A: You're correct that big bills for delayed maintenance are looming over many Northwest condo associations. There are three ways to pay them: From monthly dues money the association has tucked away in a reserve account, from a special assessment lump sum divided up and paid by all the owners, or from a loan taken out by the association itself.

In better times, owners facing a special assessment could get an individual home-equity type loan to pay off their share. That's still true, says David Hatlen, a HomeStreet Bank vice president in Seattle. However falling property values and tighter lending standards mean the amount they get may be less than before – and potentially not enough to cover their debt.

Then they'll "have to fund the rest through cash or credit cards," Hatlen says.

Alternately, the association could get a loan, which would be paid off through higher monthly owners' dues. Those loans also are still available, says Mary Alex Dundics, vice president of National Cooperative Bank in Washington, D.C. Unlike traditional home loans, which use the property as collateral, loans to associations are secured by a claim on owners dues. So "our credit guidelines primarily look at (dues) delinquencies," she says.

A loan application is denied if more than 5 percent of dues are delinquent by 30 days or more. And these days, with more homeowners struggling to meet rising mortgage payments, delinquencies are growing in general.