Pearland HOA fees - help needed (Houston: insurance, co-op, loan)

[newhomebuyer80]

I am closing through Bank of america for my loan on May 15th.
I choose Empire title company as a closing agent

They are charging me on HOA fees as follows
HUD form 1 : Item 1304 --- HOA trasnfer fee to AMI : $125.00

Villages of biscayne bay ( community name) prorated 2009 dues : $815
Villages of biscayne bay HOA Cap fee : $450
Texas resource management L.P conveyance fee : $200

Total fees related with HOA is $1585 --- Is it right ...or they are cheating me?

[Timnwendy]

Looks like you are buying a home in Shadowcreek Ranch.

I know the HOA dues are really high there, over $800 annually, so the $815 looks right to me. I've confirmed this with some of my coworkers and friends who live there.

I believe the $450 Cap fee is a one-time capital improvement fee. I had one assessed to me ($350) last year at my closing. I don't think you can get around paying this; it's something the HOAs just forces you to do.

The transfer fee of $125 is a charge many HOAs levy at closing. I had one too. You probably just have to pay it.

I am not familiar with conveyance fees, so that $200 they are charging might be suspect.

My advice is to follow up with your closing company and seller (builder?) to see exactly which fees are negotiable, and which ones might be paid by the seller, instead of you (the buyer).

[westres1]

The 200 conveyance fee is the transfer fee.

[newhomebuyer80]

thanks guys..

tim i spoke with closing agent and HOA officers - all are legible amount.

its crazy...

[bls8195]

Just make sure your not paying for Jan, Feb, Mar, only the time from you buy the home to the end of the year.

[zzzacc]

I moved to Houston from New York and purchased my home in SCR. I live alone, have a 3-BR/2 living/ 2 1/2 Bath and way to much space!! I paid cash for my home TO GET A BETTER DEAL, BUT I AM MOVING AT THE FIRST CHANCE simply due to the HOA fees. These fees or dues are ridiculous. The HOA does NOTHING FOR ME and I gain nothing from them (that I can see)-- I DO NOT use the pools, walking trails, or any other amenities...yet I pay the SAME AMOUNT as the guy with four kids who uses all amenities. You don't even MOW MY YARD--I pay for that...LOL!! When it came to closing day, I REFUSED TO CLOSE, because nobody had told me about the fees!! My agent PAID THE FEES as I refused, and I closed, BUT I SHOULDN'T HAVE..I FELT TO MUCH PRESSURE, and they had NOT DISCLOSED ALL FEES BEFORE CLOSING as is the law... and buying a home should be a GOOD THING--IT SHOULDN'T MAKE YOU REGRET OR ANGRY!!! My dues are $900 annually, you cannot claim them for a tax break, and you get absolutely NO BENEFIT from paying them--except that they plant flowers on the Blvd streets and entrances...I can plant my own flowers or hire it out. I SWEAR I AM GOING TO BE BURIED UNDER THOSE DA__ FLOWERS, I HAVE CERTAINLY INVESTED ENOUGH!! I asked the office about the fees--THE ANSWER WAS "WE KEEP YOUR PROPERTY VALUES UP"...Guess I will find out. I have a lovely home and ONLY HAVE TO LIVE HERE TWO YEARS--to escape capital gains taxes when I sale. I have LIVED ALL OVER THE USA, New York, Michigan, Oregon, Indiana, Wisconsin, Washington AND NEVER PAID HOA FEES--even in homes that were much more expensive upwards of $480k in gated beautiful communities...with LOWER TAXES TOO!! This is only a 1780 sq. ft home. The HOA fees are an absolute Texas or southern "thing"...and everyone just keeps paying. Why not question where the money is going, what are you paying for AND WHY NOT HAVE A SLIDING SCALE for singles, seniors, and couples with children. I would think you would want a diversified community and a sliding scale would get you there---at least it would be FAIR AND people wouldn't feel cheated!!! All homeowners pay different property taxes and insurance based on the home size, location etc. IT SHOULD BE THE SAME FOR HOA. Its the only fair way...and if you are a non-profit...WHERE IS THE MONEY?? AND WHERE IS IT GOING...or are you just saving for a rainy day?? Due to the fact that SCR has a 99 year FLOOD PLAN (you can see the map) -- AS it will not flood here in our lifetimes, where do our fees go and why charge so much???
**cannot wait to sell soon...

[ipuck]

Originally Posted by zzzacc

I moved to Houston from New York and purchased my home in SCR. I live alone, have a 3-BR/2 living/ 2 1/2 Bath and way to much space!! I paid cash for my home TO GET A BETTER DEAL, BUT I AM MOVING AT THE FIRST CHANCE simply due to the HOA fees. These fees or dues are ridiculous..

Compare to New York, are you really complaining about the fees here? I am not not going to defend how high it is here, but the fees in NY are SO MUCH HIGHER then here. The ever increasing ridiculous co-op fee if you live in one of those coop, the HOA fees in Long Island houses i heard a friend told me is couple thousand a year. Anything in the Manhatten HOA/Building fee runs at least 300 a month (an lot more mostly). Houses in Queens/Brooklyn runs at least 200 a month. I moved away from New York after paying those and 200 other ridiculous fees. Are you really going to complain about HOA fees here?

[Schumacher713]

I wish my neighborhood had an HOA. I would gladly shell out 800 a year.

[trekbiker]

Do as I am doing... investigate your HOA! Find out who the committees and board members are, and find out who really runs things in your hood.

As for those fees, I think they are all legit. I had to pay the same at closing. Just make sure you find out who runs things... YOU are paying the dues, thus your HOA works for YOU. My HOA works for ME. That's my attitude about HOAs.

[IC_deLight]

Originally Posted by trekbiker

Do as I am doing... investigate your HOA! Find out who the committees and board members are, and find out who really runs things in your hood.

As for those fees, I think they are all legit. I had to pay the same at closing. Just make sure you find out who runs things... YOU are paying the dues, thus your HOA works for YOU. My HOA works for ME. That's my attitude about HOAs.

Define "legit".

Is a windfall 'transfer fee' for the management company legit? They are already being paid to manage the books and to track ownership so why the windfall? You didn't contract with the management company and they are not providing you any service.

The Texas resource management L.P conveyance fee sounds like ANOTHER transfer fee. Exactly what "service" did Texas resource management provide to you in return for this "conveyance fee"?

The "cap fee" sounds like ANOTHER transfer fee. It isn't "one time" if it is paid each time a house is sold.

So three transfer fees, two of which went to private parties and the other of which will be used to pay the management company again. None provided any service to you. The HOA corp is just a mechanism for these vendors to demand money from you. They provided no service to you. Good luck, they weren't finished and now your new home is security for whatever other monies they demand. The HOA corporation doesn't work for you any more than slavemasters worked for the slaves.