The reluctance to raise
fees
Rob
Ford's Gravy Train platform got him elected Mayor of Toronto.
Condo fees are seen as taxes and many owners want them to be as low as
possible. There are several reasons for that.
Owners resent paying fees to pay for many of the amenities. An older
couple may not use the swimming pool, sauna or aerobatics room so they
don’t want to pay for their upkeep. Many never use the guest suites so
they resent paying for them. A person living on the ground floor won't
care if all the elevators are out of service.
Low incomes
Many owners are on a fixed income. Seniors get hit hard when the fees
are increased while the lower-income owner-residents may be on very
tight budgets.
Everyone would prefer to spend their money on something else rather
than on condo fees whether it is on vacations, booze or a weekly
night-out at a casino.
Investors
Owners who are “investors” lease their units and they want their costs
to be as low as possible so they can make money; at the very least they
want a positive cash flow. In many condos, investors make up the
majority of the owners.
Selling feature
Finally, low condo fees are a major selling feature. Anyone thinking of
selling their unit in the near future, and that can be the majority of
owners, have a second reason for wanting the fees to stay low.
The long term
Far too many condo owners have no long-term interest in the
corporation. They see their condo as a short-term investment and not as
a place where they will live for the next ten to twenty years or more.
They see themselves as short-term investors rather than long-term
owners.
Re-election
A promise not to raise fees, or even to reduce them, will give a
candidate to the board of directors the support of a lot of the owners.
Such a person may be very difficult to defeat.
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