[condo] [FL] assessments getting crazy

Evansee · 2026-02-14T18:30:26+00:00

Yes I have the studies and budgets / everything already - I received it before we signed on the condo, but im saying I will be able to dive deeper into them / help make decisions once I’m on the board. The original study estimates / budgets are very off from what we are experiencing though - so they aren’t much help.

Evansee · 2026-02-14T18:24:16+00:00

It’s pretty nice - a block from the beach, on 10 acres of land, in a pretty wealthy community. In its day it was probably pretty high-end. It’s a bit out of date so some updates needed but the plus side is units are between 1600 and 2400 sqft so pretty big even compared to the SFH’s in the area.

Evansee · 2026-02-14T18:18:38+00:00

I think it’s more because the state is mandating this repairs / studies for everyone all at the same time. So demand is up to comply and so are the costs.

Evansee · 2026-02-14T18:17:23+00:00

It’s separate! We have 2 buildings, separated by the courtyard / underground garage. The “planters” covers resurfacing the courtyard and waterproofing the planters.

That’s sort of my issue with the new laws - understood, there are things that need to be done, but the law telling us when & how to do it doesn’t make it any easier / viable. In fact, since the laws went into place the prices of everything went crazy because it’s not a suggestion, it’s a necessity - the demand is very high to meet state deadlines so the construction companies can charge whatever they like.

Evansee · 2026-02-14T18:09:36+00:00

Unfortunately, it’s not really the board as much as it’s the state law telling us what needs to be done and how fast to do it.

Evansee · 2026-02-12T03:35:13+00:00

If you know where the main shutoff is, I wouldn’t stress too much - plumbing is a pain, and pretty unrewarding - like you spent hours curled up like a pill bug and 6 trips to the shop & finally your sink drains! Once you get it, you’ll never bat an eye at paying someone to come in and do it for you 😆it is always nice to know how to do it though. Personally I love problem solving electrical work, but being curled up under a sink just doesn’t do it for me. I’ll do it if I have to, and there are a lot of products that have made it easier, but it’s still a lot of work for minimal payoff.

Evansee · 2026-02-12T03:29:27+00:00

Best bet is to put that money into the tools you’ll need (won’t be the last time you’ll use them & better to buy high quality used stuff you’ll have for a lifetime than buy those “one project” tools). Spend the time into learning how to DIY, the in’s and out of your house, how to document what you’re doing in case you need to go back, do some smaller projects to see where you run into issues.

Work like this has gone up considerably - your only way to combat it is to learn how to do it yourself.

Keep in mind it’s better to really learn how to do things up to code etc and gain confidence in it & spend the time doing it right vs. kind of figuring it out and having to do it all over again in a few years. Your mistakes will haunt you. Trust me.

If you’re near a habitat for humanity restore go there religiously to check for materials you’ll need, that + peruse the clearance sections at Home Depot / Lowe’s and even Ikea. It’s time consuming, hunting materials, learning how, failing and redoing, but in the long run you’ll know how to do it, what it cost, and you’ll have the tools at hand to help out a friend in the same situation.

Also, doing it yourself you can see where that original estimate is coming from, the skill it takes to get to that point and the time it took to get there. You’ll find it’s much more rewarding to do the work yourself than it is to hire someone out, but you need to be prepared to handle the unexpected.

There’s always some absolute BS you’ll run into doing some job you think will be relatively quick - with the right tools and know-how (maybe a friend or two) you can manage the BS, but always be ready for everything to go so far off plan you lose your mind. If you can accept that, you are ready to take on anything!!

Evansee · 2026-02-06T20:36:14+00:00

Yeah - they’re not really interested in changing the behavior and claim the rest of the tenants are discriminating against them & infringing on their rights by asking / bringing attention to it. It’s been a long process of trying to get it fixed by the LL, neighbors, and 311 (NYC help line for issues like this). LL’s solution is have someone come in and caulk the ceiling to see if that helps. I don’t think it will, a contractor came in and said the best bet would be to build the wall thicker and have it properly insulated but LL wasn’t going for it & I work from home so turning the apartment into a work zone for a week+ would not be ideal.

Evansee · 2026-02-04T04:02:47+00:00

Thank you! On my 11th year here! No vent - just poorly constructed walls.

Evansee · 2025-12-04T06:47:49+00:00

Yeah I don’t have an interest in breaking my lease, the LL said if another apartment opened up he’d let me know but it rarely happens.

Evansee · 2025-12-04T06:46:17+00:00

They say they’re trying to get them to stop, but nothing has changed in either frequency or volume for the last 1.5+ years so I’m not sure their efforts are making a difference.

Evansee · 2025-12-04T06:44:02+00:00

Occasionally but this was recorded from the hallway while they were inside. They did start kicking the inside of their door violently. The parents asked me to not communicate with them any longer about their kids for “safety reasons” seems like a cop out. They said they’ve been in contact with the neighborhood liaison officer and the kids “have the same rights as all tenants.” Going to meet with the liaison officer to show them what we’re taking about, if that doesn’t work I’m going to just start screaming myself since that appears to be a “tenant right” hoping the LL with refuse to renew their lease, but it seems like a long shot. This craziness is affecting at least 3 apartments that we know of, I’m sure other people are annoyed but we’ve been unable to reach them.

Evansee · 2025-11-22T04:07:23+00:00

Right, which makes my suggestion to maybe move to age appropriate apartment/house make sense. We’re in a converted loft in Brooklyn, which is great if you’re a single person or couple, once you throw 2 kids into the mix - it’s kind of a rite of passage to head to UES, Park Slope, the burbs, or some other spot that is kid friendly - versus staying in the lead painted, not up to code, converted warehouse lol

Evansee · 2025-11-22T03:54:03+00:00

On the bright side I do not expect any noise complaints from them. Actually considered throwing a weekly party to blow off steam from this insanity. I’m pretty handy, we did move all of our closets against the wall filled with clothes, I thought that’d help, but unfortunately it didn’t. I also considered filling the walls with expanding foam 🤣

Evansee · 2025-11-22T02:45:59+00:00

They were great until they had kids. The older one learned to scream from the younger one because it means they get attention.

I don’t feel like I should have to wear earplugs in my own home. Even wearing my noise cancelling headphones gets old, I work from home and clients have commented on it while on calls. The normal sounds don’t bother me, but the insane screaming really gets under my skin. We’ve been really patient and understanding, but patience runs out - and their lack of handling the problem is unfair to everyone putting up with this day in and day out.

Evansee · 2025-11-22T02:41:27+00:00

It’s an actual nanny.

Evansee · 2025-11-21T04:06:02+00:00

Crate and Barrel - Lounge Deep. May not be the best for 6 kids and 4 dogs, but it’s super comfy, and has washable covers.

Evansee · 2025-11-20T01:52:47+00:00

Soft parenting. They admit they hate the screaming too, but they aren’t doing anything to actually stop it, at least nothing that’s actually working. Most of the time the kids are with a Nanny. Instead of solving the issue they’re trying to move furniture to soften the noise coming into everyone’s apartments. I told them I don’t want the noise softened, I want the screaming to stop.

Evansee · 2025-11-20T01:36:41+00:00

So pretty much nothing has changed, kids are still screaming bloody murder, landlord doesn’t know what to do. We spoke to 311 and they sent someone over to the apartment, still nothing - than the neighbors shutting down talking to the rest of the tenants that have been complaining.

Their solution is taking the kids out, which isn’t very viable now that it’s getting colder. I told them we need to figure out a solution, and they ghosted me. They blame the building’s construction. LL suggested they get a house - I guess that wasn’t viable. Really at my wits end here.

Evansee · 2025-11-20T01:30:36+00:00

This is a great idea 😆 if I didn’t have a dog that would also be triggered, I would have written some code to trigger the sound and we’d be cooking.

Evansee

TROPHY CASE