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Old 02-28-2009, 06:04 PM
 
1 posts, read 12,322 times
Reputation: 10

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Hi All,

I'm considering making an offer on a Loft 5 penthouse (one of the smaller ones). I really quite like the design and feel of the place and I love the location. I looked at Manhattan and Park Avenue but wasn't really impressed. I had a look at the architectural and structural drawings for the complex and couldn't find anything really negative.

The place is 1300 square feet. I'm going to offer 250k for it. I'm asking for 6% towards closing/hoa fees. Because they haven't reached 70% yet, they're doing lease to own with 100% (minus 1 dollar) of the monthly payment going into escrow towards the cost of the condo. The lease is for six months, with the option to extend if they still haven't made 70%. It's my understanding that at the close, the condo will be appraised and that if the appraised value is lower, the seller can either give me that price or I can walk away. Is this a decent deal? Am I missing something? Does anyone have any info regarding the complex?

Regards,
Kevin

Last edited by quesauce; 02-28-2009 at 06:15 PM..
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Old 02-28-2009, 10:06 PM
 
Location: South Strip, NV --> Philly (Fall 2009)
2,404 posts, read 10,655,925 times
Reputation: 637
i live in the single story neighborhood next to it, from what it seems from the outside, it seems to be very nice, also the area is very nice too and usually quiet...
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Old 03-01-2009, 08:51 AM
 
Location: central, between Pepe's Tacos and Roberto's
2,086 posts, read 6,830,094 times
Reputation: 958
I've always been a huge fan of Loft 5. Love the architecture, love the location, however would not be a good fit for my family and I (young son plus dog). I can't say if your deal is a good one or not, at least not without looking at some comps, but I do know that the larger units are renting out for $1800 or more.

As an aside, condo restrictions are actually getting much tighter. The 70% sellout ratio you speak of will likely not be acceptable to a lender. Here is a short list of condo eligibility requirements that I received last week from one of my favorite lenders.



The condominium must meet the criteria for Established Projects:
  • At least 90% of the total units have been sold and recorded, and
  • Control of the HOA has been turned over to the unit owners, and
  • The project or conversion is complete and not subject to additional phasing or annexation.
In addition to meeting the Established Project criteria, the condominium must meet the following eligibility requirements:
  • The LTV/LCTV does not exceed 80% for Primary Residences and 75% for Second Homes.
  • The Condominium Project can not exceed 7 stories.
  • The project does not have common areas or recreational facilities leased to or by the HOA.
  • There is no litigation pending with regard to the project or HOA with respect to safety, structural soundess, or habilitiy of the property or adversely affect the financial solvency of the HOA.
  • HOA must waive its "right of first refusal" to the sale, lease or transfer of a unit in case of foreclosure or deed in lieu.
  • Commercial use within the project can not exceed 20% of the total square footage for the project and compatible with residential use.
  • No more than 15% of total units are delinquent on their HOA dues by more than 30 days.
  • The project is not an ineligible project, such as being subject to inclusionary zoning, being a condo-hotel or timeshare, having rental programs, multi-dwelling units, manufactured homes or houseboats.
  • The HOA maintains "master" or "blanket" type of insurance covering all general and limited common elements with:
    • 100% replacement cost of project facilities, including individual units.
    • Maximum deductible is 5% of face amount of policy.
    • General liability coverage of $1,000,000 for bodily injury and property damage for entire project for any single occurence.
    • Flood insurance, current coverage, if applicable.
    • Fidelity bond is required for any project with more than 20 units (coverage equal to the total monthly assessment of HOA dues for all units times 3 months).
Here are FHA guidelines for condo eligibility.

The condominium project must be complete. There should be no ongoing or anticipated addition of any units, common elements, and/or facilities.
Control of the common areas of the project must have been turned over to the unit owners association for at least one year.
The owners association must provide evidence that the project has the appropriate hazard, liability and flood insurance. Individual units in the project must be owned in fee simple or be an eligible leasehold interest. The project's legal documents must provide for undivided ownership of common areas by unit owners. By virtue of this ownership, unit owners must have the right to use all facilities and unrestricted common elements.
The project's documents should not place any legal restrictions on conveyance. Any provisions that seek to limit the free transferability of title is generally unacceptable. Such restrictions include rights of first refusal and restrictive covenants. Certain governmental or nonprofit programs designed to assist in the purchase or rental of low- or moderate-income housing are exempted from the restrictions on conveyance provisions.
At least 90% of the units in the project must have been sold.
At least 51% of the units in the project must be owner-occupied.
No single entity may own more than 10% of the units in a project. "Entity" includes an individual partnership, corporation, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, joint venture, investor group or other natural or legal person qualified to hold an interest in real property. The 10% restriction does not apply when the ownership of less than three units would disqualify an otherwise eligible project.
HUD recognized that the 10% cap on the number of units that may secure insured mortgages in a given project can place a small regime at a disadvantage, since only a few units will invoke the limit. Accordingly, a two-tiered system was established. For condominium projects having more than 30 units, no more than 10% of the units may have FHA insured loans at any given time. Condominium projects consisting of 30 units or less, can have up to 20% of the units encumbered by FHA insured mortgages.

So as you can see, there is no guarantee that in six months (or even a couple of years) you will be able to find financing for the unit. Lenders have some serious concerns about condos right now, and rightly so. That being said, the fact that they are willing to escrow 100% of your monthly lease payment towards the purchase is huge, and you will absolutely not find that in many lease to own situations.

Last edited by Daddys///M3; 03-01-2009 at 09:01 AM..
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Old 09-01-2009, 10:27 AM
 
1 posts, read 11,057 times
Reputation: 11
Hi my name is Kevin, I'm a Realtor in Las Vegas, I was wondering if you were able to get the loft you were talking about in this posting. the reason why I ask is I'm working with a client that is interested in a loft in loft 5 but from what I understand there is some serious litigation which is why the offers have to be cash only, and is also why they chose to lease a great portion of their project. Please let me know what happened.

Thank You
Kevin
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Old 09-01-2009, 11:03 AM
 
Location: North Las Vegas
1,631 posts, read 3,941,862 times
Reputation: 768
Your right there is litigation going on at loft 5 at this time, also the person that is willing to carry the paper do they own it out right? You should make sure this person isn't on the verge of foreclosure.

You could end up losing any money you put down.
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Old 09-04-2009, 08:06 PM
 
139 posts, read 457,337 times
Reputation: 84
This is my concern with the developer financing. It may be 2-3 years before your condo qualifies for a legit mortgage. By then rates could be substantially higher (10%+).
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Old 10-15-2009, 11:22 AM
 
4,613 posts, read 4,777,238 times
Reputation: 4097
Quote:
Originally Posted by quesauce View Post
Hi All,

I'm considering making an offer on a Loft 5 penthouse (one of the smaller ones). I really quite like the design and feel of the place and I love the location. I looked at Manhattan and Park Avenue but wasn't really impressed. I had a look at the architectural and structural drawings for the complex and couldn't find anything really negative.

The place is 1300 square feet. I'm going to offer 250k for it. I'm asking for 6% towards closing/hoa fees. Because they haven't reached 70% yet, they're doing lease to own with 100% (minus 1 dollar) of the monthly payment going into escrow towards the cost of the condo. The lease is for six months, with the option to extend if they still haven't made 70%. It's my understanding that at the close, the condo will be appraised and that if the appraised value is lower, the seller can either give me that price or I can walk away. Is this a decent deal? Am I missing something? Does anyone have any info regarding the complex?

Regards,
Kevin
Sorry to resurrect an old thread, but this happened to be the exact complex that I was looking at. I toured it with the intention to rent 6 months ago and absolutely fell in love. However, the rental price was more than I was willing to pay at the time (as a payment, it'd be fine, but more than I wanted to rent for....I think it was ~1400/month or so for the non-penthouse units and a little cheaper for the smaller penthouses).

The lease-to-own concept that you mentioned (with 100%-1 dollar going towards the cost)...that sort of thing exists? I'd jump on that in a heartbeat if I knew the logistics. The thing that's discouraged me from attempting lease-to-own in the past is how little of the payment goes towards the total cost.
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Old 12-11-2009, 06:38 PM
 
2 posts, read 13,682 times
Reputation: 10
I currently reside at Loft 5. The complex was recently auctioned off this week and there are new owners. Has anyone heard any news about what are the intentions of the new owners?Thanks!
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Old 12-12-2009, 12:22 PM
 
Location: North Las Vegas
1,631 posts, read 3,941,862 times
Reputation: 768
Did anyone see the earlier post about the condo owners being sued by the sub contrators?
You need to check into that before you go there!!!
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Old 01-11-2010, 04:21 AM
 
4,613 posts, read 4,777,238 times
Reputation: 4097
Quote:
Originally Posted by 007 license to sell View Post
Did anyone see the earlier post about the condo owners being sued by the sub contrators?
You need to check into that before you go there!!!

I looked, but didn't find this post. Any more info about this place?
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