Condo maintenance versus house maintenance

Many buyers perceive that the maintenance fees for a condo seem so high compared to the monthly costs of owning a house. This is really not always the case if you break it down. Typically condo maintenance for a medium range building is $ 0.50-0.70 per square foot to close to $ 1/SF for very high end building. Depending on the condo, this maintenance cost could include reserves for major repairs lessening the need for special assessments.

Here are the monthly costs of owning a mid range home:

$ 300/insurance ( approximately 0.75-1.5 % of home value depending on age of home,east or west of US1 and flood zone location)

$ 75 water ( will depend on city and if property is on sewer or septic)

$ 50-100 trash removal

$ 100 gardener

$ 30 basic cable

$ 30 alarm monitoring

$ 40 pest control

Total $ 625 so if the house is 1800 SF, we are at $ 0.35/SF.

But ....you have to figure roof replacement reserves about $ 1000/year plus painting outside $ 1000/ year, tree trimming $ 300/year, pruning and fertilizing $ 800/year, pool service $ 1000/year and other external maintenance you would not have in a condo adds another $ 0.20 per square foot monthly.

Maybe there is a small garden and no pool but sooner or later roofs need to be fixed, maintained or replaced: the exterior needs to be painted, pressure cleaned etc; trees need to be trimmed for hurricane season: plumbing and electric repairs are more extensive than in a condo.

So the condo maintenance does not seem so high anymore when you really compare monthly or yearly costs for the house. The condo can also offers security, pool, beach access, gym, tennis, gardens, concierge, management etc so you are getting more services for the money you pay.

The big question is will there be special assessments ? It is easy to find out from the association what major repairs have been made and what the condo still plans to assess for. Many buildings in South Florida have been going through their 40 recertification and have replaced almost all major systems in the building or are in the process of doing so.

Many condos are also starting to have reserve funds so they collect from the owners each year the exact amount needed to repair or replace let's say the elevators in 15 years: paint in 5 years: roof in 20 years etc. This is a fair and responsible way to run a building as each condo owner pays into the fund whether they live there 2 years or 10 years.

The big difference is control. Buyers feel that owning a house gives them more control over the expenses and they are not at the mercy of a badly run condo association. The only solution to this is to get involved in the association which can be hard work, politics and very little gratitude from other condo owners.