Buying a condo in Naples, FL (Bonita Springs, Winter Park: bank owned, real estate, rental)

[ddct]

We are considering buying a condo in Naples Florida. Winterpark Complex looks nice - any info for me? Also - what is the possibility of renting it out seasonally at least 6 months out of the year? Any suggestions on which complexes we should look at?

[RMD3819]

I lived in Winterpark in the late 80s. I liked it there. It is close to everything. I was renting an off-season furnished place for $500/month.

All those gated communities along Davis Blvd. are decent. They are also full of snowbirds.

[ToriaT]

What about Napoli? The condo's look nice and the price seems reasonable.

[Mosss]

Try looking at Heritage Bay. www.lennar.com.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by RMD3819

I lived in Winterpark in the late 80s. I liked it there. It is close to everything. I was renting an off-season furnished place for $500/month.

All those gated communities along Davis Blvd. are decent. They are also full of snowbirds.

Things have changed since the 80s. A couple of months ago there were 22 listings for 2 bedroom units in Winter Park.

Do I need to say more?

[miniature]

I currently live in Naples. The condo market here is not what it used to be. Rent is going down and property values have dropped a lot. It may be a good time to buy now If you can wait to rent until the economy comes back . If you have never lived in Florida you are in for a culture shock.
Which one to look at depends on your wallet really. Winterpark would not be my first choice (if I could afford to choose) It depends on the lifestyle that you want for one thing.
Perhaps if we had a bit more information about what you want we could help.

[justNancy]

I get lists emailed to me with bank owned properties in the area (Naples, Bonita Springs, Marco) and I'm surprised when I see the prices. Naples is still a little steep in some areas and the prices haven't dropped nearly as much as in other Florida cities, but a lot of people who never invested before bought new condos when the market was booming. I sold furniture for years and couples would sometimes buy one condo to live in and another to rent if they could swing it financially. Now there are many units for rent and working people are moving away.

One positive thing about an older condo association is that it probably is more financially stable. I have no idea, but does that make sense to anyone? I mean, a newer condo association might still owe money for construction (i.e., the pool, clubhouse, etc.) I'm not in real estate, so someone with more expertise will have to elaborate. Just tossing around ideas.

[miniature]

Nancy an older condo assn doesn't necessarily mean more stable. They were created in the boom times and are stuck with the high fees now in many cases. I am not in real estate but my BIL is .
Still I don't know all about it.
If you are looking simply for an investment or a forclosed property in Florida I would wait a bit on that one.That is how a ton of people lost money here. It may not be over yet.
Prices will go up but it may take much longer then you may want, and rental prices are going down even here.
Across the state condos and new condos are not selling.There is a ton of them empty.
If you are actually planning on moving here , this might be a good time to buy. You will gain over time.

[mytimenow]

Winterpark is a late 70s/early 80s development. Not fancy, but is a quiet neighborhood. Very heavy investment activity in that neighborhood when the market was hot here, lots of original owners sold then, so not sure anymore about the financial stability of the development. Check with the association to get a copy of the current financial statement. Hopefully, they haven't got a lot of defaulters on mortgage and association fees. Check to see if they have funded reserves, a good indicator of financial strength. You should also look at condo documents for any property you are considering to find out about rental rules for any unit you are considering.

[imagardener]

Originally Posted by justNancy

One positive thing about an older condo association is that it probably is more financially stable. I have no idea, but does that make sense to anyone? I mean, a newer condo association might still owe money for construction (i.e., the pool, clubhouse, etc.) I'm not in real estate, so someone with more expertise will have to elaborate. Just tossing around ideas.

We sold and moved out of an older condo association and no it was not financially more stable. They did not put aside any money for the last 20 years in Reserves. The common buildings (clubhouse, pool, etc) were at the end of their life with no money for replacement or major restoration.

Every condo assoc. or homeowners assoc (with a mix of condos, villas and single family homes) is different. Some have good reserves covering replacement and others don't.

Possibly, what you are thinking of is that the newer communities have CDD's which is a large chunk of extra money homeowners pay in addition to monthly fees, taxes, etc. This pays back for the original infrastructure (roads, etc). The older communities don't have this extra fee, therefore more affordable.