condo loss assessment

So the condo you just bought has a common area that includes a pool and a club house.  How good can it get?  You have a great place to swim and no need to spend your Memorial Day and Labor Day holidays opening and closing the pool.  Of course, you assume the Condo Association has plenty of insurance if something goes wrong.  Are you sure about that?  What if a serious accident occurs at the pool and the lawsuit is settled for more than the policy limits on the Condo Association liability policy?  If you're a unit owner you will be assessed your share of the settlement not paid by the Association policy.  The unendorsed condo policy includes a basic limit, usually $1000, to pay assessments of this nature but for around $30 or so you can bump that limit to $50,000.  Here's the math: if the Association shortfall is $1,000,000 and there are 50 unit owners the assessment per owner will be $20,000.  My suggestion: make sure you know the Association limits and cover your bases by maxing out the assessment limit on your own condo policy.  Enjoy the pool!