You’ve got the perfect couple looking into buying a condo in your building. And they  love everything about the unit.  

 But here’s the catch—they also love everything about another building’s unit. They can’t decide which to buy.  

 Then they notice the gym in your building. It has everything they pay for at  their private gym, which means they could save $150 every month by canceling  their gym membership. And even though the unit has all the bells and whistles  and the perfect location, it’s that gym that pushed them over the edge and made them take the plunge.  

 Amenities, Amenities, Amenities

 Amenities are one of the key factors that draw buyers to one building or HOA  over another—if two units are otherwise identical in every regard, the one in the association  with the immaculate, Olympic-sized swimming pool, the screening room, or the  roof-deck with spectacular ocean views will be the one that ultimately attracts  the buyer.  

 In Florida, nearly everyone is looking for a pool, says John Markey, managing  member of JKM Developers, LLC in Boca Raton.  

 But if they’re living in a condo, they don’t want just any little pool.  

 “Resort-style pools are the hands-down favorite,” Markey says. “A well-equipped workout area or gym and lush landscaped surroundings round out  these favorites.”  

 Other high-end buildings are trying to up the ante by offering rare amenities,  such as wine cellars, outdoor movie theaters, educational speakers and even  refrigerators in the lobby so residents don’t have to run home when their groceries are delivered.  

 At a new luxury condo building, The Vue at Lake Eola in Orlando, the developers  wanted to create a sense of community.  

 So before putting in amenities, they spoke with the residents and decided as a  group which ones the building should add.  

 That led to a pool, tennis court, basketball court, media room, yoga room,  professional gym complete with CrossFit equipment, climbing ropes, a business  center and a full-time concierge. There’s even a dog walk in the building so you never have to leave if you don’t want to. You just have to take the elevator up to the amenity deck for a quick  early morning or late night walk. Formal dress isn’t necessary—for the building’s dog walk area, owners can feel free to show up in their bathrobes.  

 And their club house contains various dining areas, large screens TVs, a pool  table, catering kitchen, and 90-degree glass windows that offer views of the  city and the lake.  

 Their most popular amenity is the concierge, who arranges everything from the  rental of helicopters to arranging car detailing and educational seminars.  

 On the drawing board right now are an urban garden, bocce ball and green space  located inside the building, seven stories above the city.  

 They even have virtual amenities, including their own online community that’s similar to Craigslist, with a Facebook section and a virtual pet park.  Security is another perk rarely seen in other buildings. At The Vue, they use  biometric fingerprint scans.  

 “This is a vertical community,” says Lisa Mason, director of operations for Condo Developer, LLC, who manages  The Vue at Lake Eola, which boasts a 35-story, 384 unit building starting at  $430,000.  

 Community Building

 “We wanted to create a sense of community, and part of that is your lifestyle.  The better your life can be, the better your home is going to be. We try to  bring high quality inside.”  

 The sense of community is so huge, that Mason estimates that about half of the  unit owners are single—and they hang out with each other inside the building rather than going out to  bars and other expensive destinations.  

 While residents at The Vue are bombarding their building with every amenity  possible, there are some perks that may not be as popular today as they used to  be.  

 Business or computer centers have basically disappeared because most people have  their own personal computers and business equipment at home, Markey says. Those  business centers are being transformed into rooms with large tables that  residents who work at home could use when they meet with clients or need more  privacy. Nearly all new buildings are wired for WiFi, which is another perk for  those who spend the majority of their day at home.  

 Spa pools aren’t as big due to liability and questionable value. And since space is money,  racquetball and tennis courts aren’t as common as they were a decade ago. To save money, some buildings are even  foregoing manned entry gates, he says.  

 “The financial crisis which continues unabated is forcing communities to abandon  24-hour security guards, and, in some cases, guards at the entrances to gated  communities,” says Gary Poliakoff, founding partner with Becker & Poliakoff in Fort Lauderdale, adjunct professor of law at Nova Southeastern  University and co-author of New Neighborhoods: The Consumer’s Guide to Condominium, Co-op and HOA Living. “Landscaping projects are deferred, and some associations are rolling the dice  and not buying required flood insurance and full casualty and liability  insurance. Capital projects are also being deferred, and I do not see this  trend abating.”  

 Since money is tighter these days—and since many residents will think twice before paying the fees that go along  with amenities, it’s important for condo owners and developers to think long and hard before  putting new perks into their buildings. It’s also important for everyone in the building to agree on which amenities to  add.  

 That’s why at The Vue, the managers meet with the residents to make lists of what  they’d like before any final decisions are made.  

 The key is to strike the right balance between an affordable association fee for  the demographic buyer pool, Markey says. If your amenities are too high, they’ll knock out buyers who may have been interested in the building. But if there  aren’t enough perks in the building, you may lose some buyers who are looking for a  pool or a nice gym.  

 There are also some amenities that buildings are adding that don’t cost too much—and may even make money.  

 Online communities, such as the one The Vue installed, adds a sense of  community. And it’s only cost is the website maintenance.  

 The Vue hasn’t added a pet park yet, but Mason says if they have it, the building may charge  a fee for pet owners to use it. Or, she says, you could add a community garden  to the rooftop, and you could rent out the plots.  

 “That will pay for the initial build-out,” she says.  

 You could add storage cages, and either sell the cages to the unit owners or  rent them for $75-100 per month, depending on the size.  

 If you add a community room, you could charge a fee for event rentals, Mason  says.  

 Simply upgrading the lobby entrance or the outdoor landscaped areas will  beautify the building and put it on another level, but won’t incur too many additional costs, Markey says.  

 A business center can also be very inexpensive if it’s done correctly, Mason says.  

 “We had an extra room when we combined two offices, and we made it into a  business center,” Mason says. “I asked for equipment that people wanted to donate, and I think the only thing I  had to purchase was ink for the printer. Everything else was stuff here that we  re-purposed and used. It gets used constantly.”  

 Usage is key. If the building can track usage via something as basic as a  sign-in sheet, you’ll know if the amenity is worth keeping. Some amenities—such as a pool or even a landscaped patio—take constant maintenance. So if they’re not being used, it’s better to get rid of them instead of continuing to throw away money trying to  maintain them.  

 It’s even better to monitor usage of an amenity prior to installing it in your  building, Markey says. Contact other buildings and ask if you could spend an  afternoon in their business center to see who visits the room. If the majority  of the people using the business center are older adults—but you’re trying to market your building toward younger people, it’s probably not a great amenity for your building.  

 If you’ve already put the amenity into your building, only to realize that it’s not being used by many residents, you may want to consider getting rid of the  perk. But before you do that, you’ll have to see what’s been written into your specific declaration and bylaws, Markey says.  

 Follow the Bylaws

 You can’t get rid of the doorman—even if many residents don’t want him anymore—if you’ve promised 24-hour doorman security in your declaration or bylaws.  

 First, you’d have to have the building’s board vote to change the laws. Then, if and only if that passes, you can get  rid of the doorman or any other amenities in question.  

 Failing to take all necessary measures to legally change the rules to get rid of  amenities can land you in court, Poliakoff says.  

 But it probably won’t get that far.

 “The consequences of amenities being eliminated is unit owner complaints, but few  are willing to to into court because if you prevail, it means your maintenance  goes up—and few are prepared for that.”   

 Danielle Braff is a freelance writer and a frequent contributor to The South  Florida Cooperator.