California condo fees are soaring. Some owners fear they can’t survive – Los Angeles Times

California condo fees are soaring. Some owners fear they can’t survive  Los Angeles Times

Megan Blanda knew her San Clemente condominium complex was aging, but she assumed monthly fees of more than $500 were keeping up with maintenance and upgrades. So when she received a notice this year from the homeowners association that she would have to pay a one-time, $26,000 emergency assessment to replace the roofs, Blanda was shocked — and angry. "They can’t throw a $26,000 bill at us because the roof has been neglected all these years," said Blanda, 42, a behavioral therapist for children with autism. It's a situation that experts say is becoming increasingly common as California's condos age, the state's insurance crisis worsens and homeowners associations comply with new safety standards for balconies, leading to unanticipated costs that many condo owners cannot afford.

The fees may be creating a ripple effect on California's expensive housing market, where first-time buyers increasingly are being squeezed out, including by recent interest rate hikes. Some say the possibility of being slapped with the fees is a factor in buyers' waning interest in condos, which have long been a relatively affordable option, at the same time that construction of new condos has continued to lag across the state. Defenders of the emergency fees, which can be levied by HOA boards to address health and safety hazards or unforeseen expenses, say that long-standing infrastructure