I don’t pay for my car repairs in advance either. However, the big difference is that when my car breaks down I don’t have to collect money from anyone else in order to get it back on the road.
I’ve seen too many situations where owners can’t afford a special assessment and not only do they stiff the association for the assessment but since they know there will be a lien put on their unit, they stop paying their condo fees as well. So, the rest of the owners get stuck paying someone else’s share of the assessment, several months of condo fees and the association ends up incurring legal costs.
That’s where your savings are.
Also, a condo with reserves makes it more attractive to buyers as well. Especially if it’s an older building.
At our Florida condo we lost out on some great potential owners because their bank refused to give them a mortgage on an older building without adequate reserves.