HOMEOWNERS feel handcuffed to houses they no longer want because of sky-high HOA fees – and they’re only getting more expensive.

A total of 77 million Americans now live under the control of homeowners associations, which charge up to $2,000 a month.

Homeowners feel trapped as soaring HOA fees make living costs unbearable (stock image)Credit: Getty

In Somers, New York, about 40 minutes north of Yonkers, HOA fees can reach as high as $2,000 a month (stock image)Credit: Getty

According to Business Insider, since 2019, the average HOA fee has increased by 42% (stock image)Credit: Getty

In Yonkers, New York, Patrick Luzzi, 64, has spent nearly two years searching for a new home, he told Business Insider.

He is looking to downsize to a condo as his current house where he’s spent 60 years has stairs that are becoming harder to manage as he ages.

He wanted to move to a complex in Somers, about 40 minutes from his home, but couldn’t afford HOA fees ranging from $1,800 to $2,000 a month.

“HOA fees won’t go down in the future, they’ll go up,” he told the publication.

That’s just one example of how HOA costs are making it difficult for older homeowners to downsize.

The average HOA fee has increased by 42% since 2019, according to Business Insider.

In 2023, the average HOA fee in the US was $243 per month, up from $170 in 2019.

This is on top of already rising home prices, creating a perfect storm for those trying to find affordable housing.

“Everything they’re building around here is these big McMansion kinds of things,” Susan Hopkins, a 76-year-old retired teacher from Fillmore, California, told the publication.

She’s looking for a place without stairs after having her hip replaced and her husband struggles with chronic pain, too.

Like Luzzi, she’s searched for a more accessible home and has been discouraged by HOA fees.

The fees are often unpredictable, rising every year and adding to the financial strain homeowners are already under.

They cover services like trash removal, landscaping, and even luxury amenities like gyms and pools – but not everyone wants those perks.

“It’s not just the size of the homes, but the other expenses that go with it,” Hopkins said.

“I can live without a clubhouse or a swimming pool or a golf course.”

Across the country, the number of homes governed by HOAs is skyrocketing.

In 1970, just 2 million people lived in homes under HOA governance.

Today, that figure has grown to nearly 77 million.

And in 2023, 81% of newly built single-family homes were part of an HOA.

For Luzzi, who’s looking at moving out of New York to Delaware, the fees aren’t the only obstacle.

He’s worried he will miss his friends and doctors in New York.

Hopkins, meanwhile, is considering moving to Nevada to be closer to her family.

“There’s so many things to consider that we’re just kind of stymied,” she said.