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I've bought properties before but now buying a condo for the first time. When buying a house, I do home inspection, always; but for a condo? I dunno. I've heard that it's pointless to do home inspection because most of the potential big issues like foundation, roof leaks, etc; are the HOA's responsibility and there is only so much that can go wrong in a 900 sq ft unit and most of it are simple fixes or are not detectable by the home inspector anyway. I mean, what could possibly be found when you're just looking at the inside of one out of 350 units? *Sarcasm on* Yeah, the baseboard is old. Yeah thanks for telling me, here's your three hundred bucks.
In case anyone is wondering what my agent's advise is, unfortunately my agent does not normally work the city and has little to no experience in condo purchasing so the best advice she can offer me is, "Hmm.... I guess some people do it and some don't... I think."
With that said, I'll probably still do an inspection just in case, begrudgingly. Just wondering if anyone ever bought a condo without home inspection or did anyone ever found something majorly wrong via a condo inspection that otherwise would not have been obvious?
Just to give some idea of the condo, it's built in mid 2000s, has around 350 units in the complex, no air conditioner, water heater is shared (maintained by the HOA), in unit washer/dryer; inspector will not have access to see the water heater(s) or central heating plant.
Somehow I would think there has to be some value in having an inspection, unless you are very thorough in your visits. Most people look at rooms and try to imagine their decorating ideas, but never check to see if applliances work, electrical sockets work, plumbing is good, etc.
I would think that a condo inspection would cost much less than a regular home inspection (they do in Phoenix) and it may aleviate some concerns. Or you could just roll the dice on what is likely going to be a major financial decision.
There are items that are the responsibility of the HOA/Condo Association but there are other issues that you would be on the hook for. I have been in condo homes that have water leaks from the unit directly above that the HOA will not resolve. In some cases, the interior/exterior air handler/condenser are the responsibility of the home owner. Kitchen appliances (range/oven, refrigerator, dishwasher) are your responsibility. Too many possible issues to mention.
It's been a few years, but I did buy a condo and I did pay for a home inspection. NO ISSUES found.
In my unit, there was this big black stain on the carpet, I wanted to know if the stain was cosmetic or structural (something to be concerned about), inspector said it was cosmetic. He was right, after I moved in my neighbors came by to explain the stain on the carpet as the previous owners decided to spray paint a bumper on the carpet.
On the other hand, I had a friend who sold her condo. Right before closing, a big storm came through and ripped off part of her roof. She had the top floor unit and it started leaking. Her buyers requested that the leak be fixed before they closed. She had to hustle to find a roofer on short notice in order to get to closing. Not sure what part the home inspector played in all of this, but finding leaks could be the potential value that a home inspector could add to your purchase.
Not only do you want the heat/ A/C, plumbing/ electrical, etc. inspected but you also want to know the construction of the unit. Any sound proofing in the walls, are the fire stops between units adequate and complete.
You want to know about the things that might be the responsibility of the HOA association.
That could be leaky overhangs, bad siding, insect damage to siding, poor drainage, cracked patios slabs, rotten decking, so on and so forth. Sure they are supposed to take care of it. But they may not do it right away- they may not do it for a long time or they may decide to gather together a special assessment before they do it to the complex.
In the meantime you're living there with things rotting away or deteriorating which impacts your use of the unit and your ability to sell or rent should you decide to do so before a HOA repair is undertaken.
Not specific to condos, but my parents bought a house and decided NOT to do the home inspection. Upon moving into the house, they discovered that the outlet in the bathroom was fake. Not only was there no GFCI, there were no wires connecting to the outlet. It was just a hole in the bathroom covered with an outlet cover. I didn't believe them. I went over to their house and looked for myself.
hmm.. sold a condo to a young lady a few months ago.. the inspection noted an electrical issue that only occurred when light switches were turned on.. possible water damage/mold behind tile in a bathroom (you could probably see lose/broken tiles, damaged grout on your own) and there was a gas leak from the furnace and something was wrong with the water heater (the way it was plumbed). So, she got a brand new water heater and furnace out of the inspection.. not too shabby.
I created a nifty hour-long presentation for my inspection association entitled "Its Just a Condo" playing on the wild misapprehension that condos are so standardized (or something) that they don't require physical inspection. As you can guess there was slide, after slide ,after slide of material defects discovered during condominium inspections.
BTW a number of inspectors will NOT inspect the exterior or roof directly related to your unit citing that the exterior or accessible roofing belong to the association: you need to know the condition of exterior and roof features as well as anything else. If it belongs to the association;fine, at least you will know what the condition is as it may very well affect you and your unit. Make sure you ask about that when you call to interview inspectors.
Also check on the financial stability of the HOA. The annual reports and budget should be available to you. If they have had large dues increases or unusual assessments, you may want to dig deeper into it. This could signify upcoming expenses that you didn't anticipate.
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