Why Pay Maintenance Fees for your Golf Course Condo?

If you are considering buying a golf course condo you should pay particular attention to the maintenance fees you will be charged.  Also known as ‘common area expenses’, these fees are set by the board of directors of your community, who are elected by all the condo owners in that community.  These fees should include common area utilities, upkeep, management, administration and insurance.  Most fees will also include a certain amount paid into a reserve fund for emergency repair work or general improvements, such as car park resurfacing and external re-painting.   

When you purchase your golf home, you will receive a budget statement detailing the percentage of each area of cost that each condo unit is responsible for.  Larger units, with more rooms, will pay a larger percentage of common area costs than smaller units.  They may also, therefore, have more say regarding how the reserve fund is spent.  Sometimes, when large maintenance projects are recommended by the homeowners association, which cannot be covered by the reserve fund, a ‘special assessment’ is made, requiring all owners to contribute.  This is usually voted on by the homeowners, and it is possible that you may end up paying for work that you believe is unnecessary or overpriced.   

It may be tempting to choose a condo community with low maintenance fees, but this is not always the best option.  For one thing, higher maintenance fees generally indicate a higher standard of the common areas and communal facilities.  A lot of condo owners find the fees are offset by expenses they no longer need such as membership of an external health club.  Various factors that will increase the maintenance fees charged include the age of the complex, with older buildings needing more maintenance, low density complexes, with more landscaped ground per unit, and location of the condos, with ocean facing properties requiring more maintenance due to weather damage.  There might also be electricity for each condo included in the fees which would make them appear high in comparison to other communities. 

It is always advisable to check exactly what is included in the maintenance fees you pay, and if you have concerns that your property will require more maintenance than is accounted for, due to age or location, you should address this with your homeowners association. Although a community with low fees may be alluring, you should check that adequate money is being put into a reserve fund, otherwise you may be continually plagued by special assessments. 

See also:

Tips on buying golfcourse condos

buying beachfront property guide

new home buying tips guide