Residential Condominium in Surfside, FL – Courtesy: Shutterstock – Image by Blueee77
A South Florida realtor told Newsweek that the soaring expenses of homeowners association (HOA) dues and property insurance are putting so much pressure on seniors in the Sunshine State that many are at risk of going without housing.
According to the Miami Herald, condo HOA dues have increased by 60 percent in the area since 2019. This increase can be attributed, in part, to new laws that were established in May 2022 in response to the fatal collapse of a condo in Surfside, as well as the state’s growing insurance costs.
According to Redfin statistics exclusively provided to the local newspaper, the median monthly condo association fees in Miami-Dade County between April and June of this year were $900, an increase of more than 59 percent from the $567 price reported in the same time frame in 2019. Fees have increased by 10% from the second quarter of 2023 alone, when they were $820 per month.
For many inhabitants, the combination of rising home insurance premiums (which have increased in recent years due to rampant fraud, excessive litigation, and the state’s growing risk of natural catastrophes), monthly mortgage payments, and repair expenditures spells financial disaster.
Realtor Mario D. Copelenko of South Florida told Newsweek that he is “heartbroken to see what the uncontrolled HOAs and insurance companies are doing to the owners of units and homes.”
According to Copelenko, homeowner’s associations have been “raising their dues by large percentages, claiming that the new law on structures and the rising cost of insurance policies make it necessary to take these measures.”
“Homeowners are devastated by increases that reach up to 80 percent,” he said, citing this surge as the cause.
Copelenko claimed to have personal experience with the difficulties encountered by the state’s seniors, “who are living on a fixed income and are struggling to juggle their budgets.”
A recent Bankrate article that revealed Florida is no longer a retirement haven for American seniors due to the high cost of housing—including growing HOAs and insurance premiums—reflects his fears.
“A decade ago, retiring to Florida would have been a no-brainer. However, it’s important to take a step back and make sure you can afford the retirement lifestyle you desire in Florida given the rapidly rising costs of real estate, property taxes, and homeowners insurance, Bankrate analyst Alex Gailey told Newsweek.
In Bankrate’s 2024 ranking of the top states in the US for retirees, Florida came in at number eight.
As the troubled house insurance market in Florida appears to be finally stabilizing, condo owners face yet another catastrophe as the deadline for the SB D-4 bill draws near.
The law, which went into effect in May 2022, mandates that owners of condominiums in buildings that are 30 years old or older have an architect or engineer assess the structure by December 31. A second, more thorough inspection is necessary if the initial check reveals any indication of “substantial structural deterioration”; any necessary work must be initiated within a year of obtaining a report outlining the necessary repairs.
South Florida condo owners are scrambling to sell their aged units before they are stuck with a potentially enormous bill as the deadline draws near. In the second quarter of 2024, there were 20,293 condo listings in Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties, up from 8,353 in the same period in 2023, according to a recent research by ISG World. Of those, about ninety percent are housed in structures older than thirty years.
Former Republican state senator Jeff Brandes, who currently serves as president of the nonprofit Florida Policy Project, had expressed concern to Newsweek about the new rule’s potential to drive pensioners in the state into bankruptcy.
“It could end up leading to some pretty catastrophic outcomes where people are unable to raise the money to fund their required reserves by state law,” he stated.
Copelenko fears a very similar result. “I have seen it personally, and it breaks my heart to see seniors who have worked all their lives and struggled to purchase their homes now terrified, looking at a future where they may be homeless,” he stated.
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Melissa’s career in writing started more than 20 years ago. Today, she lives in South Florida with her husband and two boys.
