in disarray. The former officials were incompetent in their duties and left the association in a dire financial situation. But *'s diligence has put the association’s finances back on track and each month the association meets all financial obligations. The association has ended each month and year with a surplus after the initial problems were resolved.
* is a stickler for details and runs the association honestly and effectively. When people submit an application for employment they like to use words such as reliable, hard-working and responsible, but most are only are doing so in attempt to pad their resume. *, however, really does possess those qualities and more.
In my opinion, * would be a valuable asset to your company. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me at home (xxx) xxx-xxxx or on my cell (xxx) xxx-xxxx. Thank you for your time.


Sincerely,




bigwillq

[bigwillq]

1. Anyone?

Before I log off. Please?

[flvegan]

2. Hold on, I'm reading...

[flvegan]

3. Do you live in a condo in this association's complex?

[bigwillq]

4. At times I do, yes

It's a weird situation that I won't, and really can't get into in this letter, but I was an officier on the board at one time so maybe I should put that in the letter.

[flvegan]

5. I'd key this letter from a professional standpoint

I'd take out the "friend of" and make it a "as an acquaintance of" and "having lived under his direction as president..." letter.

Then, make all your good attributes bullet points. Nobody likes paragraphs.

I say this as someone that gets a number of these a day.

[bbernardini]

6. I'd avoid starting a sentence with "but."

In the second or third paragraph. I can't tell from this post. Right before the word "diligence."

[ThomCat]

7. I would add an intro paragraph

briefly stating who you are and how you know that person. It gives the reader a reason/justification for caring about your opinion of the applicant.