The HOA fee number is almost meaningless without context. Here's what actually matters — reserve funds, coverage scope, financial health, and the questions to ask before you buy.
Every 55+ buyer asks about HOA fees. Almost no one asks the right follow-up questions. Two communities with a $400/month HOA fee can be financially worlds apart — one fully funded with a healthy reserve, the other running on borrowed time before a $15,000 special assessment lands in your mailbox. Here's how to evaluate an HOA correctly.
Every 55+ community's HOA is different. There is no standard. Before you compare fees between communities, find out exactly what each one covers. The items that vary most:
Exterior maintenance: Some HOAs (Hershey's Mill village HOAs, Meadow Glen at Skippack, Flowers Mill) cover roof replacement, exterior painting, and structural maintenance of individual homes. Others cover only common areas and landscaping — you own your own exterior maintenance expense. A community with a $500/month fee that covers your roof is cheaper long-term than a $350/month fee where you pay for your own roof.
Lawn care: Most 55+ communities cover mowing. Some also include fertilization, mulching, and garden bed maintenance. Others mow and nothing else. Know what's included.
Snow removal: Some HOAs clear only community roads. Others clear individual driveways to the door. A meaningful difference in winter months.
Water and sewer: Some condo HOAs include water and sewer in the fee. Others don't. Add those utilities when comparing condo vs single-family monthly costs.
Hershey's Mill has two HOA fees: a master community fee (gates, security, golf grounds, pools, tennis, community center) and a village fee (exterior maintenance of homes in your specific village). Some village fees at Hershey's Mill match or exceed the master fee. When Hershey's Mill residents say their HOA is $X, they often mean only the master fee — not the combined total. Always ask for both numbers and add them together. This two-tier structure is also how the exterior maintenance of individual homes gets funded — the village pools contributions and pays for roof replacements, exterior paint, and structural work without hitting individual owners with lump-sum bills.
The reserve fund is money the HOA has saved for future capital expenses — roof replacements, pool resurfacing, parking lot repaving, elevator maintenance (for condos), HVAC system replacements. Every community with shared infrastructure has capital expenses coming. The question is whether the money exists to pay for them.
A reserve study (commissioned by the HOA, typically every 3–5 years) projects what capital expenses are expected over the next 20–30 years and what the reserve fund should contain today to meet them. Request the most recent reserve study from any community you are seriously considering. Look at two numbers: the percent funded (what the reserve has vs what it should have) and the fully funded balance (what it should have if fully funded). A community that is 30% funded against what it needs is in trouble. A community at 90%+ funded is well-managed.
When an HOA needs capital repairs and doesn't have adequate reserves, it issues a special assessment — a one-time charge to all homeowners. Special assessments at 55+ communities can run $5,000–$25,000 per homeowner and arrive with limited notice. They cannot be refused if the HOA has proper authority. In Pennsylvania, HOA rules must allow for special assessments for capital repairs. Before buying any resale unit in an older 55+ community, request the reserve fund study and ask: “Has this community issued any special assessments in the last 10 years? Are any projected?” A seller must disclose known upcoming assessments in Pennsylvania.
In Pennsylvania, sellers must provide HOA documents (the resale certificate) including financial statements within 10 days of request. You have 5 days after receipt to review and withdraw from the contract if you find the HOA financially problematic. Use this window — it's the most important due diligence period in any 55+ purchase.
When comparing two communities: list what each HOA covers, add the value of what the higher-fee HOA covers that you'd pay out of pocket in the lower-fee community, then compare total monthly costs. A $500/month HOA that covers exterior maintenance (replacing your roof, painting your exterior, fixing your gutters) may cost less over 20 years than a $300/month HOA where you pay those costs yourself. Run the 20-year math, not the monthly number in isolation.
Our specialists can walk you through any community's HOA documents and reserve fund study before you commit. Free consultation.
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