The Super's Apartment: How a Condo's Resident Manager Unit (RMU) Works
In many new NYC condos, buyers pay a share of the super's apartment at closing, and the cost doesn't stop there. We read the resident manager's unit sections of NYC offering plans to explain the RMU contribution, the loans some buildings take out, and what it all adds to your common charges.
Your closing statement for a new NYC condo may include a line you didn't expect: a payment toward the resident manager's unit, or RMU. That's the apartment where the building's super lives. In many new buildings, the developer sells that apartment to the condo, and the buyers pay for it.
Close to 200 of the condo offering plans we searched include a resident manager's unit. Here's how it works and what it costs you.
The Short Version
- A live-in super needs an apartment. In many new condos, the condo board buys one from the developer.
- Buyers usually pay their share at closing as an RMU contribution, split by each unit's common interest (roughly, its size).
- Some buildings have buyers pay all of it up front. Others pay part and borrow the rest, which adds loan payments to common charges.
- Either way, the RMU's own common charges and taxes are split among the other owners.
- The amount for your unit is listed in Schedule A of the offering plan.
Why Does the Condo Buy the Super's Apartment?
Having a super on site means someone's there when a pipe bursts at 2 a.m. That person needs somewhere to live, and in a new condo every apartment starts out owned by the developer. So the plan usually provides for the developer to sell one apartment to the condo board, typically by the time the units sell out or within a few years of the first closing.
The question is who pays, and how.
Option 1: Buyers Pay It All at Closing
At 200 East 83rd Street, Unit 6B is the resident manager's unit. The total cost is $3,357,100: a $3,215,000 purchase price plus $142,100 in closing costs. Each buyer pays an "RMU Payment" at closing, their pro rata share of that total. It's separate from the working capital and reserve fund contributions. Spread across the building's 86 apartments, that's roughly $39,000 per apartment on average. Larger units pay more.
At The 74, Unit 4A costs $3,108,000 all in, paid the same way. With 42 apartments to share it, the average is closer to $74,000.
Good to know: the fewer apartments a building has, the more each buyer pays toward the super's unit.
Option 2: Pay Part Now, Borrow the Rest
Many buildings keep the up-front payment smaller by financing part of the purchase. That cost then shows up in your common charges for years.
- At One Boerum, buyers pay their share of 50% of the cost of Unit 405 at closing. The condo signs a note for the other half, about $834,750, with interest-only payments of about $4,230 a month and the full principal due after 10 years. The plan notes the developer doesn't intend to extend it.
- At Bergen, buyers contribute $686,750 in total, and the board borrows $1,088,750. The plan estimates payments of $9,136.75 a month, with a balloon payment of about $900,800 when the loan comes due.
- At 842 Sixth Avenue, the plan expects a 10-year mortgage amortized over 25 years. It lists the board's options for covering the cost: a special assessment, a commercial mortgage or a line of credit.
Tip: a balloon payment is a future bill. When it comes due, the board will have to refinance, pay it from savings, or charge owners a special assessment. Ask how the board plans to handle it.
How the RMU Affects Your Common Charges
The super's apartment has its own common charges and property taxes, like any unit, but the super doesn't pay them. The other owners do.
At The Park Loggia, the plan estimates the RMU's monthly costs at $3,332: $1,197 in common charges, $1,185 in taxes, $400 for parking and $550 for utilities. Common charges are assigned to the unit, but none are collected while the super lives there, so in practice the other residential owners cover them. At 95 Madison Residences, the plan says the RMU's costs are "allocated solely to the Residential Unit Owners," so the stores don't share them.
Before the board owns the unit, it usually rents it from the developer. At Bergen, the condo leases Unit 202W month to month, with the rent set by a "Condominium Owned Unit" line in the budget.
Is the RMU Contribution Taxed?
Possibly. One Boerum's plan warns that the tax authorities could treat your RMU share as part of the price you paid, which would mean extra transfer taxes. Ask your attorney how it will be handled at closing.
What to Check in the Offering Plan
- Schedule A for your unit's RMU contribution, alongside the price and common charges. See Schedule A and Schedule B.
- The Special Risks section, usually titled "Resident Manager's Unit."
- Whether there's a loan: its rate, term and any balloon payment.
- The Schedule B line for the RMU's debt service or rent.
- Whether the developer can swap in a different apartment. 200 East 83rd caps any substitute at no more than 25% above Unit 6B's price.
Compare monthly costs on the common charge benchmarks, see what a doorman costs, or search "resident manager's unit" on The Condo Book Project.
Common Questions
What is an RMU contribution?
A closing cost in many new NYC condos: your share of the price the condo pays the developer for the super's apartment, based on your unit's common interest. The amount is in Schedule A of the offering plan.
How much is the RMU contribution?
It depends on the apartment's price and how many units share it. At 200 East 83rd Street, the $3.36 million total averages about $39,000 per apartment. In smaller buildings, or ones that pay all of it up front, the share is higher.
Do I pay common charges on the super's unit?
Indirectly, yes. The RMU's common charges and taxes are usually spread across the other owners, along with any loan payments for buying it.
Is the RMU contribution refundable when I sell?
Typically not. It pays for an apartment the condo owns, and resale buyers don't usually reimburse it. Your attorney can check the building's rules.
Does every condo have a resident manager's unit?
No. Smaller buildings often have a non-resident super or a management company instead. Larger buildings with full-time staff are more likely to have one.
Where this comes from: the resident manager's unit sections, Schedule A notes and first-year budgets in the offering plans for 200 East 83rd Street, The 74, One Boerum, Bergen, 842 Sixth Avenue, The Park Loggia and 95 Madison Residences, plus a search of NYC condo plans for resident manager's units. Figures are the developers' estimates and may change by amendment. This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Updated October 2026.