A Beginner’s Guide to Co-op and Condo Monthly Fees

NYC rental apartments range from luxury townhouses to cozy studios, and everything in between. Co-op rentals and condominiums represent another NYC housing option. Many times, condos and co-op apartments in the city are mistaken for being the most expensive rental options. However, there are plenty of options available for a range of budgets and situations. Here we will explain the calculation of the co-op and condo monthly fees that you have to pay for these two types of NYC rental apartments.

In addition to these co-op and condo monthly fees, it’s important to factor additional charges into your budget. These include calculating moving costs and other expenses. This will truly help you in choosing the best rental options according to your budget and requirements.

Condo (Condominium) Apartments

The housing authorities classify condos in NYC as real property protected by all real property laws. They normally sell for a higher price because you own property without much risk, versus renting another person’s property. Therefore, they are an appealing option for the person who’s willing to pay a bit more for assurance and peace of mind.

With condos, you have to pay monthly common charges. You can calculate these by multiplying the percentage of common interest of each unit owner and the total operating costs of the building.

Many people describe the percentage of common interest as the total amount of space that an apartment’s owner holds. The total operating costs of the building consist of things like heat, electricity, and hot water in the building’s common areas.

The condo apartment owner will have to subtract the cost of these elements from the total building cost to figure out their part. For example, if:

• Building cost = $10,100/month
• Laundry room cost = $100/month
• Individual’s percentage of the common interest = 10%

Then, you will pay $1000/month as common charges {($10,100-$100) x 0.10 = $1,000}

Co-Op (Cooperative) Rentals

Co-op apartments in NYC are not considered real property. Therefore, they are not usually protected by traditional property laws. Generally, when you buy a co-op apartment, you are purchasing shares of stock in a corporation. This gives you the right to own and live in a unit of the building.

When you rent a co-op in NYC, you have to pay maintenance charges. You calculate these in the same way as the common charges of condominium apartments. However, instead of the percentage of the common interest, you use the shares of the building.

Most consider a co-op building a corporation with a total number of shares. The members of a co-op allocate a particular number of shares to each apartment unit. They base that allocation mainly on the family size of each unit. However, it also involves some other factors like location and desirability of views.

So, NYC co-op members calculate maintenance charges by dividing the total operating costs into the total number of shares in the building. Then, that’s multiplied by the number of shares allocated to an apartment unit.

The co-op operating costs include property taxes, unlike condo apartments. When buying a condominium, people usually pay tax fees separately from the common charges. You should also keep in mind that both common and maintenance charges are non-negotiable.

Selecting the NYC Rental Right for You

Whether you’re searching for a condominium or a co-op, Short Term Rentals NYC has the widest inventory of listings. We’ll assist you in the entire process of searching for an NYC apartment and signing your lease. From the initial search to calculating monthly costs for each so that you can find the right rental for your budget, STRNYC is here to help.