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Hi! Been renting in the Washington D.C. (Arlington, VA) area for the past 17 years and decided it's finally time to get out there and buy (for the very first time). Am single and targeting a condo, though will also consider a townhouse. For someone who's never been through any of this process before and not knowledgeable at all about any of this, can folks recommend a few books to help me get more knowledgeable about the entire process? Have browsed around a bit and see several books that look interesting, though most of the top sellers appear to be from 10+ years ago, though I'd guess the information in those books are still largely relevant today. Have more than enough money to buy with very good/great credit and stable job - have always just liked where I lived renting so never felt a need to purchase... any advice would be appreciated, thanks!!!
Location: Sarasota/ Bradenton - University Pkwy area
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While I cannot recommend a book for you, I can give you some general advice that I share with my condo buyers.
Before buying a condo in any community, there are a number of questions I would ask regarding the condo community's Rules & Regulations, Bylaws and voting rights, BUDGETS, Budget Reserves for big ticket maintenance (a very important factor), routine maintenance, the Board (try to get & read several months worth of meeting minutes) and whether there are any current or pending lawsuits against the condo association.
The financials of a condo association are, in my opinion, as important (if not more so) than current monthly fees. Is the association meeting it's current financial obligations? Do they have sufficient reserves for the more expensive maintenance/repair items (such as roofs) or can you expect to see special assessments to help cover costs? How many owners are behind in their payments? Are there any current special assessments or discussions about doing special assessments? (Special assessments against the unit owners are often made when specific repairs are needed but the condo association does not have sufficient monies in reserve to make those repairs.)
Meeting minutes will give you a better idea as to what is going on within the condo community -- are they having issues with an owner/tenant that may lead to a lawsuit? Are they discussing unexpected maintenance issues? Rule changes?
I would also want to know how many units are owner occupied and how many are used as rentals. If there are a large number of rentals within the community and you are looking for something to use as your residence, you may want to rethink that particular community. Investor owners generally vote with their wallets in mind.
You'll want to see and read the condominium documents before buying in a condo community. The condo docs will tell you what you as unit owner are responsible for maintaining, what the condo association maintains. Generally, the unit owner is responsible for anything from the exterior wall studs inward -- so all drywall, electrical, plumbing, appliances, etc. Some condo associations make unit owners responsible for windows and doors as well, read the documents carefully. Roofs are often the responsibility of the condo association, but not always - you'll want to know up front who is responsible for roof maintenance and replacement for your building. You'll want to factor in insurance costs for the interior of your condo (all condo docs I've seen require unit owners to carry their own insurance for their individual units).
The more homework you do up front when purchasing a condo, the less likely you will encounter surprises later. Good luck with your home search.
Read Catch-22. The Catch is being crazy will not get you out of an HOA, only crazy people buy in HOAs to begin with. I am sleeping better in my modest house that the last occupant simply died of carbon monoxide poisoning than any HOA. I'll admit to buying a few at 20 dents on the dollar in Phoenix and Vegas, but it was for short term gains. And a reminder they are first to go down, go down by the most, and last to recover... HOA fees never go down, though.
OP, know that you will hear a lot of hysterical warnings about condos and how awful they are. It's a fact that hundreds of thousands and maybe millions of people live in and are happy with their condos. There are horror stories to be sure, but there are equally bad stories about single family homes. A nice unit in a well-run condo association can be a beautiful thing with little hands-on required for an owner. Sunshine Rules post above is as good as any book you're going to find.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
4,641 posts, read 11,943,169 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunshine Rules
While I cannot recommend a book for you, I can give you some general advice that I share with my condo buyers.
Before buying a condo in any community, there are a number of questions I would ask regarding the condo community's Rules & Regulations, Bylaws and voting rights, BUDGETS, Budget Reserves for big ticket maintenance (a very important factor), routine maintenance, the Board (try to get & read several months worth of meeting minutes) and whether there are any current or pending lawsuits against the condo association.
The financials of a condo association are, in my opinion, as important (if not more so) than current monthly fees. Is the association meeting it's current financial obligations? Do they have sufficient reserves for the more expensive maintenance/repair items (such as roofs) or can you expect to see special assessments to help cover costs? How many owners are behind in their payments? Are there any current special assessments or discussions about doing special assessments? (Special assessments against the unit owners are often made when specific repairs are needed but the condo association does not have sufficient monies in reserve to make those repairs.)
Meeting minutes will give you a better idea as to what is going on within the condo community -- are they having issues with an owner/tenant that may lead to a lawsuit? Are they discussing unexpected maintenance issues? Rule changes?
I would also want to know how many units are owner occupied and how many are used as rentals. If there are a large number of rentals within the community and you are looking for something to use as your residence, you may want to rethink that particular community. Investor owners generally vote with their wallets in mind.
You'll want to see and read the condominium documents before buying in a condo community. The condo docs will tell you what you as unit owner are responsible for maintaining, what the condo association maintains. Generally, the unit owner is responsible for anything from the exterior wall studs inward -- so all drywall, electrical, plumbing, appliances, etc. Some condo associations make unit owners responsible for windows and doors as well, read the documents carefully. Roofs are often the responsibility of the condo association, but not always - you'll want to know up front who is responsible for roof maintenance and replacement for your building. You'll want to factor in insurance costs for the interior of your condo (all condo docs I've seen require unit owners to carry their own insurance for their individual units).
The more homework you do up front when purchasing a condo, the less likely you will encounter surprises later. Good luck with your home search.
Do you think OP will be able to view those documents prior to putting in a contract?
In my neck of the woods, you would not receive those documents until 5 days before closing. Even then, you would only get the bylaws and CCRs, not the minutes.
Hi! Been renting in the Washington D.C. (Arlington, VA) area for the past 17 years and decided it's finally time to get out there and buy (for the very first time). Am single and targeting a condo, though will also consider a townhouse. For someone who's never been through any of this process before and not knowledgeable at all about any of this, can folks recommend a few books to help me get more knowledgeable about the entire process? Have browsed around a bit and see several books that look interesting, though most of the top sellers appear to be from 10+ years ago, though I'd guess the information in those books are still largely relevant today. Have more than enough money to buy with very good/great credit and stable job - have always just liked where I lived renting so never felt a need to purchase... any advice would be appreciated, thanks!!!
Forget about books.
Familiarize yourself with your state’s laws the apply to condo association. Links imbedded:
Do you think OP will be able to view those documents prior to putting in a contract?
In my neck of the woods, you would not receive those documents until 5 days before closing. Even then, you would only get the bylaws and CCRs, not the minutes.
I will not list a property in an association without the owner securing a copy of the governing documents, budget, financial statements rules, etc. it’s all public information.
Associations under property management often charge $ hundreds for this information that is readily available to any owner.
Progressive associations, such as my own, post every on its website.
Despite this, most buyers in my neck of the woods receive this documentation at the closing table. Imagine learning the place does not allow or restricts pets and you have a pet.
OP, know that you will hear a lot of hysterical warnings about condos and how awful they are. It's a fact that hundreds of thousands and maybe millions of people live in and are happy with their condos. There are horror stories to be sure, but there are equally bad stories about single family homes. A nice unit in a well-run condo association can be a beautiful thing with little hands-on required for an owner. Sunshine Rules post above is as good as any book you're going to find.
More than 5 million households live in condos/ co- ops in the US. No two are alike.
OP, know that you will hear a lot of hysterical warnings about condos and how awful they are. It's a fact that hundreds of thousands and maybe millions of people live in and are happy with their condos. There are horror stories to be sure, but there are equally bad stories about single family homes. A nice unit in a well-run condo association can be a beautiful thing with little hands-on required for an owner. Sunshine Rules post above is as good as any book you're going to find.
Yes, we love our condo. As retirees, we were tired of yard work and wanted to kick back. Now, life is carefree.
But we bought ours new (2013) as it was being built, and I think that makes a big difference. I had a 1980s condo on the Gulf in TX and it was constantly having problems and had a HUGE HOA fee anyway. Then hurricane Harvey came along but we'd sold by then. Many units were destroyed.
We have over half unoccupied absentee owner units which is nice. Mostly second homes, so it is nice to have everything to ourselves for the most part...we just vote on anything that comes up, but not much does!
I recall look g at a condo on a lake outside of Dallas. I was told they once had a SWAT team at an HOA meeting.
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