The above comments about the HOA's finances are important—the state of an HOA's reserves can affect a range of things, from your personal costs when things go wrong to overall maintenance and bank financing. All of those have a big impact on the viability and value, not to mention enjoyment, of an HOA.
I'll add just one more thing: the moment someone chooses an HOA of any type, one MUST accept there will be times that imperfection and compromise will be required. Because HOAs are, by definition, comprised of many people with many different beliefs and behaviors, they just simply cannot all align all the time. Differences over appropriate times, activities, behaviors, etc. will come up.
In addition, the norms of an HOA you acclimate to can change at any time with a board decision, neighbor swap-out, financial decision, etc.
Case in point: we were at Arcadia for four years with three neighbors that were essentially absent or silent throughout the summer. In the last three years, all have been replaced with much noisier, much more present families. We don't mind much—after all, we're there to have a good time ourselves—but there are certainly more nights now that sleeping on the porch is not as peaceful.
My parents held firm to never buying in an association their whole lives...until they bought in Arcadia. They, however, came to very much enjoy the security of people around, the access to conversation or activities at almost all times, and the friendships that developed from each.
I'll finish by saying that if I were looking for a condo, what I'd be wanting: owned above/below so I don't hear people above me, plenty of natural light with some view of something, gas fireplace for winters, easy walking to the water, docking (maybe a mooring, but I'm kinda walrusy and don't see that going well now or with age), good insulation for noise and warmth, nice community layout/common space, at least one garage, storage space (water toys, jetski, etc.), and, in a perfect world, within walking distance of restaurants, shops, convenience stores, etc. that don't suck. But even those can change, soooo...
Good luck!
Sent from my SM-G950U using
Winnipesaukee Forum mobile app