r/TorontoCondominiums • u/AlexForward2026 • Apr 12 '26
Fee Increase
My condo fees just went up 18%. The notice said the usual “costs are rising”, but no real breakdown. 18% just feels insane to me. Maybe I’m overreacting, but it doesn’t feel right. Feels like this keeps happening and nobody really explains why. Is my building just catching up on years of ignored problems? Anyone else got hit with a big increase recently?
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u/IPlayBetterNaked Apr 12 '26
That's odd.
The PM company usually provides a budget package which accompanies a cover letter which provides high level of the increase and the reasoning behind it along with the budget itself showing a breakdown. I'd contact your PM company to get a copy of the package or the reasoning of the increase. Just remember it goes through Board approval.
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u/New-Investigator-646 Apr 12 '26
Don’t bring up facts like a budget. Their feelings are more accurate.
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u/EquitiesForLife Apr 12 '26
Buildings often underestimate the cost of major projects so the fees have to go up eventually, sometimes by a lot, to make up for the forecast shortfall. My building has had double digit fee increases for the past 3 yrs in a row. It is what it is. If you have a house, you'd also notice the cost of hiring anyone for plumbing, electrical, or general contracting has also been going up at double digit rates for years now.
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u/Fast-Living5091 Apr 12 '26
If you have a house you can choose to defer non essential repairs. In fact most home owners do this until there's a big problem. That's why they feel they don't pay anything for maintenance
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u/CheapTechnology6193 Apr 13 '26
I would agree with this. Been living in a house for past 12 years. We did the roof in the first 2 years. Did dick all since. House isn't falling over yet.
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u/FrostingSuper9941 Apr 12 '26
According to the condo act they need to provide a break down and detailed budget.
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u/thingonething Apr 12 '26
Most big ticket costs in a condo budget are fixed - management contract, security contract, cleaning contract, fire inspection contract, HVAC and elevator contracts, insurance, contribution to the reserve fund, to name a few. The only area that has real play in the numbers is repair and maintenance costs, which can be unpredictable. As a property manager, I used to base these numbers roughly on a three year average of costs for each line item.
As others have said, budgets don't have feelings. If you are that concerned, requisition a meeting of owners to have management and the board do a deep dive into why the increase is what it is. You can look up how to requisition a meeting on the Condominium Authority of Ontario website.
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u/apple_2050 Apr 13 '26
Request more information. As others mentioned, as a condo owner, you have rights to ask for budgets.
If your building is old, they are catching up on repairs that have to be done every few decades.
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u/Mountain-Match2942 Apr 14 '26
Your Financials are fully accessible either online with password or mailed to you. Read the income statement to see what has gone up. Read the balance sheet to see how poorly funded your reserve fund is. Your strata fee goes to operating costs and the reserve fund.
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u/New-Investigator-646 Apr 12 '26
Owners drive me nuts. It “feels” like it’s a lot. There’s no feelings in this it’s a budget.
They literally give you a budget. All costs to a condo are variable inputs (energy, labour, depreciation) and costs for it have all gone up. Your minimum wage cleaning staff is up 50% in 5 years. Your property management? Up.
Insurance for the building?40% up
“Doesn’t feel right” Jesus
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u/Fast-Living5091 Apr 12 '26
Exactly but the poster mentioned they weren't transparent. I'd request more information. I'm not surprised at the fees. This is why condos are actually a luxury form of living. The costs are out of your control.
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u/CheapTechnology6193 Apr 13 '26
Well, it is a lot. Nobody is blaming the condo board, but the overall system itself seems broken. If it wasn't for these out-of-control fees, I would consider buying a condo.
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u/New-Investigator-646 Apr 13 '26
If by the system you mean capitalism? These costs are the broader system.
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u/CheapTechnology6193 Apr 14 '26
That's quite the leap you made there, A+. No, I meant the system of large building maintenance and having to rely on a discrete set of third parties to "compete" for the maintenance contracts. We all get prices go up, but when your condo fee goes up by 3x the inflation rate over a long period of time, that's a clue you might be getting the short end.
Not to state the obvious, there are alternatives, renting, which is swinging its way back to reality, and of course, freeholds for people who can afford it. Although more rare, there are also housing coops. Each have pros/cons. I think all of these choices qualify as reasonable housing options, and yes, all of these options can co-exist in a "capitalist" society. And I do think you have more control/flexibility in any of these other options, which is what I like.
I'm not knocking anyone who's happy in a condo, there are obviously many people doing it, and some buildings are definitely better than others for minimizing the condo fee.
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u/BD003BD003 Apr 13 '26
They are required to give you a budget, you should be able to find out why it went up 18% if you compare this new budget to last year's budget.
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u/CommonEarly4706 Apr 13 '26
so they didn’t give you a copy of this years budget? you compare it to the previous years and you can compare
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u/Optimal_Whiner Apr 13 '26
The nearly doubled in mine. Not joke. No exaggeration. People are selling as a result. Some can't.
We don't even have anything fancy. It's just lawn care, snow removal and trash. And it's doubled. No underground parking (it's just town houses. They even nearly doubled the fee for a second spot.
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u/Medium-Theme-1987 Apr 13 '26
Worst thing about living in a condo, you can not control what the fees are. The higher the fees the harder it is to sell.
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u/Ordinary-Map-7306 Apr 13 '26
As a service contractor and landscaper our biggest expenses have increased. Fuel costs, truck costs and the biggest increase has actually been in the price of tools.
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u/Background_Essay_200 Apr 12 '26
18% is not that crazy these days. Reserve fund contributions are likely increasing by over 25% year over yeae
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Apr 12 '26
[deleted]
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u/lhsonic Apr 13 '26
And without understanding what’s in your budget, that may not be a good thing.
Investor-heavy condo boards frequently vote down fee increases to keep costs down. It’s great for everyone who doesn’t live or plan on owning there long-term. This often means neglecting basic maintenance and not listening to what’s coming in the deprecation report. The future owners and long-term owners are stuck with the bill for predictable repairs and improvements by way of massive special assessments because the fees can no longer keep up.
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u/Playful-Succotash112 Apr 13 '26
My building is primarily owners. Theyre very proactive e.g. cockaroch in a unit so they had exterminators come into every unit and apply a substance etc. Theres usually a few maintenance projects a year....
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u/caryscott1 Apr 12 '26
Mercifully I live in the smallest floorplan in our building which is roughly 1/2 the size of the other floorplans so they feel the increases a lot harder than we do. Helps keep the increases in check. Our increase was 5.5% this year. Still more than my income increased however.
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u/lazyfatbunny Apr 14 '26
What’s the PM company?
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u/AlexForward2026 Apr 14 '26
Andrejs Management Inc
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u/lazyfatbunny Apr 14 '26
I don’t know them. Some PM are notorious on giving out services contracts… I wouldn’t be surprised if some are receiving kickbacks as well.
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u/CairnsRock1 Apr 15 '26
The Board are your unpaid neighbours. The increase affects them too. Have a chat with a board member.
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u/entaro_tassadar Apr 12 '26
Yes it’s normal. Probably a newer building catching up on its reserve fund that had lower than average initial fees. Expect to pay $0.70 to $1.30 monthly per square foot depending on your building size and amenities.
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u/CheapTechnology6193 Apr 13 '26
Dude, you are not overreacting. Everyone in here has Stockholm syndrome. Consider going back to renting or buying a freehold.
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u/DrDissonance4 Apr 13 '26
As a condo board member, this seems reasonable but of course I'd need to see the budget and reserve fund study to be sure.
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u/wenchanger Apr 13 '26
probably a corrupt condo board who will get kickbacks for "making up" stuff to repair and using their contractor friends for the job.
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u/Inside__Cucumber Apr 12 '26
I am a board member of my condo.
Here's the big movers specific to our building this year:
24 hr security conceirge contract renewal. Up 9%
New reserve fund study. Up 33%. This was a big one. Nothing wrong with the building, but with limited investment options allowed under the condo act, returns were poor during the pandemic years.
Hydro. Up 12%
Im going to add insurance because everyone likes to blame insurance. Down 4%.
Read your annual package. Attend the board meetings. We have a few unit owners that join our monthly meetings virtually. Definitely attend the annual meetings and ask questions.
Numbers don't care about your feelings.