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Never had an HOA, would never buy a house where there is one. But I had no idea whatsoever that these were $400 a month. It is hard to imagine any justification for a fee that high.
It's hard to imagine how you would NOT have one in a joint ownership situation. How do you imagine the commonly-owned areas and services are paid for?
We got a new board in the building where I live. I currently pay 208.00 HOA for the building. The board says that come January, it will go up to 400.00 because the precious board was shady, and now we don’t have enough funds on reserve. The current board put everything on paper to show us.
I just never heard HOA being raised so much at one time. The 400.00 is only for our building. I pay two other bills for ground maintenance and recreation totaling 240.00. So now come January my total HOA will be 640.00 a month. And that’s if the other 2 don’t go up. I have never heard HOA being so high. But I know everything is high right now. So, then again, how would I know what other places charge. But it just seems like a ridiculous amount.
Thoughts?
Google Surfside and then look at the year your building was built!
Century Village is old (50+ yrs old) so they are going to need lots of inspections/insurance is going to get expensive. My uncle lives in an oceanfront building, their HOA went up $1500 a month and they got assessed 10K each for the elevator replacements
True, I've never lived in one with an HOA, and after reading this thread, never will.
HOAs are generally fine if you understand what you are buying into. You live in a building with expenses, those expenses are shared among the residents. Insurance is 60,000? 100 units = $600 each for your share. Paint, landscaping etc / 100 units.
Ignorance is what kills HOAs. People think the HOA rate is fixed, can't go up. Residents argue (to save money) that the building doesn't need to be painted or the board is spending too much etc. Look around any neighborhood, some people take care of things better than others, so when all those people live in the same building then you will get different opinions.
Buying in a cheap HOA building usually leads to bill expenses down the line.
Can't really tell from the link but the buildings I can see appear to be 2 story so OP will escape the new structural integrity reserve requirements. That could have easily pushed her fees over $1000 a month. She should be thankful she's only paying $600+.
I’m in a 4 story. Other 4 story building aren’t being raised so much. I understand things change, especially with that Surfside event. The thing was the prior board didn’t do things right. This is the issue I’m speaking of why it’s being raised so much at one time.
Moderator cut: Referenced remark deleted.
Thanks.
Last edited by Mightyqueen801; 08-15-2022 at 07:07 AM..
Reason: Next time report TOS violation instead of calling out member.
Location: Sarasota/ Bradenton - University Pkwy area
4,648 posts, read 7,644,726 times
Reputation: 6108
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1insider
If OP is in Florida this was expected. We just had new legislation passed in July that is going to jack up condo fees for most associations. New reserve requirements, new mandatory inspections and mandated maintenance. This is not even including the rapidly rising master insurance policy premiums. If you live in a Florida condo be prepared for higher and in some cases substantially higher fees.
That legislation does not pertain to all condo communities, only those of 3 stories or more.
The new reserve requirements are also specific to the following: As of December 31, 2024, an association may no longer vote to waive or underfund the reserves for items required to be included in a structural integrity reserve study. Accordingly, unit owners will not be authorized to “opt-out” of this obligatory funding of reserves for these structural integrity-type future expenditures so that associations must have enough money in reserves to fund all repairs necessary to maintain the structural integrity of all buildings 3 stories or higher.
Regarding 3 story or higher condos -- the condo boards must meet new reserve budget requirements by 2025.
A number of states, not just FL, have specific reserve requirements for condo associations, so the OP needs to see what is required in their particular state.
That legislation does not pertain to all condo communities, only those of 3 stories or more.
The new reserve requirements are also specific to the following: As of December 31, 2024, an association may no longer vote to waive or underfund the reserves for items required to be included in a structural integrity reserve study. Accordingly, unit owners will not be authorized to “opt-out” of this obligatory funding of reserves for these structural integrity-type future expenditures so that associations must have enough money in reserves to fund all repairs necessary to maintain the structural integrity of all buildings 3 stories or higher.
Regarding 3 story or higher condos -- the condo boards must meet new reserve budget requirements by 2025.
A number of states, not just FL, have specific reserve requirements for condo associations, so the OP needs to see what is required in their particular state.
OP is in a Florida 4 story building but has said she does not want to talk about the next increase for structural reserves. It will likely be painful, especially if there are structural repairs needed in the near future.
OP, your fees before the increase were among the lowest I've ever seen for a Florida condo. You are just now coming into the range of what is customary. I doesn't mean your former Board was shady, only that they didn't collect as much money as was needed to run the association. It happens all the time.
Condos have problems when the Board doesn't inform the owners of costs. They just throw out a number.
I give a detailed list of expenses and how much the increase is for each one. For reserves I tell them the estimated amount needed by a certain date. I give projections for the future. I update them throughout the year through our newsletter. Everyone knows everything about our finances as long as they read the information distributed throughout the year. No one should ever be surprised.
This year I had to describe our maintenance plan for our insurance company. The last couple times people refinanced I had to give more info than ever before. These are good things!
A self-managed condo with a board that has a variety of experience has always worked well for me. I've owned condos for over 40 years.
Condos have problems when the Board doesn't inform the owners of costs. They just throw out a number.
I give a detailed list of expenses and how much the increase is for each one. For reserves I tell them the estimated amount needed by a certain date. I give projections for the future. I update them throughout the year through our newsletter. Everyone knows everything about our finances as long as they read the information distributed throughout the year. No one should ever be surprised.
This year I had to describe our maintenance plan for our insurance company. The last couple times people refinanced I had to give more info than ever before. These are good things!
A self-managed condo with a board that has a variety of experience has always worked well for me. I've owned condos for over 40 years.
I have been on my condo board for years. My work experience was putting out RFPs and bids for a public agency. That experience was helpful on the private side, too.
We send out budget vs. actual reports for that year every fall as well as the next year's budget, which is also reviewed at the meeting in October that maybe five people attend, and we have about half a million in reserves, and yet, an owner saw me outside one day and demanded to know why our complex has zero reserves. Another neighbor had told her that. It's right there on the document you both got.
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