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We are part of a condo complex of 166 townhomes. There are two distinct sections, one built in 1984, the other built in 1986. What I don't understand is why there is such a disparity in the condo fees.
ie, our condo is 1408 sq ft and we pay $407/month, another one is 1480 sq ft and they pay $345/month, both are in the newer section. I've asked our property manager for an explanation as to what the condo fee is based on but have not heard back from them. I understand what the condo fee includes but don't get why the condo fees are so different.
The end units are $520/month and are smaller in size. One is for sale, the prospective buyers asked why the condo fee was so high and they were given some baloney answer that it included additional common space. I don't buy that as the common areas belong to the association and all the owners. Would love to get a reasonable sounding explanation.
You should have been provided condo documents at the time of purchase (assuming you are the owner). Your attorney and the lending institution would have required them. What do they say? There can be all kinds of ways of determining the fees.
Condominium assessments are typically calculated on the percentage of ownership in the building, meaning the overall size of the condo. For example, in general, a two bedroom condo has more square footage than a one bedroom condo in the same complex and therefore is charged a larger monthly assessment fee.
I've looked through the documents we received (we are the owners) and found no information re: condo fees. Both condos I referenced are two bedroom condos, ours being 1408 sq ft, the other being 1480 sq ft according to the assessors field cards in the town database; we're paying $407, the other is paying $345. Like I said, I've requested clarification from the management company. Doesn't seem right. We purchased condo 2 years ago and our condo fees have gone from $317/month to $407/month.
It could be the smaller end units have higher condo fees because they will require higher maintenance or upkeep costs. For example, end units often have more windows; is window washing a service provided by your HOA?
There could be other differences like the presence of decks or balconies, size of driveways, etc. these could also be a factor.
The relative condo fees would have been established at the time the development was established. The builder determines these fees. Whether they make sense or not, you will not be able to change the allocation without approval of all or almost all the owners. And since reducing some means others would go up....fahgettaboutit.
I have seen fees vary by the floor you lived on as the higher floor units were considered more valuable because of the view. I have seen first floor units owners demand reductions in fees as they do not use the services of the elevator.
Few think it fair to them when others pay less, no matter the reasoning.
Sometimes, Condominium Homeowners Associations offer reduced monthly fees for the Condo Officers to offset all of the extra hours that they work or for special work (maybe one homeowner does bookkeeping, taxes or legal work for the association).
Normally monthly fees are reviewed at the condo homeowners annual meeting. If you didn't attend they must have sent out a summary of the meeting to all owners. It is a huge jump to go from $317 to $407 in monthly fees in just two years unless there was something pretty major that happened (such as an enormous jump in the maintenance costs, the association losing a law suit or something like that). As an owner, any of those things would be things that you would be notified about.
All those different fees seem pretty fishy to me. Check it out and let us know.
Last edited by germaine2626; 06-23-2013 at 10:12 PM..
OP here, thanks for all your right on answers. Since I posted my original question, I logged into our website and found the official documents (all 91 pages of them). I read through and found the area where the developer assigned the % of ownership. We're at .65, the unit we saw yesterday was .55. I don't understand why, but now understand that trying to change it will likely be a waste of time.
We're not an end unit, all the original decks were 10x10, so I don't understand why we have a larger % of ownership, but it's really a moot point now. Evidently, there's something "special" about our unit other than the fact that we think it's special, the developer also thought so. Again thank you all for taking the time to answer (I love these boards).
Re: the jump in condo fees I understand, it was just the high amount we were paying. There was a major residing and replacement of garden windows and French doors where needed.
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