Why Am I Paying Higher Dues in My HOA?

Hi Rose,

Homeowners associations may use different calculation methods to compute HOA dues. Some may charge the same fee for all residents while others may base the HOA dues on the property’s square footage or the value of each unit. Kindly check your HOA governing documents to verify how your HOA calculates its monthly dues.

In addition, HOA dues are computed based on the community’s budget. HOAs are required to conduct a meeting to have the budget approved by a majority of the attending members according to the Indiana Homeowners Association Act section § 32-25.5-3-3(d), as shown below:

“(d) Subject to subsection (f), a homeowners association budget must be approved at a meeting of the homeowners association members by a majority of the members of the homeowners association in attendance at a meeting called and conducted in accordance with the requirements of the homeowners association’s governing documents.”

You may raise your concerns during this meeting. Attendance may also help you understand how the fees are calculated and where the money goes. It may also inform you of any increase in HOA dues.

Furthermore, some residents may have access to limited or exclusive common elements. These common elements are either only open to some residents or only open to one. If you have access to these elements, it may explain why your HOA dues are higher. Again, kindly check your governing documents to verify how this may impact your HOA dues. Here is a helpful resource to understand what HOA common areas are and who is responsible for maintaining them: https://www.hoamanagement.com/what-are-the-hoa-common-areas

Finally, we recommend approaching your HOA board to ask how they compute the monthly dues. You can also ask them for the HOA’s financial records to review how the HOA spends your contributions.