A HOMEOWNER has revealed he had to pay a $200 fee while selling his property.

Ralph Tucker feared such fees outlined by homeowner associations could put the brakes on potential deals being completed.

He was selling his home in Knoxville, Tennessee, and came across the fees just two days before the closing of his old property, per the ABC affiliate WATE.

Ralph, a former business owner, scanned the contract and came across a $200 fee that he thought would be paid to the Hearthstone homeowner’s association.

He told WATE: “I assumed it was going to the HOA treasury. I subsequently found that was not the case.”

It turned out that the fee went to officials at the Cedar Management Group.

The charge is known as an Estoppel fee and is paid before the home changes ownership.

But, his daughter sold her home months after he did and the fee was described as a “HOA certification fee.”

Officials at the Cedar Management Group have explained that a certification fee is a charge that the seller of a home has to pay.

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It covers any unpaid assessments and charges against a lot.

Ralph wanted to find out more about the fee and contacted officials.

He said: “Well, they told me the fee was legitimate and that was their overhead.”

Buyers of homes in some homeowner associations have to pay specific charges before they move into a property.

He said: “My concern is if people sell the property at some point with a high-interest rate a buyer is going to come in and look at the $500 administrative fee and back out of the deal.”

Ralph revealed that the buyer of his home paid two fees, totaling $525.

The buyer paid a capital contribution fee – a charge that new property owners have to pay to become part of a homeowner’s association.

The Cedar Management Group has defined a capital contribution fee as a “buy-in” charge into the community.

Realtor experts at HomeBay have urged potential buyers to look at the cost of possible fees before making an offer on the home.

The U.S. Sun has approached The Cedar Management Group for comment.