Condos?

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Account Closed · Answer

No. But make sure you can rent according to the HOA.  Also, if the HOA must approve your tenants, this is a pain and can delay your rent or you can lose your tenants because of the delay.

Another consideration is that the HOA fees can skyrocket.  It happened to me as a condo owner.  And the HOA is always an unknown.  Next month they may get a new yard nazi who hassles you about your potted plants and who knows what else.

If you can avoid ever having to deal with a HOA, that's my suggestion.  I expected to live in my condo forever.  I sold it two years after I bought it and vowed to never deal with a HOA again in my life.

They're a pain, and they're an unknown future cost, as well as unknown future rules.  I'd run the other way, if at all possible.

If renting is allowed, though, they'll rent as easily as any other apartments in the same condition, in the same area.

Mindy Jensen · Answer

@Joshua Cassino

Sue K. is absolutely right. Sue, maybe we lived in the same building?

I bought my condo. 6 months into living in it, a "Special Assessment" was levied to replace the boiler. An extra 50% of the regular assessment. Payments lasted a year. Then the next year, another "Special Assessment" was levied to repair the pool. An extra 50% of the regular assessment. Payments lasted a year. The year after that, another "Special Assessment" was levied to fix the roof. An extra 50% of the regular assessment. Guess what happened the 4th year? Ding ding ding! Another "Special Assessment" for another 50% of the regular assessment that lasted another year. This was back when I was poor and couldn't afford to pay it all at once.

The second and last condo I bought, they levied a special assessment of $700 for tuckpointing that had to be paid before I could sell it. This was a long time ago, and $700 was still a lot.

Darryl S. · Answer

I am always suspicious of numbers for condos showing good positive cash flow. that is a rare bird. Go back and double check your figures one more time. You might have a winner here but I am betting that you have missed something or have incorrect info from your ins agent (needs to know the property is a rental) / property tax numbers (look for state/county and CITY property taxes not just county taxes) / attend a HOA meeting meet the leadership and get a feel for their agenda IE New roofs Paving etc that will cause fee surges. Closely check for utilities costs for connect and disconnect fees. water utilities sometimes will have a 100 dollar connection fee if you have a vacancy just so you can turn water on to clean it up!  As you can tell I am not a Condo fan LOL

Account Closed · Answer

You can rent it for as much as the market will bear, unless this HOA is truly bizarre they won't have anything to do with how much you get in rent.

I've never heard of a HOA ever decreasing the dues.  Like @Mindy Jensen said, you might get a special assessment that gets paid off by such and such a date, but you will never know if another increase will come down the pike.

I moved into my condo in 1995 and the dues were $110.  They went up to around $150 just a year later because some lobbyist (not kidding, he was a lobbyist in Sacramento) got on the board because he wanted a garage door on his shared carport.  Convinced the other board members to sign off on it, put out a vote, and got his garage door.  That we all had to pay for.  There were about 30 buildings of 4 units each.  So, 30 garage doors had to be paid for because one guy successfully lobbied to get a garage door for himself.

This was for carports that had been used as open carports for 20 years.  And this meant the unit above the carport now gets to listen to the automatic garage door open and close all day and night- and that unit doesn't even get to use the carport!!!  And the 2 (out of 4 units in each building) units that did get to use the carport, could barely squeeze their cars in next to each other, and only compact cars could fit into it with the door closed.  AND they made a rule that the garage doors had to remain closed.  So, even the units that had the right to park in the new "garages," couldn't even park their cars under cover - if they were too big to get in there with the door closed.

That's just one story and I was only there 2 years.

So, honestly, if this condo is tempting because it's a good deal - it's because the owner is trying to get the hell out.  Been there.

Keep saving.  Buy something without a HOA.

Account Closed · Answer

That is not enough cash flow. You will be digging in to your pock before you know it.

Joshua Cassino · Answer

Thanks @suekelly. Who's in charge of the rent charge amount? Could i rent it for 1100 instead of the advertised 1050?? How much can they skyrocket.. I've also heard HOA is aggressive and rarely decreases prices

Condos?

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