The Foundation for Community Association Research has released a new interactive webpage for residents, housing stakeholders, and researchers to examine and compare community association governance, management, amenities, and overall satisfaction across the U.S. The first-of-its-kind dashboard showcases housing data and exclusive information from 2016 through 2022 from the Homeowner Satisfaction Survey, a biennial, nationwide survey conducted by the Foundation for Community Associations Institute (CAI) and administered by independent researcher Zogby Analytics.
The Homeowner Satisfaction Survey provides a better understanding of how 74 million Americans describe their experience living in the 358,000 community associations, commonly referred to as condominiums, homeowners associations, and housing cooperatives, in the U.S.
“The interactive dashboard allows homeowners and housing stakeholders to view and compare community association data by region, year, and topic, including neighbor engagement, cost of assessments, rules, community management, and overall satisfaction," says Dawn M. Bauman, CAE, executive director of the Foundation for Community Association Research and CAI's senior vice president for government and public affairs. “For more than 15 years, this report, sourced by lawmakers, legal professionals, homebuilders, developers, and other community association stakeholders, has been incredibly valuable examining the trends and providing clear evidence in support of the country's fastest growing housing model. We're proud to bring the new technology to the community association housing market."
Maintenance-free, safety, and cleanliness are top features that make common interest communities—from city-sized, master-planned communities and multibuilding condominium complexes to urban cooperatives and small homeowners associations built into tracks of open suburban spaces—a popular choice and lifestyle for millions of Americans. According to results from the 2022 Homeowner Satisfaction Survey, the overwhelming majority (89%) of homeowners and condominium association residents rate their overall experience of living in a community association as “very good" or “good" (67%), or neutral (22%).
At a time when community matters most, the majority (87%) say they knew their home was part of a community association, and nearly half (45%) say the association made them more interested in the home. Eighty-seven percent of respondents believe that their governing board “absolutely" or “for the most part" serves the best interest of the community. More than half of residents (68%) believe that rules in their communities protect and enhance property values.
Additionally, the report shows that 87% of residents are on friendly terms with their governing boards. Nearly three-quarters (74%) say their community managers provide value and support to residents and their associations. Half of respondents (51%) feel that they are paying “just the right amount" or “too little" in assessments.
View more data from the 2022 Homeowner Satisfaction Survey dashboard.