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Everything You Need to Know Before Buying a Co-op,Condo, or Townhouse
A comprehensive, one-stop guide to the challenges of buying, owning, living in and ultimately selling these homes. If you've been thinking about buying a co-op, condo, or townhouse, you probably know that you can't get much useful information from the books about buying houses. The obstacles you face are different-and often a lot more complicated. Price and financial situation are only part of the equation, and it's important to understand all the factors before deciding what sort of home to pursue. In Everything You Need to Know Before Buying a Co-op, Condo, or Townhouse , you'll find complete and indispensable information There's valuable information about buying both new construction and resales, dealing with developers and real estate agents, and deciphering the mountains of paperwork involved in even the simplest transaction, from contract to closing documents. You'll also learn secrets for increasing the value of your investment and preparing your home for sale-even if that day is a long way down the road. There's more than one kind of dream home, and each kind has its own unique issues. Everything You Need to Know Before Buying a Co-op, Condo, or Townhouse will help you make sure your dream comes true!
240 pages, Paperback
First published July 17, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 13, 2021
Found this while browsing at the library (oh what bliss!) for the first time in over a year.
It has stuff that's good to know, like that buying a condo from a developer is bound to come with delays, problems, and cost overruns. Also, I had never actually understood what a timeshare was before. It's also a bit dated (referring to printouts of everything, and it was written before Redfin and Zillow). And apparently the Bay Area/California is different (either that or times have changed), because here people are expected to read all the disclosures before making an offer. The book says you make an offer and then have a few days to read the disclosures and can back out if you don't like them.
There's lots of lawyerly stuff:
Tenants in common: each owns some percent of the house, and can sell it to someone else.
Tenants by the entirety: people own it jointly and need both signatures to sell (like a married couple).
Common elements: hallways, exteriors, etc. Limited common elements: exterior elements only you use, like your deck.
Quote:
"With a general warranty deed theoretically, you the seller would be required to defend against anyone who lays claim against the title. With a special warranty deed, you would be required to defend only against direct descendants (previous title holders) to the property." p128 - Wow. At least the next sentence is "Today, there is little practical difference between a special and a general warranty deed, and either is acceptable, depending on the custom of the area."
It has stuff that's good to know, like that buying a condo from a developer is bound to come with delays, problems, and cost overruns. Also, I had never actually understood what a timeshare was before. It's also a bit dated (referring to printouts of everything, and it was written before Redfin and Zillow). And apparently the Bay Area/California is different (either that or times have changed), because here people are expected to read all the disclosures before making an offer. The book says you make an offer and then have a few days to read the disclosures and can back out if you don't like them.
There's lots of lawyerly stuff:
Tenants in common: each owns some percent of the house, and can sell it to someone else.
Tenants by the entirety: people own it jointly and need both signatures to sell (like a married couple).
Common elements: hallways, exteriors, etc. Limited common elements: exterior elements only you use, like your deck.
Quote:
"With a general warranty deed theoretically, you the seller would be required to defend against anyone who lays claim against the title. With a special warranty deed, you would be required to defend only against direct descendants (previous title holders) to the property." p128 - Wow. At least the next sentence is "Today, there is little practical difference between a special and a general warranty deed, and either is acceptable, depending on the custom of the area."
May 4, 2008
The primary reason I chose to read this book was to get some more of the details of these various housing options. Included good information on any type of housing purchase. A coverage of the fundamentas on Condos and Townhouses, but it would have been nice to have a more extensive coverage of pros and (especialy) the cons. After all, the title is "Everything you need to know . . ."
P.S. Who knew that hotel condos exist?
P.S. Who knew that hotel condos exist?
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews