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Updated almost 9 years ago on . Most recent reply

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15
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Syed Hussain
  • Laurel, MD
9
Votes |
15
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Condos? Good first time rental?

Syed Hussain
  • Laurel, MD
Posted

Hello everyone.  I'm a brand new investor and have started looking at homes for sale in my area.  I see a number of relatively low priced deals in decent areas, but many of them are condos.  I ran some of them through the BP calculators with very conservative numbers and the returns were still very good.  They seem attractive to me because I can afford the down payment on many of these deals with my own money.

Is there a catch with condos?  I know there is an association fee but is there anything else I should look out for?  Are they a good investment in my situation or should I hold out on finding a good deal on a single family home?  Thanks!

Most Popular Reply

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2,953
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4,475
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Alexander Felice
  • Guy with Great Hair
  • Austin, TX
4,475
Votes |
2,953
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Alexander Felice
  • Guy with Great Hair
  • Austin, TX
Replied

my first unit was a condo, it's been profitable and pretty easy to deal with.....and....I would never buy another nor would I recommend it.

  • the HOA fee alone sucks. it builds no equity and you have little control over changes in price. and it cuts into cash flow
  • the hoa can put on special assessments (although I have never had one)
  • the hoa can simply be a pain in the *** if someone living there is out of spec or they have restrictions that make renting trickier
  • condos generally don't appreciate (in my experience) like SFH because they have to appreciate as a whole, which is harder.

not the worst possible investment, but since I have owned mine I have seen no benefit over my SFH and I have less control over it

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