[rhood]

Every house on our block (18 houses) is paying a different amenity fee. There are a few who have been here longer than us that are paying more than us.
Fees range from $163.12 to $196.22. I know it changes yearly based on the cpi, but that’s a big difference. I guess I might have expected the range to be much smaller.

[TrapX]

When a house is sold, the amenity fee is pushed up to the max as a welcome gift to the new owner.

[jrref]

Originally Posted by TrapX

When a house is sold, the amenity fee is pushed up to the max as a welcome gift to the new owner.

Not really true.

Each year on the anniversary of when the house was originally closed after being built you will see the increase in amenity fees. It doesn't matter how long you lived in the home.

So for example if a neighbor's home closed in January and yours in March of the same year your neighbor will pay the new rate and you will get the increase in March.

[dewilson58]

Here we go.

[rustyp]

The Amenity Authority Committee is considering putting a cap back on amenity fees paid by residents north of County Road 466.

[Laker14]

Originally Posted by rustyp

The Amenity Authority Committee is considering putting a cap back on amenity fees paid by residents north of County Road 466.

How would that work? As costs go up, you either have to raise amenity fees, or reduce amenities. What is the plan?

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by Laker14

How would that work? As costs go up, you either have to raise amenity fees, or reduce amenities. What is the plan?

If costs continue to go up then eventually the cap would need to raise or something would need to be cut.

Today, there are two things (that I can think of) that make a cap possible:

1. Expenses might not be increasing at the rate of inflation. There are a lot of items in the RAD budget that may not increase at the rate of inflation. Principal and interest make up a quarter of the budget but those may not increase at all. Services (pay) make up a lot of the budget but those don't automatically increase with inflation.

2. Not everyone is at the cap. Increases for those that are not at the cap may be sufficient to cover the increase in expenses.

The accounting for the different rates and different dates of increases must be a nightmare. Perhaps this could be used as a start of a different process. Set a cap and let everyone slowly rise to that cap. Once there, calculate a budget in June/September and then set everyone's amenity fee to what is needed to fund the budget. One fee for everyone, annual increases for everyone, same increase date for everyone.

[Mrs.Guy]

Originally Posted by TrapX

When a house is sold, the amenity fee is pushed up to the max as a welcome gift to the new owner.

But the fee is NOT a surprise to the new owners if they did their homework!

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by TrapX

When a house is sold, the amenity fee is pushed up to the max as a welcome gift to the new owner.

Originally Posted by jrref

Not really true.

Each year on the anniversary of when the house was originally closed after being built you will see the increase in amenity fees. It doesn't matter how long you lived in the home.

So for example if a neighbor's home closed in January and yours in March of the same year your neighbor will pay the new rate and you will get the increase in March.

Yes, really true.

This is covered in 4.1(a) and 4.1(b) of my deed restrictions. (a) says that a new owner will be obligated to pay the prevalent rate in effect. 4.1(b) says the amenity fee for existing homeowners will increase with the CPI. Unless the prevalent rate is recalculated each year to increase by the CPI, the existing homeowner is likely to always be behind the new purchaser.

(Now if only I could find the rate for the Villages of Sumter)

[Bogie Shooter]

Why change anything, seems to have worked for a very long time?

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

Why change anything, seems to have worked for a very long time?

Worked well for who? Considering the number of threads trying to explain and justify why it costs some homeowners up to $400 more per year to use the same amenities, it seems it isn't working all that well.

Rotary phones, cash-only, paper tax returns, asbestos insulation, and the USPS all worked well for a very long time.... until there was a better idea.

[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by Bill14564

Worked well for who? Considering the number of threads trying to explain and justify why it costs some homeowners up to $400 more per year to use the same amenities, it seems it isn't working all that well.

Rotary phones, cash-only, paper tax returns, asbestos insulation, and the USPS all worked well for a very long time.... until there was a better idea.

Lot of threads trying to explain things by people who have no idea what they are talking about.
Why do newbies seem to want to change everything?
Pay your fee…..eventually everyone will catch up with you.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

Lot of threads trying to explain things by people who have no idea what they are talking about.
Why do newbies seem to want to change everything?
Pay your fee…..eventually everyone will catch up with you.

Not without a cap or a change. In fact, unless I reach a cap, everyone may continue to fall farther and farther behind me.

[Goldwingnut]

First off, NOBODY IS PAYING $400/MONTH for the Amenity Fee, it is mathematically impossible. In fact, with the current prevailing rate of $179 (since January 2022) even with a 10% CPI adjustment applied it's not possible to have a monthly amenity fee at $200 yet. Yes, you may see a one-time rate higher than this due to a billing catch-up or error, otherwise it's impossible.

The CPI adjustment does not keep up with real world cost increases that have and continue to occur. The budgets prove it year after year, hence the reason the Deferral Rate (there was never a "cap" on the amenity fee contrary to what many believe) was removed; Repair and Replacement reserves were going to start to be eroded to meet the operating budget requirements.

The R&R reserves need to continue to be adjusted to compensate for future inflation. The R&R fund for the SLAD (amenities between 466 and 44) is projected to have a balance of just over $28M at the end of this fiscal year. For reference the Paradise rec center is projected to cost approximately $20M for the replacement facilities. With more than twice the amenities between 466 and 44 than north of 466 the long-term exposure is substantially greater - eventually we're going to have to start replacing amenities and we have a lot of them, we need to protect and adequately fund the R&R funds.

The CPI is controlled/manipulated by Washington DC frequently to make their economic projections and political needs look better, they are far from accurate (party in power doesn't matter, they all do it). Resetting the amenity fee upon sale of a home is the only way we have to make up for lost ground caused by the CPI. The annual reset of the Prevailing Rate is outside of the Deed Restrictions CPI limitations and looks at real numbers, the real operating costs, and is adjusted to "balance the books" to reality. The developer is the one who sets the Prevailing Rate. In the grand scheme of things are a minor, if any, profit center for them, they just need to break even. They make their profits in selling homes, trying to milk a few extra dollars a month per home in amenity fees would be self-defeating in comparison to the ability to sell more homes with the lowest amenity fee possible.

No, the system isn't perfect, but it has been working well for the last 30+ years. Trying to change it would be next to impossible at this point; there are hundreds of different deed restrictions contracts (one for each unit) that would have to be altered and getting the thousands of residents to agree to the changes would prove impossible.

Some complain the system isn't fair, especially when they buy a new home and they are paying the max amount, what is quickly overlooked is that it becomes more "fair" for them as new residents move in after them and the complainers are no longer paying more, they're paying less than someone new here. How much are we really talking about, in my neighborhood (8 1/2 years old) where I'm one of 15 original residents remaining, I pay $173.12/month, my newest neighbor pays $179/month, if $6/month breaks my budget, I need to move. Yes, in some cases it may be a few dollars more, but the point of the matter doesn't change, it simply isn't that much.

The Deferral Rate was a 1-year deferral that was renewed and continued several times. It was not a lifetime "your amenity fee will never go up" promise as some would have you believe.

The Deferral Rate first went into effect on 1 August 2012.

The Deferral Rate is exactly that a deferral, and the resolutions that were past (attached below) by both VCCDD and SLCDD allows for restoration of deferred rate increase. When the Deferral Rate was terminated in 2019 these deferred rate increases were not imposed on the residents that benefited by the Deferral Rate (over 85% benefited), they could have been and legally can still be reimposed.

The idea of reinstating a Deferral Rate or cap is both foolish and dangerous, as many have pointed out, the cost will continue to rise and without an increase in the operating budget (amenity fee) the only other option is the degradation of the amenities we all enjoy. If crying about being on a "fixed income" doesn't work at Publix, McDonalds, or the gas station, it certainly won't work for paying for our amenity operating costs. No body like cost increases but they are a reality we must live with.

I've covered this topic many time here and also have made videos explaining all of this The Villages Information/Fees Videos - YouTube

[golfing eagles]

Thank you, Don for setting the record straight (once again).

My former business partner lives in a condo in Venice overlooking the gulf. He's on the 7th floor of 2 14 floor towers. The "amenities" consist of 1 swimming pool, 2 tennis courts, and a gym the size of my living room. For that, he pays an HOA/amenity fee of $750/month. So IMHO, all those that complain about the difference between $173 and $179 or even $190 should STOP WHINING.