If you sign a contract on a Saw Creek Estates home this fall, which year's assessment are you really agreeing to pay? The number on the listing sheet is the 2026 figure. The Saw Creek Estates Community Association hasn't voted on the 2027 figure yet. The bill for it is due a few weeks after many fall closings.
The list of building projects lined up behind the assessment tells you more about future costs than the assessment does. The association publishes that list in its own reports, and Pennsylvania law requires a version of it to reach you before closing.
The dates that land on top of a fall closing
According to the association's October 2026 bulletin, the final 2027 budget went to the Board of Directors on October 1. Members can comment through November 10, and the Board votes on November 14.
Last year's timeline shows what happens after the vote. The Board approved the 2026 budgets on November 8, 2025. Invoices went out in late November, and payment was due January 1 with a 30-day grace period for owners paying in full.
| Date | What happens | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Oct. 10 to Nov. 10, 2026 | 2027 budget comment period | October 2026 bulletin |
| Nov. 14, 2026 | Board approval vote at the 10 a.m. meeting | October 2026 bulletin |
| Late November | Invoices went out the year before | Holiday 2025 newsletter |
| Jan. 1 | 2026 assessment due date, with 30-day grace | Holiday 2025 newsletter |
So if you close before November 14, you're buying while the association is still setting next year's cost. If you close after the vote, the 2027 bill may arrive within weeks of moving in. Resale paperwork prepared before November 14 will show the 2026 operating budget, because that's the budget in effect.
How the $2,170 figure was built
The 2026 total assessment was $2,170. That's $87 more than 2025's $2,083, an increase of about 4%. The Holiday 2025/New Year 2026 issue of Saw Creek News splits the total into two parts. The operating assessment rose from $1,869 to $1,978, and the capital assessment fell from $214 to $192.
The newsletter says energy costs and insurance premiums drove the operating increase. It also describes the budget as providing "modest increases necessary to maintain or improve our aging infrastructure."
How you pay also changes the cost. The 12-month installment plan was $208.38 a month for 2026, and that payment includes 1.25% monthly interest and a $150 service fee, so paying monthly costs more over the year than paying the $2,170 at once. The plan only covered members whose balance was zero or in credit as of December 31, 2025. Owners had to re-enroll every December on sawcreek.org because the plan doesn't renew automatically. If your closing falls in late December, it's worth asking the association how those rules apply to a brand-new owner.
The project list is longer than the bid list
The 2026 capital assessment went down. Meanwhile, the association's monthly operational reports show a set of large facility projects still waiting on bids, engineering, or decisions.
The best-known one is the Top of the World indoor pool. The association's November 2025 member e-blast described how it failed during 2025:
- A spa airline leak was found on July 8 and repaired by August 14.
- The pool was drained on September 15, and another break turned up on September 25.
- A contractor proposed pipe sleeving on October 8, and a structural engineering review followed on October 28.
- The association said it would consider a possible full renovation.
A year later, the October 2026 bulletin still lists the Top of the World indoor pool as "Closed until further notice." The Mill Pond indoor pool is open with published hours, including Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The September 2026 operational report gives project status as of September 8, 2026:
- Top of the World indoor pool. Plans were due September 9, with bidding planned for mid-September.
- Falls Bridge repairs. On the agenda for Board discussion on September 12.
- Top of the World boilers. Still no responsive bids, and the association was still looking for them.
- Mill Pond concrete. Moving to an engineering review by Falcon.
- Reserve Study. Draft due Friday, September 11.
- Two maintenance trucks. Board approved buying both from Tasca Ford.
The August 2026 report adds two items. The DCC outdoor court renovation is in engineering review, and the Top of the World kitchen grease pit relocation has plans in hand and is "Budgeting for 2027." It also notes that a reserve specialist inspected the community on July 28 and 29 to update the Reserve Study.
These status updates don't put a dollar amount on any project. The resale certificate is the document that has to attach numbers to them.
Where those projects show up in your contract paperwork
Saw Creek is a planned community. When a home there is resold, Pennsylvania's Uniform Planned Community Act requires the seller to give the buyer a resale certificate. The text is in 68 Pa.C.S. § 5407. Along with the declaration, bylaws, and rules, the certificate has to state:
- The common expense assessment and any unpaid common or special assessments currently due from the seller
- Any other fees owners pay
- Capital expenditures the association has proposed for the current fiscal year and the next two
- The amount of reserves for capital expenditures, and any part of those reserves set aside for a specific project
- The most recent balance sheet and income and expense statement
- The association's current operating budget
Those two bolded lines are where the pool, the bridge, the boilers, and the courts turn from status notes into numbers you can weigh. The reserve line shows whether money has already been set aside for a project or whether that money still has to come from somewhere.
The statute also sets the timing. The seller provides the certificate before the sale contract is signed, or otherwise before closing. The association has ten days to supply the information after the owner asks for it. Under the statute, a buyer can cancel the contract until the certificate arrives and for five days afterward, or until closing if that comes first.
This post is general information, not legal or financial advice. Please check how the statute and the association's policies apply to your own purchase with a real estate attorney or another qualified professional.
Why on-time payers have a stake in collections
Every owner's assessment funds the same budget, so unpaid balances have to be covered somewhere. Writing in Saw Creek News, Community Manager Jessica M. VanDerVliet called stronger collection of delinquent accounts a key 2026 initiative. She wrote that "those who pay on time should not bear the burden of those who do not," and that the association would pursue "all available collection measures," including foreclosure when necessary. The Board approved changes to the billing and collections policy at its October 11, 2025, meeting.
The balance sheet and income statement in your resale certificate show how much is owed to the association and how much it has on hand. Read alongside the reserve figure, those numbers show how much of the pending project list is already paid for.
How much the comment period can tell you
The comment period is open to members only, and last year very few used it. VanDerVliet wrote that the association received four comments on the 2026 budget, one of them about a formatting fix. Two of the four asked the association to keep costs down. She also pointed members to the community website for monthly financial packages and balance sheets, and to the Finance Department and Accounting Manager Peter Poliakine for questions.
If you're under contract, you aren't a member yet. But the documents members read during the comment period are the same ones that go into your resale certificate. The association's own operational reports are posted publicly through its weekly e-blasts, and they've already shown you which projects are waiting.
FAQ
Is the 2027 Saw Creek assessment known yet? No. The Board is scheduled to vote on November 14, 2026, after the comment period closes on November 10.
Is any indoor pool open at Saw Creek right now? Yes. The Mill Pond indoor pool has published hours in the October 2026 bulletin. The Top of the World indoor pool is listed as closed until further notice.
Has the updated Reserve Study been released? The draft was due September 11, 2026, according to the September operational report. That report gave no results.
If you're weighing a Saw Creek home this fall, we'll go through the resale certificate with you line by line, starting with the capital expenditure and reserve sections, so you understand the numbers behind the assessment before closing. Call Saw Creek Real Estate to talk it through with Steve, or stop by our office for a personal tour.
