Homeowners association (HOA) fees are fees that some neighborhoods charge each resident to help the community maintain and improve common grounds such as playgrounds, swimming pools, and tennis courts.
It’s important to include these fees in your monthly budget. Large Homeowners Association fees can limit the amount of home you can afford. If you are looking at homes that cost $250,000 and you find one that has a $250 monthly HOA fee, that home may be out of your price range. For every $100 in HOA fees, you can afford about $20,000 less of a home. In our example, you could compare a $250,000 home with a $200,000 home that has a $250 monthly HOA fee. It’s important to balance the amenities with cost of the fee.
These fees may include a wide range of amenities depending on the neighborhood.
Think of a small neighborhood with 1 street and 10 houses. The neighborhood has a median at the entrance with a sign, sign lights, grass and some bushes and flowers. The Homeowners association owns that median and the residents make up the association. When the grass needs to be cut or a light needs to be changed on the sign, the HOA will pay for this.
Many neighborhoods have many more amenities. These amenities increase the monthly fee you’ll have to pay, but more homeowners can make the fee smaller because you are spreading out the costs over more homes.
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