PITI is principal, interest, taxes, and insurance. On a condo there's a fifth piece, and in Chicago it's often the second biggest line after principal and interest. Listings call it the assessment. The calculator calls it Monthly HOA. Same number. The mistake most people make is running the loan without it, then adding it in their head later. Run it with the dues in from the start.
Why the dues line is different from the other lines
Every other line in the payment is an estimate until closing. The rate can move until you lock. The tax bill can be reassessed. The insurance quote can change when you pick a deductible. The assessment is the one line you can get exactly right today. The association sets it, the listing shows it, and it moves the Total Monthly Payment dollar for dollar.
What Chicago assessments tend to include
Ask what the assessment covers before you judge whether it's high. In a lot of Chicago buildings it includes some things you'd pay separately in a house:
- Heat and water. Common in vintage buildings with a central boiler. If the assessment covers heat, part of that line replaces a utility bill you already pay.
- The master insurance policy. The building's coverage is inside the assessment. That's why your own condo policy, the walls-in kind, usually costs less than a single-family policy.
- Reserves. A portion goes to the building's savings for the roof, the elevator, the tuckpointing. Thin reserves don't lower your payment; they raise the odds of a special assessment later.
- Staff and amenities. Doorman, pool, gym, on-site management. These are why a high-rise assessment can run several times what a walk-up charges.
None of that changes the number you type. It changes how you read it.
Run it in the tool
Open Purchase calculator /mortgage-calculator/?mode=purchase. The screen has Loan Type, Home Price, Down Payment, Credit Score, Loan Term, Target Closing Date, Starting rate assumption, Monthly HOA, Annual Property Tax, and Annual Insurance.
- Monthly HOA. Type the assessment from the listing. If the building has a special assessment being paid monthly, add it here too. If there's a deeded parking space with its own monthly fee, add that as well.
- Annual Property Tax. Type the annual bill for the unit. Chicago condos are taxed per unit, and a deeded parking space can carry its own tax bill on a separate parcel number. Add both. Assume the tax line rises after Cook County reassessment; new owners often see the bill go up.
- Annual Insurance. Type a quote for a condo policy, not a single-family policy. The building's master policy is already in the assessment. Don't pay for the roof twice in your estimate.
- Home Price and Down Payment. Type the price you'd offer and the down payment you'd actually make. If it's under twenty percent, a PMI line may appear in the breakdown. That's real too.
- Loan Type, Credit Score, Loan Term, Target Closing Date. Fill these so the payment timing matches your deal.
- Starting rate assumption. Use a rate from a quote you already have. Nothing here is a BankPricer rate.
Now read the Total Monthly Payment breakdown on the same screen: principal and interest, property tax, homeowners insurance, PMI if it shows, and HOA. That total is the real PITI on this condo. The tool stacks the dues for you. Your loan servicer won't. Assessments go to the association, not into your escrow, so the bill from your servicer will always look smaller than this number. Remember which one you budgeted against.
Run it twice
Two quick re-runs are worth the minute:
- Bump the dues. Associations set a new budget every year, and assessments in Chicago rarely go down. Re-run with the Monthly HOA field a bit higher and see if the total still works.
- Swap the unit. If you're between two condos, type each one's assessment and tax bill with everything else held the same. The gap in Total Monthly Payment is the true price difference between them, and it isn't always the one the list prices suggest.
If you want a second pair of eyes
Bring the screen you ran and the listing. Jeff Shin, NMLS #1041652, originates from Chicago with Barrett Financial Group, L.L.C. He can help you see what the assessment covers, whether the tax line looks right for the unit, and how the stack changes if the down payment moves.
Get In Touch /#contact
A calculator result isn't a commitment to lend. A blog post can't lock a rate.
Jeff Shin, NMLS 1041652. Barrett Financial Group, L.L.C. Chicago. Equal Housing Lender. Not a commitment to lend.