lmartin999

True to some extent but again a well manged building will take expert advice to plan for such things. In my building in TO (I am on the equivalent of the strata council here) we employ a professional company to produce our plan (I think it projects ahead something like 20 years). This is revised every few years. We do have freedom to divert from this but the kind of situation you are suggesting shouldn't arise (which is not to say it doesn't unfortunately).

ExKiwilass

IT really depends on the strata. A good strata will have higher fees so they put away money in a contingency fund. A strata which is more concerned about money won't, and what will happen in that case is an assessment. This can run into the 1000s. I looked at a townhouse a few years ago that was in the midst of repairs - the owner couldn't afford to pay and as a result the price was lower. It was about $60,000 lower than it should have been. That gives an idea of how much an assessment can be.

In our wet climate you have to expect this happening more often than not. There's a building not far from me - european built, very expensive, only 5 years old - already I see mold pushing up through some of the roof tiles, mold on the balconies, etc. The strata doesn't seem to be on top of it.

ExKiwilass

I agree, but the same can be said for single family homes too. The other thing is that as a homeowner you can do a lot of the maintenance yourself, whereas in a strata, generally people are paid to do the yard work, clean the gutters, etc.

iaink

Still, the basis for comparing an 800sqft property with a 1900sqft property seems a little flawed. Presumably one comes with a garden of sorts too...

Steve_P

I don't see why you would be upgrading electrical or plumbing other than changing fixtures or plugs and switches.

If we had not done our reno we would not have touched anything. There was nothing wrong with either it was all functioning normally.

Our house has the same exterior siding (wood) it came with it has been painted twice since we moved in (1987). The roofing shingles replaced twice once because of hail damage (insurance claim) and once because the roofers hired by the insurance company did a p*ss poor job.

Oakvillian

yeah, but no, but yeah, but no, but...

We were advised that we should consider as a rule of thumb to spend about 1 percent of the property value on repairs and maintenance annually. For the sake of argument, let's say the 2000sq ft suburban idyll set them back half a million bucks. That's 5 grand a year, or just over $400 a month.

As well as the tasks you've listed above, there's a garden to take care of (lawnmower and other garden tools to buy and service; plants, soil, mulch etc to buy), windows will probably need replacing over a 20-year span, you'd quite possibly want to replace carpets or floors in that time span too, the garage doors will probably be a bit ropey, the chimney may need re-lining, and so on and so on. So far, the run-rate for our place (roof shingles, furnace, A/C and water heater since we moved in, but we knew the roof was a goner before we started and negotiated on the price because of it) over 4 years would not have been far away from that 1% if I hadn't dealt with deck repairs, minor plumbing and electrical issues myself.

My summer task this year is repairing and repainting the remaining wooden window frames. I reckon we can eke out another 3 or 4 years before the whole lot will also need replacing. In a condo development I imagine economies of scale and competitive tendering would bring down the unit cost of replacing rooves, windows etc - obviously this would differ between a high rise and a condo townhouse development, but the principle remains.

I reckon, for me at least, the truth lies somewhere between your $190 per month and the article's $675.

ExKiwilass

It depends on the age of the building.

It also depends on the climate you're living in

Steve_P

.

Steve_P

For the electrical and plumbing?

Ours is 37 years old.

ExKiwilass

Yeah, that's what I meant. Come on Steve. What about age?

I'm just going by what I read on the MLS - "plumbing upgraded etc." This is in buildings 20+ years old.

Steve_P

See edit in my above comment, it's 37 years old.

MLS may say plumbing upgraded but was it really necessary? Unless a reno was done I would say it's not needed.

Can you explain to me why I would want to "upgrade" my electrical or plumbing. It's not like the pipes or the wiring wear out.

iaink

Aviator

Depends what upgraded means as well - Adding a few pipes and taps is an upgrade.
Won't even go into how much my OH spent on replacing the kitchen and all the appliances!

ExKiwilass

I don't know. I just know that older stratas seem to do this. There must be a reason.

JonboyE

I didn't think about the windows. I haven't a clear idea of how long modern windows last. The only time I have had to replace windows was on an old timer that still had single glazing in wooden frames. That house was built in 1936 and I have no idea when the windows dated from.

I didn't include floor coverings because the condo owner is responsible for the floor coverings in their unit. Also floor coverings are really more of a discretionary spend. I would expect a good hardwood floor to last the lifetime of the house.

I suppose you could consider gardening a repairs and maintenance expense though for us it comes of out of our entertainment budget. Our White Rock home is on an 8,000 sf city lot. A $300 lawnmower lasted seven years before the deck rusted through. The $150 weed wacker* from Zellers is in its 12th summer and still going strong. An air filter and a change of oil each year is all they need. We make our own mulch and compost and beg, borrow, and steal more plants than we buy.

In coastal BC the essential requirement is to keep the rain out and the interior and voids properly ventilated. If that's done the buildings seem to stand up to time pretty well.

* Firefox does not like my spelling of wacker. When I right click on it is suggests wanker as an alternative.