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Coops have a lot of pluses, some of which have been mentioned above.
No real estate taxes; in fact you get a tax credit at the end of the year based on the mortgage and taxes the corp pays, I believe.
Your maintenance includes at least insurance, taxes, heat and hot water, and usually some sort of maintenance and security service and/or doorman.
In my case, my coop also includes electricity and family cable package. It's virtually all inclusive for 830 a month. I consider it a bargain to say the least.
You have tax advantages, you don't have to worry if you have a leak in your bathroom, a good coop will fix any major structural problems, offer security, and so on. You own a share in a corporation rather than owning the unit outright, but in return you benefit from the cooperative/corporation which handles all the down and dirty maintenance, tax, mortgage, security issues, and gets good group deals on electric and cable (in my case). Needless to say, if I rented I'd be paying substantially more and getting a lot less.
Plus since coop boards approve the shareholders (and if you sublet, my board must approve the prospective sublessee) you've got prescreened neighbors, which is a good thing, as Martha Stewart would say.
For most Co-op owners they pay more in maintenance charges then they do for their mortgage payment. One negative about co-ops is that they dont' really appreciate much in value as other types of properties. I would rather own a condo rather then a co-op,but that is just me.
For most Co-op owners they pay more in maintenance charges then they do for their mortgage payment. One negative about co-ops is that they dont' really appreciate much in value as other types of properties. I would rather own a condo rather then a co-op,but that is just me.
Actually,in the recent crash,the value of coops didn't suffer nearly as much as condos because there were far fewer foreclosures.That was because owners finances and eligibility had to pass boards of other owners and not just the banks,who were obviously giving 90 and 100% loans to anybody.
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