The Other Costs of Home Ownership

[graphrix_IHB]

I thought this article about the costs of ownership is interesting. I am a big fan of Kiplinger because I have done well with many of their recommendations. But more importantly for those that own or have owned in the past I am interested on your thoughts. My home and the lot it is on is older and I will share some of my experiences later. I warn you though if you are thinking of an older home you might start to think the HOA dues of the newer homes may start to seem reasonable.

 

[reason_IHB]

Thanks. Because I was looking into older homes with yards. The initial thinking was, "Oh, yeah. I can avoid the HOA fees and so on of newer homes." But then I realize, "Oh no. What if there's something wrong with the roofs of an older homes. Or the pipes. etc." So the cost of fixing might not be worth it. Decided, I rather pay HOA fees for my current new condo/townhome.

 

[Trooper_IHB]

Regarding the roof...condo dweller vs homeowner. Don't think you might not get hit with a "special assessment" if your condo needs a new roof. This just happened to a friend of mine, to the tune of $3300.00 out of pocket !

 

[momopi_IHB]

If you bought an older condo with low HOA, there's a chance that the HOA doesn't have sufficient reserves for major repairs. It's hard to raise HOA fees by a lot... many home owners will object Then when major repairs are needed, you get stuck with a big assessment bill.

My buddy bought and sold a condo in Pasadena that was like that. The units have central A/C in the attic and they were all old and leaking, so the association finally passed (after years of arguing) a special assessment of $9000 to replace the A/C units and fix the water damage. Fortunately he sold and left before that happened.

The complex also had these nice little pools and fountains in the front that was neat to look at, but backed up against the house and many were leaking right into the basement level. I looked at them doing repairs one time and was shocked that the... insulation? Used under the decorative water pool tiles was blocks of cheap styrofoam.