Condo Associations Struggling To Pay Bills In Some Markets

The New York Times reports on the struggles that condo associations are having paying the bills in some parts of the country. The problems of two buildings in Miami, Florida are described in this story, which reinforces the fact that for condo owners, a neighbor's financial problem may well become your financial problem.

In one glassy new Miami tower:

• [N]early one in six residents in the 43-story building is battling foreclosure and their contributions to the building association are shrinking. Each of the remaining owners has had to chip in an extra $1,000 assessment and $50 more a month for cable and Internet. That is on top of [the unit owners'] $450 monthly maintenance fee. Even though [they pay] more, [the] building has broken washers and dryers and unusable exercise equipment, and [the] hallway is spotted with mold.

In another building:

• [T]he 38 foreclosures in [the] 244-unit building and the unpaid dues nearly cost the residents running water because the building could not pay its bills. The building abruptly stopped repairing its ceiling lobby and left its wiring and ducts exposed when the board ran out of money.

For more, see Collateral Foreclosure Damage for Condo Owner.

In a related story, see The Wall Street Journal: As Dues Dry Up, The Neighbors Pay (if link expires, try here).