Monthly maintenance fees have been a hot topic the last two years due to some volatility and considerable increases. Between the end of 2019 and 2021, the fees in the selected buildings increased 8% – 58%, with the average increase being 24%.

In general, increases have been driven by:

• Building insurance – the cost to insure many stratas increased.
• Short-term maintenance – some buildings undertook building improvements in an attempt to avoid insurance claims.
• Long-term maintenance – I believe the combination of depreciation reports (read more about these 30 year plans) and higher insurance costs led some stratas to take a more robust view of their future maintenance and better financially prepare for it.
• Inflation – the cost of goods and services has risen.

Each building is fairly unique as defined by its level of luxury, type of construction, age, amenities, and owner goals (read more). Knowing the monthly maintenance fee helps you understand how a particular building finances maintenance and repairs in relation to comparable buildings. Read about how strata corporations finance building operations and maintenance (link). For instance, a low monthly fee may mean there’s greater potential for special levies. Further details are noted in the previous review (read it here).

This year, I also graphed the cumulative total as seen below. Current pre-sales and buildings that opened since 2019 are shown as full dark blue lines. Two things pop out at me: 1) the largest increases were in luxury and ultra-luxury buildings, and 2) new luxury buildings opened at around $0.60/sqft whereas current luxury pre-sales are around $0.90/sqft or higher.

If your building isn’t listed, you can calculate your own $/sqft. To do so, divide your monthly maintenance fee by the size of your interior living space (excluding outdoor spaces, lockers, parking stalls). It’ll likely be listed as m2 on your strata plan so multiple by 10.764 to yield ft2. Reach out if you’d like help with the calculation and comparison.

Note: I used the listings in each building nearest the end of each year. If a building has an Annual General Meeting very late in the year, it may not include any increase approved at that meeting.

I hope this helps you better understand your building and how it compares to others. I welcome your questions and comments.

Best,

Jason Hutchison
604.314.7138    [email protected]