Living is a condominium, like most things in life, have their ups and downs.
With a condominium, you only own the living space between the walls. You do not own the building or any of the land on which the property stands. Looking at the brighter side of things, you don’t have a responsibility over what you don’t own.
How much will you be paying?
First things first. All condos have association fees, which you will have to shell out every month. This doesn’t include the amount for your mortgage. Your mortgage company will require these numbers when computing them. If you’ve already been approved for a mortgage, you might receive a lower monthly mortgage payment, based on your condo expenses.
Once you have an idea of how much you will be paying as condo maintenance, you will want to know what aspect is covered. Condo maintenance should cover building and ground maintenance. Also check if a part of the amount will be used for any major repairs in the future. Do this , in case you are charged an additional amount, other than the monthly expenses for repairs.
Read the rules
Always read the condo association documentation. You might have access to it only after you put a contract on the home. You may then be given 5 days to review it and decide whether to go ahead or pull the plug on the deal. When reviewing documentation, also check for the rules regarding what you can or cannot do.
A faster and better way of doing this is to talk to the neighbors and find out what the pros and cons of living in there are. In this way you can also get an idea about the people who live there.
