Prices of Townhouses and Retirement (San Antonio, Alamo: for sale, real estate, HOA fees)

[RobSg]

I lived in San antonio back in the 1980's for a brief time, and before that I was in the Air Force in the early 1970's based in San Antonio. The rest of the time I have been overseas teaching in international schools. You can see that my only real roots stem from the very fond memories I have from living in San Antonio.

At 61, I'd like to semi-retire in San Antonio, buy a townhouse or condo, and feel free to spend half the year away. Looking at Craigslist for San Antonio, I'm amazed at the cost of 2 bedroom townhouses and condos for sale ranging from $65,000 to $110,000. I see pictures of them, and they look in great shape. Even the $65,000 one looks nice. Is this something that is recent, or has it always been that way? I know the housing market is way down, but some of these prices are too good to be true.

Are condo fees outrageous, and let's say I bought a $100,000+ townhouse, what do you think might be the average property tax.

Thanks for any encouragement you might give.

Regards,
Rob

[dvlpr]

Rob - that's one of the great things about SA. Real estate of all types is quite cheap here. Taxes suck, but that's true for TX on the whole.

Fees shouldn't be an issue, though.

[austindoxie1972]

For property taxes, set aside roughly $2500 per $100,000. Maybe others can weigh in. I personally think the tax rate inside the city is closer to 3% for every $100,000.

Also, once you reach 65, you're property taxes are frozen. A great break for retirees!

[TXraised, NEborn]

I have been looking for a townhouse or condo to buy and I saw HOA fees that were outrageous! One on Broadway wanted $500 a month. Another I just saw wanted $175 which is definitely reasonable.

[StanStelle]

Condo fees are higher here than some other places. I used to own a condo in Northern California 4 years ago and was paying a $150 a month condo fee. It seemed reasonable given that the place had a club house, exercise room, 2 pools and lots of well maintained green areas. That fee was similar to other fees at similarly priced properties.
A little while ago a friend showed me listings for SA condos in the $70K range and I was surprised to find a good percentage of them also having $150 monthly dues and they didn't have all the amenities I used to have. My California place was worth 4 times more than this SA condo so the fee was relatively small compared to my mortgage. I'm not sure how SA condos justify their pricing structure.

[chisco34]

Hi Rob,

My mom was recently looked into a townhome in central SA. It is a new development by Centex called Silverado Hills. The homes are in the upper $100's and the HOA fees are $150 a month. The fee covers landscaping, gate and security, and overall aesthetics. It is a small community, I think it will only have around 200 units. There is also a Del Webb community on the northwest side of town. This is a retirement community, but I believe homes start in the $200's or close to it. There is also a new condo building off of I-10, but I don't know the name or the price range. You can definitely find something that is in the price range you mentioned. I think SA would be a great place to spend part of your year.

[Bo]

Originally Posted by StanStelle

I'm not sure how SA condos justify their pricing structure.

Property taxes are higher here than most other states. Do the fees cover property taxes?

[majormadmax]

Actually, we took my mother-in-law to look at the Del Webb retirement community in Alamo Ranch when she was visiting. It is a nice place but the cost of the homes are too high for what you get. You can easily buy a small home in a nice community for much cheaper and get a lawn service to take care of the outside, and still be ahead of the game money-wise. Right now it is a buyer's market and you can get some great deals out there, especially if you aren't planning to sell them in the near future...

Cheers! M2

[StanStelle]

Originally Posted by Bowie

Property taxes are higher here than most other states. Do the fees cover property taxes?

No, condo fees are separate from property taxes. Since in a condo you only own what is inside your walls, all the owners pay this fee to take care of the common areas i.e. landscaping, pool maintenance, perhaps a laundry room etc. It probably also covers a full or part-time handyman or front office person. I guess I answered my own question from my previous post. It doesn't matter how inexpensive the condo might be, they still need enough money in their coffers to pay for some minimal staff or support.
My friend was just astonished to find he would need to pay a $150 monthly fee when his condo mortgage would only be about $600 per month.