Monday, May 04, 2015
According to a recent review by the Community Association Institute (CAI), an estimated 66.7 million Americans live in common-interest communities, including homeowners associations, condominium communities and cooperatives. Between 1970 and 2014, the number of community associations has swelled from 10,000 to 333,600, the CAI reports.Homeowners associations account for 51 to 55 percent of the 333,600 associations, with condominiums representing 42 to 45 percent and cooperatives 3 to 4 percent. States with the most associations are Florida (47,100), California (43,300), Texas (19,400) and Illinois (18,150).
"Community associations are an increasingly vital segment of the U.S. housing market—and are increasingly desired by smart homebuyers," says CAI Chief Executive Officer Thomas M. Skiba, CAE. "Not only do they provide options, alternatives, facilities and amenities that most Americans could not otherwise enjoy, they protect property values by preserving the nature and character of the communities."
The estimated value of homes in associations is $4.95 trillion. Associations collect an estimated $70 billion in assessments from their homeowners. Assessments fund association services, such as professional management, utilities and maintenance, and a wide variety of amenities, including pools, club houses and social events. About $22 billion of assessment dollars are contributed to association reserve funds for the repair, replacement and enhancement of common property.
An estimated 30 to 40 percent of associations are self-managed, meaning they do not employ a community manager or management company.
An estimated 2.3 million Americans serve on community association boards and committees at any one time. They perform an estimated 78 million hours of service annually; the value of their volunteer time is estimated at $1.6 billion.
Source: CAI
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