Condominium Fee

You know what’s better than a house payment? An additional payment on a property that you already don’t fully own.

Before you leap to buy a condominium, keep in mind that a monthly condominium fee will accompany your monthly mortgage fee.

The fee typically comes from your Home Owners Association (HOA). It will cover the cost of maintaining all the common areas, such as lawn mowing, snow removal, roof repair, heating and cooling systems, and other services.

The HOA determines the amount, and they will also set a fee high enough per unit to put aside money in reserves for emergency repairs and other unexpected expenses. This process makes it far easier for owners to budget, as opposed to living in a non-condo home and getting hit with a major repair bill.

With an HOA, all major work must be put out to bid, so someone's brother-in-law does not get all the business.

A bank will take the amount of the condo fee into consideration when deciding how much of a mortgage you would qualify for.