HOA and Condo Fees in New Jersey: What They Cover and What to Read Before You Buy

HOA and condo fees in New Jersey pay for whatever the association is responsible for, and that changes from one community to the next. In a condominium, the fee covers the common expenses, including the association's insurance on the common elements and the building's structure and its savings for big repairs, so the only way to know what a fee buys is to read the association's own documents before you make an offer.

I'm Dennis Mark Interdonato with The Dennis Mark Group at Keller Williams Realty Ocean Living. A lot of people downsizing in Monmouth and Ocean County are trading a lawn mower and a roof bill for a monthly fee. That can be a great trade. It's a better one when you know what the fee covers, what it doesn't, and whether a big bill is coming.

What does a condo fee pay for?

Under New Jersey's Condominium Act, the association's costs of running the property are "common expenses," and the association insures all common elements and all structural portions of the property (N.J.S.A. 46:8B-14). Each owner's share is set by their percentage interest in the common elements, the amount is a lien against the unit, and an owner can't get out of it by waiving their use of the common elements or by abandoning the unit (N.J.S.A. 46:8B-17).

What that looks like on the ground depends on the community. Landscaping, snow removal, roofs, siding, a clubhouse, a pool, trash pickup, some utilities: one community's fee covers all of it, and the next covers half. The master deed and the budget tell you which.

How is an HOA different from a condo association?

In a homeowners association, you usually own your home and your lot, and the association owns and runs the shared parts. Both kinds sit under the same state law. New Jersey's Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act covers condominiums, any form of homeowners association and housing cooperatives (N.J.S.A. 45:22A-23).

That law gives owners some baseline rights. The association has to provide "a fair and efficient procedure for the resolution of disputes" as an alternative to going to court (45:22A-44), and board meetings have to be open, with listed exceptions, and minutes made available (45:22A-46). For the townhouse version of this question, see whether a townhouse is a condo.

What are reserves, and why do they matter now?

Reserves are the association's savings for big, predictable repairs: roofs, paving, siding, elevators. New Jersey tightened the rules in 2024. P.L.2023, c.214, approved January 8, 2024 (NJ Legislature), requires:

• Capital reserve studies for associations, prepared or overseen by a credentialed reserve specialist or a New Jersey licensed engineer or architect, with a proposed 30-year funding plan, at least every five years. Associations with less than $25,000 in common-area capital assets are exempt (NJ DCA FAQ).
• Structural inspections for condo and co-op buildings whose main structure is concrete, masonry, steel or a hybrid. The Department of Community Affairs says conventional lumber residential condos and co-ops are exempt, and inspection reports must be available to residents on request.

A 2025 law (P.L.2025, c.132) lets existing associations fund reserves at the study's plan or at 85 percent of it. An association funding at 85 percent has to send owners a notice in 20-point bold type naming the year and amount of any expected special assessment or loan, and a seller has to give the buyer a copy of the most recent notice before the contract is signed (N.J.S.A. 45:22A-44.3).

What's a special assessment?

It's a charge on top of the regular fee, usually for a big project the reserves don't cover. It's the bill that surprises people. A healthy reserve study and a funding plan the board is following are the best signs you won't get one soon, and that 85 percent notice tells you when the board expects one.

What should you read before you make an offer?

1. The current budget and the fee for the unit, with a list of what the fee includes.
2. The reserve study and its funding plan.
3. Any 85 percent funding notice, which the seller has to provide before the contract is signed.
4. The structural inspection report, if the building is a covered building.
5. The master insurance policy summary, so you know what your own policy has to pick up.
6. The rules on rentals, parking, exterior changes and anything else that matters to how you'll use the home.
7. Recent board minutes, where planned projects show up first.
8. Proof the seller's account is current. When a condo unit sells, the seller and the buyer are jointly and severally liable for unpaid assessments (N.J.S.A. 46:8B-21), so your attorney and title company check it.

Accounting records of a condominium association are open to inspection by unit owners at reasonable times (46:8B-14). As a buyer you work through the seller and the management office, so ask early, during attorney review at the latest.

How do the fees fit the downsizing math?

I put the fee next to what you'd stop paying: the landscaper, the snow plow, the roof you'd replace in a few years, the exterior paint. Sometimes the fee is a bargain. Sometimes it isn't. See how to run the numbers on downsizing and what changes when you move from a house to a condo.

Start with what your current home should bring on my home value page, and read the Downsizing Guide for the full plan.

What does the state oversee?

The Department of Community Affairs' Association Regulation Unit enforces owners' rights to dispute resolution, open meetings and access to financial records, plus limited election rights. It doesn't investigate or remove board members or audit associations (NJ DCA owner packet). Reading the documents before you buy is on you, and on me.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much are HOA fees in New Jersey?

They vary from one community to the next, and so does what they cover. Compare fees only after you've compared what each one includes.

Am I responsible for the seller's unpaid condo fees?

You can be. Under N.J.S.A. 46:8B-21, the seller and buyer are jointly and severally liable for unpaid assessments when a unit sells, which is why your attorney and title company confirm the account is paid at closing.

Do all New Jersey associations need a reserve study?

The Department of Community Affairs says the capital reserve study rules apply to all planned real estate development associations, except those with less than $25,000 in common-area capital assets.

Can an association charge more than the monthly fee?

Yes, through a special assessment. An association funding reserves at 85 percent of its plan has to tell owners the year and amount of any expected special assessment.

This is general information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Your attorney reviews the association documents before you're committed.

About the author

Dennis Mark Interdonato is a REALTOR® and Master CDRE® who leads The Dennis Mark Group at Keller Williams Realty Ocean Living in Point Pleasant, NJ, helping buyers and sellers throughout New Jersey make their next move, with Monmouth and Ocean County as home base. Read more about Dennis Mark.

Keep reading

• Townhouse vs condo vs single-family home in New Jersey
• Adult communities across Ocean and Monmouth County
• The Downsizing Guide and how I plan a downsizing move
• Have a question this didn't answer? Send it to Dennis Mark.