From the March issue: New construction condos that offer more amenities than five-star hotels not only come with hefty price tags at closing time — increasingly, they also come with rising monthly common charges. The deluxe amenity packages that have become standard fare at new condos — things like health spas, dry-cleaning services and pet grooming — are one of the leading factors in the spike in condo fees, real estate attorneys and management companies said. Until now, condo fees have generally been modestly low compared to the maintenance charges at co-ops, which has made a good selling point. Currently, while condo charges are still lower (partly because they do not include real estate taxes), they are not the selling point they once were, especially because the luxe add-ons are coinciding with rising fuel costs, ballooning payroll fees, and increasing property insurance premiums and security expenses.
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