Condo fees are ridiculous

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:It feels like a scam , the fees never add up to the real maintenance cost it's always way over

Who would be perpetrating this scam? Where do you think the dollars are going? Every penny is accounted for in annual budget statements and reports to the owners, and a board of owners (that could include you if you volunteered) is running things. If the board doesn’t like the management company they have hired to implement things like distribution of parking passes, they can switch to a different company.

They are often going to useless projects or unnecessary or counterproductive repairs. It's not literally a scam. However, those fees are often exorbitant, they can be several thousand dollars each month.

Owners get the budgets to review before they are approved. Speak up if think there are useless projects. The equipment in buildings is much harder to maintain than in the past and parts are more expensive.

you obviously sit on a HOA board. people speak up at those meetings all the time. but the board does their thing anyways. yes, if you don't like it, you can run for a seat etc. but that is a lot of hassle and the question, why is all that necessary? why are board prone to waste and poor decision-making? no wonder only a very small fraction of americans (less than 10%) owns a condo (compared to SFH and townhouse). people hate this crap.

Np. Or it’s someone who’s familiar with the actual costs of hiring licensed and insured companies for maintenance work, having additional parts purchased and on hand due to ongoing delays and shortages, and obtaining good insurance due to the current climate. If you neglect any of these—and they are expensive—the association and residents will likely end up dealing with a much more complicated situation down the line, and then the special assessments could become burdensome and even untenable.

and the great thing when you don't live in a condo anymore (after having 10 years of this nonsense) is that you don't have all those 87 layers of security. you can prioritize and do what actually needs to be done, by whoever makes most sense.

As an independent homeowner, yes, you get to decide the level of risk you’re comfortable with.

That's exactly why its good to have options of condos, townhomes, coops and rentals.

that is what is nice about northern virginia. Lots of options for different preferences and different stages of life. Sometimes a person just wants a one bedroom condo, and in many places, that is impossible to find. I need to move to particular part of Maryland, and all for sale there are SFH and townhomes. I don't want or need either.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:My coop fee is $1,100/month.

Includes water, heat, gas, property taxes, and building upkeep.

I've never had to pay for: gardening/ landscape services, tree maintenance, a roof, a water heater, an electrical repair or wiring upgrade, anything but minor plumbing, repair or maintenance to a driveway or external building structures.

I think the costs are more visible in a condo/coop, but I'm not sure if they are actually smaller. How much per year do you budget for housing maintenance if you have to do it yourself?

Massive difference between a co-op and a condo. Massive.

m
Coop is massively better yet realtors push condos as in coops the dirty secret is you don’t need a realtor at all to sell. It is just a share transfer

Can you please say more about this? How do I find a coop if it's not listed on MLS?

Many building have internal website or you go to building and put flier up in laundry room. I sold mine that way. My lawyer wrote it up. He had his lawyer look at it. Since coops are share transfers the board can give you list all recent sales in building. Also hardly any transfer taxes. Mine I owned free and clear and buyer paid cash. Just a share transfer almost zero closing fees

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Condos are pretty straightforward, easy to buy, sell and rent out. If its not your forever or at least long term home, co-op is more of a headache as a time share, you've limited rights.

They are easy to sell if you as long as you price them right.

Renting the unit out - can present a challenge in buildings or neighborhoods where there are already a high number of rentals. There is a threshold for percentage of rentals that once surpassed can be an issue with some forms of lending. and the condo board can also impose rules on this as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My coop fee is $1,100/month.

Includes water, heat, gas, property taxes, and building upkeep.

I've never had to pay for: gardening/ landscape services, tree maintenance, a roof, a water heater, an electrical repair or wiring upgrade, anything but minor plumbing, repair or maintenance to a driveway or external building structures.

I think the costs are more visible in a condo/coop, but I'm not sure if they are actually smaller. How much per year do you budget for housing maintenance if you have to do it yourself?

Massive difference between a co-op and a condo. Massive.

m
Coop is massively better yet realtors push condos as in coops the dirty secret is you don’t need a realtor at all to sell. It is just a share transfer

Can you please say more about this? How do I find a coop if it's not listed on MLS?

It's hard to find a lender for a coop.
If you want to see some coop listings in VA the MLS, search in Arlington for "River Place"

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:If condo needs a new roof or new landscaping or new fence is needed, its divided between all units. In my single family home, its all my responsibility.

How does the exterior maintenance/repair/replacement work on townhouses? Is the owner responsible?

Yes, you are responsible for everything in townhomes unless its covered and managed by an HOA and you pay monthly or specially needed assessments.

Thise are basically condos.

It depends! Some are basically condos and condo fee covers a lot of exterior maintenance, some are more akin to homes in an HOA neighborhood.

Agree with poster above who said that people who balk at condo fees often have no idea how much exterior maintenance costs. We’ve paid paid something like 20k in the first year of owning our home on things like minor walkway masonry repair, driveway resealing, chimney cap and masonry repair, exterior touch-up painting, and some new landscaping, things that aren’t even major projects like new hardscaping. Another 20k for a new roof. Not to mention the basic seasonal maintenance like gutter, leaf blowing, snow removal etc which yea of course some people DIY, especially on a smaller townhome lot, but we pay for it, as do condo & coop buildings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Condos are pretty straightforward, easy to buy, sell and rent out. If its not your forever or at least long term home, co-op is more of a headache as a time share, you've limited rights.

They are easy to sell if you as long as you price them right.

Renting the unit out - can present a challenge in buildings or neighborhoods where there are already a high number of rentals. There is a threshold for percentage of rentals that once surpassed can be an issue with some forms of lending. and the condo board can also impose rules on this as well.

This is the case in a lot of blgs in foggy bottom that are over 50% rentals now. Lenders won’t do a loan without a very high down payment, even for otherwise qualified buyers.

I think buyers looking at condos, coops and townhouses really need to use buyers agents familiar with these transactions who can help them compare apples to oranges and tell them stuff like “this new building has low condo fees now, but in 10 years, the pool maintenance and gym and elevator and landscaping and all that will cause these fees to double.”

Comparing the all in cost on coops and condos also is complex bc you have two mortgages basically and pay taxes via your coop fee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My coop fee is $1,100/month.

Includes water, heat, gas, property taxes, and building upkeep.

I've never had to pay for: gardening/ landscape services, tree maintenance, a roof, a water heater, an electrical repair or wiring upgrade, anything but minor plumbing, repair or maintenance to a driveway or external building structures.

I think the costs are more visible in a condo/coop, but I'm not sure if they are actually smaller. How much per year do you budget for housing maintenance if you have to do it yourself?

Massive difference between a co-op and a condo. Massive.

The Watergate buildings are co-ops and some of the fees are up to $5000 per month.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My coop fee is $1,100/month.

Includes water, heat, gas, property taxes, and building upkeep.

I've never had to pay for: gardening/ landscape services, tree maintenance, a roof, a water heater, an electrical repair or wiring upgrade, anything but minor plumbing, repair or maintenance to a driveway or external building structures.

I think the costs are more visible in a condo/coop, but I'm not sure if they are actually smaller. How much per year do you budget for housing maintenance if you have to do it yourself?

Massive difference between a co-op and a condo. Massive.

The Watergate buildings are co-ops and some of the fees are up to $5000 per month.

I just don’t understand the math of why anyone would buy at Watergate.

I understand why the fees are so high—it is a really old building with pricey issues (like the parking garage collapsing a few years ago) and lots of staff.

But why would anyone buy into that when fees are significantly lower elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Condos are pretty straightforward, easy to buy, sell and rent out. If its not your forever or at least long term home, co-op is more of a headache as a time share, you've limited rights.

They are easy to sell if you as long as you price them right.

Renting the unit out - can present a challenge in buildings or neighborhoods where there are already a high number of rentals. There is a threshold for percentage of rentals that once surpassed can be an issue with some forms of lending. and the condo board can also impose rules on this as well.

This is the case in a lot of blgs in foggy bottom that are over 50% rentals now. Lenders won’t do a loan without a very high down payment, even for otherwise qualified buyers.

I think buyers looking at condos, coops and townhouses really need to use buyers agents familiar with these transactions who can help them compare apples to oranges and tell them stuff like “this new building has low condo fees now, but in 10 years, the pool maintenance and gym and elevator and landscaping and all that will cause these fees to double.”

Comparing the all in cost on coops and condos also is complex bc you have two mortgages basically and pay taxes via your coop fee.

Rentals percentage now does not matter on Fannie Freddie Loans if buyer is primary. They changed rules as only way to get less renters is to get more primary.

I am actually on a condo board and our by laws do not allow us to charge a rental fee or have any rental limits. I am on board and I have no clue Who are owners vs rentals.

People get loans all the time my building.