The Lake Clarke Gardens condominiums in Lake Worth, Florida, are among many places across the Sunshine State selling Americans the much-coveted dream of retiring in a place in the sun. With 855 units in 24 separate residential buildings only a few miles from the ocean and featuring a clubhouse, swimming pools and many more amenities throughout its 55 acres, this 55-plus community is someone's idea of the so-called Florida paradise. Back in 2017, Diego C.
's mother bought into this dream, purchasing a condo unit in Lake Clarke Gardens, where she planned to one day spend her retirement. Until that day, she would rent it to "snowbirds"—people who vacation in warmer places during winter. But last year, her dream was suddenly shuttered when new building regulations came into effect requiring aging condos in Florida to undergo regular inspections and owners to have enough funds to shoulder necessary repairs and maintenance.
Rising homeowners association (HOA) fees forced her to put her condo up for sale—at the same time many of her neighbors found themselves in the very same situation. "She has put the unit for sale but no one has any interest in seeing it since there are 70-plus units for sale in the complex," Diego C. told Newsweek .
"The only units getting sold here are the ones that desperate owners are selling for pennies." A similar phenomenon is taking place across all of South Florida , where a majority of the state's aging condos are concentrated. Over the past few mont.