What To Know About Self-Managed HOAs and Condos

If you're looking to buy a house or condo but are balking at the steep monthly HOA or condo fees, one budget-friendly alternative is to find a self-managed condo or HOA instead. That means rather than paying a management cBuying a home or condo can often mean costly HOA or condo fees each month.  The alternative is finding a self-managed condo or HOA instead.  Self-managed means instead of paying a company to maintain areas like lawns and pools, the community members themselves take care of the maintenance themselves, saving everyone money.  It sounds like a great alternative, but there are absolutely pros and cons to self-managed HOAs that everyone should know before jumping into them.  Keep reading for what to know about self-managed HOAs and condos, and click this link to read the full article.

Pro: Self-managed condos and HOAs are cheaper

First, the biggie: Not having to pay for a super or maintenance means lower monthly expenditure for the building, says Susan Little, a Realtor® in Brooklyn. For the six-unit building my condo was in, the individual common fees were only $250 a month—a far cry from the $1,000-plus I was being quoted elsewhere. For me, that meant a savings of $750 a month!

Con: They're also a lot more work

Most people are unaware of how much time and effort it takes to run a building. Some complain that self-managed condos and HOAs feel like a second job. Even with regular rotations for things like trash, snow, and leaf removal, new maintenance issues constantly cropped up. We were once issued a ticket for failing to have our fire sprinklers inspected every six months, a task nobody had realized was legally required. And when something broke, someone had to step up and figure out whom to call to fix it.