Wondering what all of your condo ownership cost will be? Today we’ll outline both the initial and the ongoing costs.
We have a team of highly experienced real estate agents and we would love to put our expertise to work for you.
You’ll discover what condo ownership costs you can expect and find out the average monthly charges for these costs in Kitchener-Waterloo. So let’s get started.
Condo ownership costs: Find out what you will need to pay
Condo Ownership Costs:
Initial Costs
You will have a number of condo ownership costs when you first purchase your condo. These include:
- The purchase price of your condo
- GST or HST on the sale price of condo and on appliances or other items included in your unit if your unit is new.
- Utility hookup fees
- Closing costs: legal fees, land transfer tax
Condo ownership costs: You will have both initial and ongoing costs
Ongoing costs
Condo Ownership Costs: Mortgage Payments
If you needed to borrow money to purchase your condo, then you will need to pay it back in monthly installment. Your mortgage payment will include both the payment on the principal (the amount that you borrowed) and interest on the money you borrowed.
If you take out a mortgage for $100,000 and amortize it over 30 years (meaning you will be paying it back over a 30 year period), the balance or principle you need to pay back is $100,000. If your interest rate is 6%, then your monthly payment will be about $599.55.
Your first mortgage payment will be split up as follows: $500 in interest and $99.55 in principal. However, on your next payment you will only be paying $499.50 in interest because your first payment brought down your balance by $99.55 so you were paying 6% of a slightly smaller number.
This decrease in interest payment and increase in principal payment will continue until at the end of your 30 year amortization period, most of your monthly payment will be going to pay off your principal.
You can learn more about mortgage payments and interest rates here.
Your mortgage payment includes a principal and interest portion
Condo Ownership Costs: Monthly Condo Fees
Condo fees cover a wide range of expenses including:
- Maintenance of the common areas of your condo building
- Maintenance of the exterior of your condo building
- Your portion of the condo association‘s “reserve fund”
Each condo building and association is different, so what your condo fees will cover will also vary. They may even include heat, water, sewer, garbage collection fees, electricity, and in some cases cable TV. Before purchasing your condo, it is a good idea to find out exactly what your fees cover.
Condo fees are determined by multiplying the fee by the square footage of your unit. For example, if your unit is 1,000 square feet and the condo fee is $0.50 per square foot, then your monthly fee would be:
1,000 x $0.50 = $500 per month
In the Kitchener-Waterloo region you can expect to pay on average anywhere from just under $300 to over $500 per month for condo fees depending on the building and the services offered. Higher fees could also be a result of poor management or too low of fees in the past and now the building needs more work done to it.
Condo fees help pay for the maintenance of common areas
Condo Ownership Costs: Property Taxes
Each homeowner (including condo owners) need to pay property taxes to their respective municipality. Your municipality with determine their own rate each year, but usually it falls somewhere between 0.05% and 2.5%.
This rate is then multiplied by the current market value of your condo to determine how much you will pay that year.
For example, if your home is valued at $500,000 and the rate that is charged that year is set at 0.75%, then your property taxes for that year will be :
$500,000 x 0.0075 = $3,750
The money collected from everyone’s property taxes goes to pay for services such as:
- Road maintenance & snow removal
- Garbage & recycling collection
- Police and other emergency services
- Street lighting
Property taxes are usually paid in two installments during the year, but some lenders will let you pay it in monthly installments along with your mortgage payment. The amount collected is kept in a tax account and paid when the property tax bills are due from the money in that account.
You municipality will set your property tax rate each year
Condo Ownership Costs: Utilities
Utilities include services such as power, water, sewer, and heating. The amount that you pay per month for these services can vary greatly. Heating costs for example will depend on the size of your home, how well it is insulated, the type of heating system you have and the temperature you set.
Your water and electricity bills will also vary depending on how much of these services you use each month and how many people are in your family.
Here are some monthly bill estimates for utilities in the Waterloo region:
- Heating: $70 – $100
- Electricity – $50 – $70
- Water – $30 – $50
Some condo buildings will include part or all of these services in your monthly condo fees.
Your heating costs will depend on a number of factors including what temperature you set it at
Condo Ownership Costs: Condo Insurance
Mortgage lenders will require that you have condo insurance in order for them to lend you money to buy your condo. If you don’t have a mortgage then you don’t need condo insurance, however it is a good idea to have it. Condo insurance.
Condo insurance can offer you five different areas of protection:
- Your personal property will be replaced
- You will be covered if you can’t stay in your condo
- You will be covered for any upgrades you made
- You will be covered for personal liability
- You will also get what is known as common elements loss assessment
Condo insurance will cover the loss of personal items
Condo Ownership Costs: Phone, Cable and Internet
Phone, cable, and Internet are additional monthly fees that you may need to pay. Sometimes you can bundle these services to get a better deal.
Phone: Many people today are foregoing the traditional landline home phones and simply using their cellphones. If you have a landline though, you will probably pay about $30 – $40 per month for local service.
Long distance calls will be charged on top of this. Average cell phone rates range anywhere from $65 to $140 per month depending on how many minutes you choose and how much data you have. The average household bill in Ontario in 2019 was $101 per month.
Cable TV: If you choose to have cable TV, then you can expect to pay $30 – $40 per month for basic service and more if you add in extra channels.
Many people choose other alternatives such as Netflix or Amazon Prime for their TV service which cost between $10 and $20 per month depending on the package chosen.
Internet: Internet services can vary greatly as well depending on the speed that you choose and the amount that you use. Average monthly amounts range between $30 and $40 per month for a basic service.
Buying a Condo? Trust the Experts at Real Condo Experts to Help
Wanting to buy a condo? We’re here to help. A condo is a great way to get into home ownership. If you are looking to buy a condo, contact the experts at Real Condo Experts.
We are a team of highly experienced real estate professionals who specialize in helping our customers buy and sell condos in Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph, Woodstock, and Stratford.
We can help you find your perfect home or investment property. Contact us today to start your search.
