WSJ: A Retirement Wealth Gap Adds a New Indignity to Old Age

[HFWR]

I believe I’ve been talked out of getting a condo...

 

[pb4uski]

+1
I was treasurer of my HOA for 25 years. The main reason was I did not trust anyone else to do the job. People do not grasp the fact that whatever facilities there are in the common areas, they are for everyone whether they use them or not. A swimming pool is a good example.

And that swimming pool adds value to their property whether they use it or not.... as do other common facilities... and when those common facilities are substandard or in disrepair, they reduce values.

 

[Scuba]

And that swimming pool adds value to their property whether they use it or not.... as do other common facilities... and when those common facilities are substandard or in disrepair, they reduce values.

Wish everyone understood that!

 

[FreeBear]

WE are glad to not be a part of a HOA anymore. They would make everyone stain their fence every 2 years which it didn't need and was a big job as the lots were big. They would drive by and if they saw a week in your front yard you would get a nasty letter and would need to have them come back and check it was pulled or get a fine.

I don't think I'd care for a HOA that mandates the exterior condition without being responsible for it. I'd hate to give the HOA the authority but not the responsibility.



We live in a townhome with a HOA. The HOA is responsible for all outdoor maintenance except decks and windows & doors. Roofing, exterior painting, and landscaping are big headaches given that the development is 50 yrs old, but the HOA and their contractors are doing a solid job.



The dues are high for the area, but the place looks great without huge special assessments that can plague some developments. Friends living in high rise condos have been hit with $20-30K special assessment to replace critical systems. Another friend was forced to pay $15K+ to tear out a perfectly good cement driveway and replace with high maintenance pavers. She was outvoted....


We are fortunate to live in a community with similar values, more luck than anything else. A bunch of later career folks, empty nesters, and retirees. We want to keep the place looking nice but don't have to turn the place into a luxury development in our sleepy neighborhood. One of the reasons we are reluctant to leave and take our chances elsewhere despite crappy weather here half the year...

 

[Fedup]

They dont force you to do anything. I asked them and I agreed to paint just above the garage.

 

[Bryan Barnfellow]

There are many jealous folks who wake up in their 50's and realize that retirement is not going to be pretty.
Heck, a 30 something guy in the ice cream shop was upset that I was retired........

But I doubt he took advantage of the golden opportunity standing in front of him and asked, "Would you mind telling me how you did it?"

-BB

 

[HI Bill]

But I doubt he took advantage of the golden opportunity standing in front of him and asked, "Would you mind telling me how you did it?"

Bingo! They don't even think to ask the question, but instead assume you were lucky, or born into wealth...of course, he's working where?

 

[pb4uski]

I don't think I'd care for a HOA that mandates the exterior condition without being responsible for it. I'd hate to give the HOA the authority but not the responsibility. ....

We are fortunate to live in a community with similar values, more luck than anything else. A bunch of later career folks, empty nesters, and retirees. We want to keep the place looking nice ...

But that is exactly why a HOA (or deed restrictions) that mandate exterior condition is valuable.... I know that I'm responsible and will keep the exterior of my place in good condition... but I don't know about my neighbors... or they may even desire to keep things tidy but fall on hard times and can't afford to... HOA requirements or deed restrictions help ensure that the neighboring home exteriors will be kept tidy... which has a favorable impact on my property's value.

 

[Walt34]

But that is exactly why a HOA (or deed restrictions) that mandate exterior condition is valuable.... I know that I'm responsible and will keep the exterior of my place in good condition... but I don't know about my neighbors... or they may even desire to keep things tidy but fall on hard times and can't afford to... HOA requirements or deed restrictions help ensure that the neighboring home exteriors will be kept tidy... which has a favorable impact on my property's value.

Exactly.

Where we live an HOA is a very Good Thing and almost a necessity. The county's voters in their infinite [-]wisdom[/-] stupidity have twice voted down zoning, so you can buy a house and your next door neighbor is free to start a junkyard, bar, strip joint, or whatever will fit inside the building and land.

And some people are inherently slobs. A house two doors up from us seems to be inhabited by candidates for the "Hoarders" TV show at least going by what we see when a garage door is up. It's packed shoulder height with junk. They had a junk car in the driveway for two years, joined by another for a few months before they finally had them towed away. He had an old flatbed trailer stored by the side of the house (a violation here) and frequently had junk stored on top of that. I'm not one to be fussy about things but it got so bad that I took photos and sent them to the management company to substantiate the complaint, the only time in my life I've ever done that.

Fortunately the HOA seems to be reasonable. When my front yard was torn up to replace the water line in November one year I didn't hear a peep from them and we planted grass seed the following spring. Of course it looked awful over that winter, but it was far too late to plant anything.

 

[REWahoo]

Exactly.

Where we live an HOA is a very Good Thing and almost a necessity. The county's voters in their infinite [-]wisdom[/-] stupidity have twice voted down zoning, so you can buy a house and your next door neighbor is free to start a junkyard, bar, strip joint, or whatever will fit inside the building and land.

And some people are inherently slobs. A house two doors up from seems to be inhabited by candidates for the "Hoarders" TV show...

I frequently drive past a prime example of this and may stop some day and take a photo to post. Someone built and sold five very nice houses in a rural area - no zoning, no HOA. Four of the houses are attractive and well maintained but the middle of the five is an absolute disaster area with old cars, piles of junk and a yard that has never seen a mower.

Bet those four neighbors wished they had a HOA.

 

[HFWR]

Many small towns, and out in the “county” in the unincorporated areas, there are so many dilapidated homes, buildings, and properties that no money exists to enforce zoning laws anyway...

 

[audreyh1]

I frequently drive past a prime example of this and may stop some day and take a photo to post. Someone built and sold five very nice houses in a rural area - no zoning, no HOA. Four of the houses are attractive and well maintained but the middle of the five is an absolute disaster area with old cars, piles of junk and a yard that has never seen a mower.

Bet those four neighbors wished they had a HOA.

Yeah, for sure. No way I’d buy a place down here without an HOA. There are definitely some areas that look like “Old Mexico” with a poor old tiny dilapidated houses mashed right up against someone’s megamansion fantasy.

 

[Huston55]

Thumbs up for well managed HOAs.

We used to live in a Planned Residential Community (PRC) of ~60k, which was/is not an incorporated city but, a collection of ‘villages’ within the PRC. We found the HOA dues (two tiers: PRC & Village/Cluster) to be very reasonable for what was provided in terms of maintenance & CCRs. Our former PRC has won lots of accolades so, it’s clearly on the “good” side of the HOA spectrum. We now live on the other side of the country but, if we returned to the area of the PRC, we’d move back in a heartbeat.

 

[redduck]

OK, I do understand the importance of maintenance. In fact, one of two places I looked at had worn-out furniture outside the main entrance and the swimming pool looked old and tired (much like myself). No way would I move into a place like this.

However, upgrading some common areas because they needed upgrading is different than upgrading to increase the value of the property for financial gain. I have my investment strategy set up (sort of) and wouldn't be interested in making a real estate investment of this kind. I speak for many (although I have no idea who they may be).

 

[pb4uski]

.... However, upgrading some common areas because they needed upgrading is different than upgrading to increase the value of the property for financial gain. ...

Upgrades are done principally for the benefit of members in using the common facilities... any "financial gain" is a by-product.

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.

 

[Scuba]

One of the responsibilities of an HOA Board is to maintain the development in a manner that is competitive with other surrounding developments so that the community maintains its value relative to others. So even if few people actually use common area facilities, it’s still important to maintain them such that they look up-to-date.

 

[ncbill]

Our HOA just passed a special assessment for roof replacement (townhouses, so shared rooflines)

Got criticized by some new owners for not including the cost of the above in the regular monthly dues.

But the older owners wanted monthly dues as low as possible.

One wanted us to liquidate our reserve account (held for immediate, emergency expenses) & distribute those funds back to the owners...and he was a retired accountant!

 

[Souschef]

Our HOA just passed a special assessment for roof replacement (townhouses, so shared rooflines)

Got criticized by some new owners for not including the cost of the above in the regular monthly dues.

But the older owners wanted monthly dues as low as possible.

One wanted us to liquidate our reserve account (held for immediate, emergency expenses) & distribute those funds back to the owners...and he was a retired accountant!

Our condos had shake roofs, and even though the roofs were 14 years old, we were plagued with leaks and roof repairs. We had a special assessment to replace the roofs with 40 year composition shingles. This resulted in lowering of the dues due to the lessening of reserve requirements.
The roofs were brought up to new codes which allowed the buiildings to withstand the 1994 earthquake.
As a sidelight, one homeowner wanted the Board to sign a statement that nobody was related to the roofing company!

 

[Choices]

A friend was just “ elected” to a condo board that never wanted to increase the dues, just wanted everybody to be happy. In my friend’s first year the insurance company threatened cancellation due to unsafe balconies and bad roof. The assessments were a killer.

 

[Souschef]

A friend was just “ elected” to a condo board that never wanted to increase the dues, just wanted everybody to be happy. In my friend’s first year the insurance company threatened cancellation due to unsafe balconies and bad roof. The assessments were a killer.

That is a classic "pay me now or pay me later"
As an aside, many balconies were cantilevered out using rebar. Owners would put down indoor/outdoor carpet. The Florida rains seeped through the concrete and rusted the rebar, causing it to swell and split the concrete. It was a big mess.

 

[Music Lover]

And that swimming pool adds value to their property whether they use it or not.... as do other common facilities... and when those common facilities are substandard or in disrepair, they reduce values.

I'm sure that most people are not against regular maintenance (there will always be outliers, of course), but it is possible to over-improve a place and saddle people with too high HOA fees in return for little gain.

 

[redduck]

And that swimming pool adds value to their property whether they use it or not.... as do other common facilities... and when those common facilities are substandard or in disrepair, they reduce values.

I think I got a bit lost here: are you talking about putting in a swimming pool or about keeping the existing swimming pool well-maintained?

 

[pb4uski]

I think I got a bit lost here: are you talking about putting in a swimming pool or about keeping the existing swimming pool well-maintained?

Existing... but the point is that common facilities benefit all members, even members that don't use them.

A key is what buyers in that market expect for common facilities... in our area a pool is expected.

 

[RobbieB]

I lived in one townhouse complex with 2 huge pools, lots of common green court areas and 2 spas with HOA fees of $50/mo.

I lived in another complex with just 1 large common area with a basketball court and some jungle jims, no pools or spas with HOA fees of $100/mo.

Couldn't figure that one out at all.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

We don't have a HOA but the current housing prices in California combined with Prop 13 make for some eclectic neighbor mixes. We have elderly residents in our neighborhood in homes with peeling paint, falling down fences and dead lawns next to yuppie families with remodeled houses, manicured lawns and a Tesla and BMW in the driveway.

Somebody started a neighborhood group asking for volunteers to clean houses and do errands for the low income, elderly homeowners, which seemed a bit odd to me since these people are sitting on expensive real estate, while there are so many homeless in the area that literally don't have roofs over their heads and need help much more. The cash poor elderly in the expensive homes can either move or get a reverse mortgage and pay for all the help they need.