What do you pay for typical home expenses in Dallas? (Combine: HOA fees, homeowners insurance)

[kira kira]

I'm in the process of buying my first home, and I am considering condos/townhomes for a variety of reasons. I have found a wonderful townhome community (ideal floorplan and location) but the HOA fees seem a bit high to me. I am extremely frugal, so the thought of wasting money really bothers me.

Although the fees cover a lot, I want to make sure they are within the typical range for single-family home ownership. To help me figure this out, I'm asking fellow DFW C-Ders to list what they pay each month for the following services:

Homeowners Insurance for an 1800 sq. ft. home -
Water -
Sewage -
Trash -
Lawn maintenance -
Typical neighborhood HOA fees (use of pool, etc.) -

Also, what would you typically spend in a 10-year period for home maintenance issues on the outside (roof, painting, landscaping, etc.)

Thanks in advance for any info! I know home ownership is never cheap, but I don't want to spend more than I really need to.

[nsumner]

It's very difficult to compare without knowing the square footage, the age of the townhome and the energy efficiency. We have about 4600sf, our HOA which covers the community areas only, pool, clubhouse, large park, jogging trail runs $350 a year.

A couple of years ago we did some updating on HVAC and our highest electric bill is around $350 in August. I like it cool around 70 degrees.

Water is about $120 a month and that's with 4 baths and a pool and sprinkler.

Gas is negligible never more than $150 in winter for heating. The rest of the year it's around $40.

My sister's house is much smaller but older and even with added insulation and she replaced the windows and updated HVAC, her utilities are much much higher than ours.

You may want to ask from the current owners to share with you their expenses too.

Naima

[kira kira]

Originally Posted by nsumner

It's very difficult to compare without knowing the square footage, the age of the townhome and the energy efficiency. We have about 4600sf, our HOA which covers the community areas only, pool, clubhouse, large park, jogging trail runs $350 a year.

A couple of years ago we did some updating on HVAC and our highest electric bill is around $350 in August. I like it cool around 70 degrees.

Water is about $120 a month and that's with 4 baths and a pool and sprinkler.

Gas is negligible never more than $150 in winter for heating. The rest of the year it's around $40.

My sister's house is much smaller but older and even with added insulation and she replaced the windows and updated HVAC, her utilities are much much higher than ours.

You may want to ask from the current owners to share with you their expenses too.

Naima

Thanks for the feedback. It's an 1800 sq. ft townhome that is approximately 20 years old.

The current owners are paying the same HOA fee that I will pay, so I am trying to get an idea of what these expenses add up to for a single-family-home owner.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by gagirlatl

Thanks for the feedback. It's an 1800 sq. ft townhome that is approximately 20 years old.

The current owners are paying the same HOA fee that I will pay, so I am trying to get an idea of what these expenses add up to for a single-family-home owner.

I think Naima was telling you to ask the current owner what ALL their bills run, not just the HOA dues. It's not uncommon to ask what the electric/ gas/ water/ etc bills are for that particular home while in the home buying process. Since the biggest factors in electricity are amount of use AND the overall efficiency of the home (ie, are the windows old/ leaky or new, are any ceilings super tall, etc), your most accurate info is going to come from the current owner not the general public.

As far as major repairs, I have always heard to budget 1% of home's value for repairs & routine maintenance. In my old condo, it always ran under that, but in our home, it's a bit above 1.5%/year. Having a townhomes - where I assume the HOA dues pay for grounds maintenance - you get out of some of the expensive maintained like tree trimming (think we spent about $2k this year grooming our 60+ year PO's trees).

You should also try to negotiate a home warranty into your contract. It doesn't cost a lot but will cover some things along the way.

[kira kira]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

I think Naima was telling you to ask the current owner what ALL their bills run, not just the HOA dues. It's not uncommon to ask what the electric/ gas/ water/ etc bills are for that particular home while in the home buying process. Since the biggest factors in electricity are amount of use AND the overall efficiency of the home (ie, are the windows old/ leaky or new, are any ceilings super tall, etc), your most accurate info is going to come from the current owner not the general public.

As far as major repairs, I have always heard to budget 1% of home's value for repairs & routine maintenance. In my old condo, it always ran under that, but in our home, it's a bit above 1.5%/year. Having a townhomes - where I assume the HOA dues pay for grounds maintenance - you get out of some of the expensive maintained like tree trimming (think we spent about $2k this year grooming our 60+ year PO's trees).

You should also try to negotiate a home warranty into your contract. It doesn't cost a lot but will cover some things along the way.

Ok - thanks for the info on the home repairs and warranty. For this thread, I'm only concerned about the HOA costs right now, so that is why I didn't include electricity.

[Pete53FR]

Homeowners Insurance for an 1800 sq. ft. home - $ 2040
Water - Sewage -Trash - Combined about $1500
Lawn maintenance - $ 900
Typical neighborhood HOA No HOA
Electricity 2400

My home is 2300 sq feet. My Insurance is with Travelers We live in East Dallas

[kira kira]

Originally Posted by Pete53FR

Homeowners Insurance for an 1800 sq. ft. home - $ 2040
Water - Sewage -Trash - Combined about $1500
Lawn maintenance - $ 900
Typical neighborhood HOA No HOA
Electricity 2400

My home is 2300 sq feet. My Insurance is with Travelers We live in East Dallas

Thanks! Very helpful. I guess the HOA fees aren't as bad as I thought.