In late November, a group of Prince George’s County condominium owners panicked when they saw the notices posted outside their doors: The City of Laurel had deemed much of their complex unsafe, and they had about two weeks to vacate — indefinitely.

A majority of the condo complex’s 58 staircases didn’t meet city standards, and the cost of repairing them would total millions. The edict sent shockwaves through the roughly 170 Tiers of Laurel Lakes households, a diverse mix of young people and older adults. Some had bought their condos in the 1980s as founding owners; others had just moved in.

Nothing brings neighbors together like calamity, especially when it involves their homes. As this Laurel community would soon find out, the price of keeping theirs would only go up.

At a tense neighborhood association meeting, residents pondered how the problems were allowed to fester and swell.

Some pointed fingers at Laurel Mayor Keith R. Sydnor’s administration for acting callously toward residents right before Thanksgiving. Others blamed the previous property manager and board for failing to keep up with repairs; the residents had been warned by the city about this very possibility for years. And several owners — as many as 20% — had stopped paying dues, creating fertile ground for resentment among some neighbors.

As condo ownership becomes more popular, some residents at the sprawling Laurel community said to use their case as a cautionary tale of how condo living can go off the rails.

Condos can be an attractive option: They often come with amenities, such as pools and clubhouses, and can offer just the right amount of space for empty-nesters or young adults. In the midst of dueling housing supply and affordability challenges, many are flocking to them due to their relative affordability.

In the Baltimore area, condos and townhomes have comprised the majority of home sales since 2021, peaking at 57.2% of sales in 2023, according to data from Realtor.com. In the first three quarters of 2024, condos made up a slightly smaller portion of home sales, but were still the majority, with 52.5% of home sales, the data show.

But the cost of owning one tends to go far beyond the sticker price, said Natalie Stuppard, a Tiers of Laurel Lakes condo owner and condo association board member.

Walking the grounds one cold morning, Stuppard said some owners don’t consider the dues and fees that come with condo ownership, and maybe most importantly, the cost of participating in board meetings and elections that make communities run effectively.

“You have to have a basic understanding of community,” Stuppard, 33, said, “of everyone doing their part and having pride and respect for where they live.”

On top of paying for the unit outright, common ownership communities such as condos are expected to pay monthly dues — affixed by the board — and can be charged fees known as special assessments to fund more urgent fixes. Board members typically serve at the pleasure of the community and can be voted in or out. Property managers, hired by the board, are tasked with maintaining the common areas.

As some communities have learned, board members are typically unpaid volunteers who may also work other jobs. Property managers also aren’t required to have any formal training in Maryland, a knowledge gap some lawmakers have aimed to fix with state law.

State Del. Marvin Holmes, Maryland’s self-described “housing guru” who attended the Laurel community’s November board meeting, said in an interview that legislation surrounding common ownership communities has often failed to gain much traction in Annapolis.

He has had some success, though: After the condo building collapse in Surfside, Florida, in 2021, a successful Holmes-sponsored bill requires large common ownership communities to conduct reserve studies every five years to examine potential infrastructure needs. And it sets deadlines for associations to collect the money for maintenance and upgrades. Despite its well-meaning intent, some unit owners said the added costs have added stress to their lives in an already tough economy.

Another Holmes-led law allows county governments to create funds that can help common ownership communities when they run into financial trouble — including when owners need help paying for repairs. So far, he said, no county has taken advantage of the bill.

The reason?

“Money,” the Prince George’s County Democrat said.

Stuppard, a first-time homeowner, said she purchased her unit in the spring of 2022 with high hopes. She enjoyed the community’s geographic location, not far from her parents’ house in Columbia, and the proximity to amenities like the Laurel Shopping Center.

Before long, she rose into a leadership position on the association’s board and noticed some problems with the Tiers of Laurel Lakes. For one, she learned that dues had not significantly increased despite the rising costs of goods and services. Meanwhile, a previous board president had approved a $5 million emergency contract to fix the stairs — a value most residents opposed once they learned about it.

The board terminated that contract — for a steep cancelation fee, of course — and by September, the community had run out of funds, bringing work on the noncompliant condo staircases to a halt. That’s when the city intervened and ordered residents to leave.

After a stressful few weeks, Stuppard and other board members worked out a compromise with the city that kept people in their homes.

T’Amani Hamlett, the City of Laurel’s chief building official, said she’s relieved by the city’s sense of urgency, especially ahead of last week’s heavy snowfall, which can aggravate fragile wood and cause structural failure. Hamlett had told residents in November the city was concerned emergency medical personnel wouldn’t be able get gear up the stairs if needed.

“It’s a hard situation to be in,” Hamlett said in an interview, “but even harder to explain to a family why something tragic happened that could have been avoided.”

Many of the owners are older, Hamlett added, and the city needed to strike a balance between bringing down the hammer and acting in the public’s best interest.

“Care and compassion is something we always prided ourselves on,” she said. “It’s unfortunate that not everyone felt that way.”

In the weeks since the city sent its notice, Stuppard and her fellow board members entered into a loan agreement with a new contractor to start the work again. A new property management company also helped streamline some accounts and find cost savings.

Though there was some initial pushback, Stuppard — once frustrated by low turnout at events and the difficulty contacting some unit owners — said she has since felt renewed energy among homeowners to stay current on their bills and be active in the community.

Crews completed the temporary fixes in time for everyone to stay put, and the mayor gave the community the all-clear last week.

But a permanent upgrade is expected to take much longer and will cost the community as much as $3 million. Stuppard said the new property manager wants the board to raise dues. She thinks the community can get through it — if they stick together.

“The biggest thing is getting people up to date,” she said, “and getting them to realize that they have an impact.”