I'm not a fan of HOAs, the fees can be onerous.But I have benefited by getting a new roof, new siding, and a new parking lot from the HOA fees that I paid.And besides those extraordinary items they also provided grass cutting, snow removal, heat, hot water, sewer, trash removal, insurance and outside maintenance.And besides those normal fees that I would have had to provide they also provided some items that I would not ordinarily provide like swimming pools (hate the maintenance and the liability), tennis courts and club house.

Not sure about specifics regarding your location (things like construction method and temperature will affect this), but here is a thread that covers some items to look for:http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/52/topics/108961-frozen-faucets

This is what you will need for a conventional investment property mortgage 100% for sure.SFR 20% Requires Down2-4 Units Require 25% Down620 Minumum FICO (any open derogatory items must be taken care of)45% DTI requires 6 months PITI reserves45-50% DTI requires 12 months PITI reservesFICO and LTV effect your rate so the more you put down and the higher FICO you have the better interest rate you will receive.

So if rents for the entire property are $1380, then $690 will go to these items.

I'm concerned how it will hold up when hot items are placed on the counter tops.I'll be sure to post pics when finished.

Now if the price charged is completely unreasonable then you'd have a case but if you ask someone to preform a repair on an item that is your responsibility then there should be an expectation of payment.

I was never audited by the IRS and filed the LLC returns with such expenses itemized.

FinancingReviewing Rental Property Financials - Most Common Items I've seencommercial and portfolio lenders use a different methodology to determine your qualification.

From that, you can calculate how much money the association has to set aside each year to have enough to replace those items when they do wear out."

After inspection, we found some minor items and a rather sizable repair issue that involved replacing some beams and rot (band board, beam, trim).