Homeownership, The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

[Mike2841]

Hi all,

Looking to buy my own place soon, looking mainly at condos as that's what I can afford around here. I just want some insight and hear people's first hand experience owning a home, what I should expect, what unexpected things have happened to you that I should look out for. Anything anyone has to contribute will be appreciated.

[B-Dozer]

if you look at condos, read the property management rules carefully. especially in reference to pets, parking, fees, etc.

[Oregon Native]

Yup....the fine print. 

[Lund Explorer]

Please don't confuse owning part of a condo complex with true home ownership.

 

So long as you understand that the value of your investment (now and in the future) is controlled by others then you may enjoy being a minority voice in a condo complex.  As others have said, read carefully so you can make an informed decision.

[Nice_Bass]

As a loan officer I will only give the basics here as not really a great platform for communication in regards to this. 

If you are looking at condos a couple things to think about regarding financing: if you are going to go FHA/VA the condo must already be FHA approved or else you are pretty much out of luck.  If you are going conventional financing, make sure the bank you are working with does a condo questionnaire early in the process- even in the prequalification stage.  This way, you are not out there spending money on inspections, etc.  only to find out that the condo would not qualify for sale on the secondary market, and you are out the money.  Simple things disqualify such as any current litigation, an owner owning too many units, too high percentage rentals, etc.   

Also, in qualifying for a loan, as well as for your own personal expenditures, you will need to factor in the HOA/condo fees in to your total monthly payment along with the principle, interest, mortgage insurance (if any), taxes and home insurance. If all these are still lower than your typical single family residence than it is something to consider- sometimes it ends up being actually more or equal to a SFR of higher value with out the condo association fee.   More than anything, talk to your bank/lender first prior to talking to a realtor, etc. as the most work you will be doing is with the bank, or at least it will feel that way in the end.  Condo's have become a sort of four letter word in some areas, so make sure whoever you are talking to knows what they are talking about- and takes more than 5 minutes to tell you only what you want to hear. 

Good luck with it all. 

[buzzed bait]

i was just coming here to say the yard work/upkeep on the exterior was more work than i anticipated...... BUT that wouldn't be much of a problem in a condo.....

[DogBone_384]

Buying a house/condo is better than renting, no matter what because you're paying into your own equity and not a landlord's.  

 

If you can find a house you can afford, consider it over a condo because there are no condo fees and fewer restrictions on what you can/can't do to with respect to landscaping, window replacement, modifications, etc.  Privacy is also something to be considered when deciding house or condo.

 

Being in Eastern MA, look at the tax rate for any properties you're interested in, whether or not it's in a flood zone, and if water & sewer are supplied by MWRA.  These are all extra expenses on top of your mortgage.  

 

Owning your own home is expensive up here, but the longer you stay in that home, the cheaper it'll be to live as opposed to renting.  We built new 15 years ago.  Our mortgage remains the same until we pay it off, but rent in my area increased significantly - to the point that a 2 bedroom apartment in my city is more than my mortgage.

 

I agree with other members' advice to read the fine print if you're going for a condo.  

Best of luck with it.  It's sometimes a lot of work, but ownership is always better than renting.
 

[Mike2841]

Thanks for the replies. I've already figured out the max I can comfortably afford and have been preapproved for a VA loan based on that amount. I'm feel like I have a pretty good idea of what I can spend and factor mortgage, HOA, and taxes when I look at a place. I would rather buy a house, but I have yet to find a sf house in my area (greater Boston area) in my price range that's not a "handy man special", and I don't really have the time nor the know how to take on a project like that right now. I guess what I'm really looking for is people with horror stories about bad neighbors, poorly run associations, general maintenance of a home, etc.

[curtis9]

For a condo make sure you look at the place multiple times and ideally while the neighbors are there to see how loud they are. If you can I'd recommend an end unit on the top floor to limit shared walls with neighbors.

[aceman387]

Make sure the condo unit you look at is owner occupied, and not an owner who rents his or her unit out. You can limit a revolving door of headaches by doing so.

[Choporoz]

Consider....where will you put your boat?

[Nice_Bass]

Thanks for the replies. I've already figured out the max I can comfortably afford and have been preapproved for a VA loan based on that amount. I'm feel like I have a pretty good idea of what I can spend and factor mortgage, HOA, and taxes when I look at a place. I would rather buy a house, but I have yet to find a sf house in my area (greater Boston area) in my price range that's not a "handy man special", and I don't really have the time nor the know how to take on a project like that right now. I guess what I'm really looking for is people with horror stories about bad neighbors, poorly run associations, general maintenance of a home, etc.

There are plenty of horror stories out there- does not mean that they will or will not apply to your complex however.

https://vip.vba.va.gov/portal/VBAH/VBAHome/condopudsearch

is VA's website that you can find out if the place you are looking at would qualify for a VA loan. 

[buzzed bait]

Would a townhouse be an option?  sounds like you may be able to balance out the best of both worlds.... and stay clear of that d**n yard work i speak of above....  yard work climaxes about the same time the spawning period is taking place, pure punishment!

[Choporoz]

I went the townhouse this time around.  And, I'm not kidding about boat parking.  I didn't have a boat when I moved here.  Still don't.

 

But, I'm very happy with the fact that my lawn is a total of about 20 square feet.  I've done the large house and huge lot for many years.  There is certainly the possibility of some satisfaction when it looks good.  But, I tired of that.  Now, yard work takes an hour or two per month and doesn't detract (much) from fishing time.  HOA fees aren't too bad and the pool and tennis courts are nice.  When we got a foot of snow, I waited for the plow to come through and then spent about 20 minutes shoveling.  But, no place to park the dang boat.....

[Mike2841]

Right now my realtor is pretty good about weeding out te ones that aren't VA approved. Don't have a boat, storage for my kayak is a concern but not a deal breaker for me.

[Lund Explorer]

Thanks for the replies. I've already figured out the max I can comfortably afford and have been preapproved for a VA loan based on that amount. I'm feel like I have a pretty good idea of what I can spend and factor mortgage, HOA, and taxes when I look at a place. I would rather buy a house, but I have yet to find a sf house in my area (greater Boston area) in my price range that's not a "handy man special", and I don't really have the time nor the know how to take on a project like that right now. I guess what I'm really looking for is people with horror stories about bad neighbors, poorly run associations, general maintenance of a home, etc.

 

Those shouldn't be hard to find.

 

Only by second hand (our daughter) the horror story ended up with a condo turned into a college rental.  Its a hard lesson to find out that you could be better off letting the bank repo your dream home.

[Redlinerobert]

The benefits far outweigh the negatives of home ownership.  Tax write offs and appreciation are just a couple of the benefits. 

 

If you can swing a small house over a condo I would recommend that.  condo's don't appreciate as quickly as a house does, and if it's a fixer upper that you can make repairs to over time you'll make money on it when it comes to sell and upgrade.

[Mike2841]

When I look at a place what kind of things so I ask/look for?

Pros and cons of gas, electric, oil heat?

In the case of a condo what are the pros and cons of a large association vs a small association?

[A-Jay]

Thanks for the replies. I've already figured out the max I can comfortably afford and have been preapproved for a VA loan based on that amount. I'm feel like I have a pretty good idea of what I can spend and factor mortgage, HOA, and taxes when I look at a place. I would rather buy a house, but I have yet to find a sf house in my area (greater Boston area) in my price range that's not a "handy man special", and I don't really have the time nor the know how to take on a project like that right now. I guess what I'm really looking for is people with horror stories about bad neighbors, poorly run associations, general maintenance of a home, etc.

 

  They are easy to find.  What may be less common, are stories about men who have made every effort possible to research the portions of home ownership that are important to them and ensure they have as much information as possible. Use the paid advice of Professionals when needed (not friends, family members or any party who has a stake in your investment) This does not guarantee there may still not be challenges to face, but it does seem to drastically reduce The Horror Stories; which are so often self induced.

 

 Spend whatever time you do have now effectively, BEFORE any commitment.  However hard it may be now, there is a good chance it can save you time, money & frustration later.

 

Good Luck up in Bean Town

 

A-Jay

[Mike2841]

Not sure if that was a stab at me, but I have put in a good amount of time researching and have been speaking with a realtor. This just happens to be the largest assembly of people I "know" all in one place and I'm looking for all the info I can before I finally pull the trigger.

[buzzed bait]

^^ don't think that was a stab by any means.  what he says is the truest words you can hear when buying a house. 

no receipt or return policy once you make the commitment. 

my advice: make a 3 part list.

1. house must have these items

2. house cannot have any of these items

3. would be nice, but not a deal breaker

 

put all your needs/wants into one of those buckets.  as you start to look at houses/places you can easily check off which ones do/do not meet your criteria.  once you find a place that meets the needs of lists 1 and 2, then starts to fulfill more and more of your wants from list 3, you know you've found the right place.

this method worked VERY well for my wife and i as we hunted for our house in a ridiculously fast/cutthroat marketplace in the atlanta area.

[Glenn]

A-Jay wasn't stabbing you. It's sound advice.

 

I've owned both condos and homes.  Definitely homes are the way to go, but condos are a good gateway drug to home ownership.  The key difference is that anything on the outside of the condo is the responsibility of the condo association; the inside is yours.  At least that's true as a general rule.  Condo associations vary, and the devil is in the details.  So read them thoroughly, and ask questions on anything that's not clear to you.

 

Key considerations are:

How many parking spaces do you get and where are they located?  What about guest parking when you want to host a game day or party? 

 

Do they allow renting of condos?  If so, run away and don't look back!  You're essentially living in an apartment complex otherwise.

 

How much are the dues?  How often do they increase? By how much?

 

Other things to consider:

It was said earlier, but get a top floor, corner condo.  Seriously.  Don't even look at anything else.  Those units are safer and quieter than anything else offered.

 

Don't get a unit near the cabana/pool/basketball courts, etc.  Unless you enjoy noise.  I once had a unit that overlooked the pool.  To this day, I can't stand "Marco Polo".  I got sick of hearing it.

 

Get it independently inspected by a quality, licensed home inspector you find and hire yourself.  That way he's truly an uninterested 3rd party with no strings attached to the sale.  Do not skip this step! There's plenty of info on the Internet about finding good inspectors.  Information is free and priceless.

 

Pay close attention to all the associated fees with the purchase of your condo. It can easily add up to several thousand dollars. I recommend budgeting for them, and paying for them out of pocket, rather than lumping them into your loan.  You'll be paying interest for years on something with no equity otherwise.

 

If you are not a smoker, be sure to thoroughly check out your neighbors to see if they smoke, because it WILL seep through the walls and into your home.  Same thing with fleas from  pets. Check the association rules regarding this too.  Some condo complexes are smoke and pet free.  MIght be the way to go, since neighbors change over time.

 

Buy as new as possible.  Less things to go wrong, and will most likely have lower heating/cooling costs.

 

Hope that helps!

[Mike2841]

Thanks guys

[A-Jay]

Not sure if that was a stab at me, but I have put in a good amount of time researching and have been speaking with a realtor. This just happens to be the largest assembly of people I "know" all in one place and I'm looking for all the info I can before I finally pull the trigger.

 

I do not waste my time & effort doing anything except trying to be part of the solution.

 

I was offering you the benefit of my experience - which is what you asked for.

 

I simply chose to focus on how to be successful rather than list Horror stories which are in my opinion often self induced.

 

A-Jay

[Mike2841]

I guess I just took it the wrong way, no harm no foul