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Does Condo Living Match Your Lifestyle?

By: Mario Lapheww

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Are you thinking of buying that nice condominium? Think about it first. Owning a condominium is quite different from owning a single family home and comes with its own particularities. Before you jump into the condo market with both feet, you should make sure that the condominium lifestyle is right for you.

Make sure you review the advantages and disadvantages of owning one, using your own personal criteria. Which one is more important to you, security or proximity to your neighbors? Do you like the community living lifestyle? Review the following pluses and minuses of condo living before you make that purchasing decision.

Advantages:
Ideal Location
There is often a high concentration of condominiums in downtown locations where land is at a premium. If you want to be in the heart of the city, a condominium may be a good choice.

Safety
Having neighbors around makes it a lot easier to lock up and leave for a vacation or an extended period of time. Condos usually have guards downstairs, buzzers and other security features. This is particularly helpful if this is your second home, and you are only there for part of the year.

Low Maintenance
No more shoveling the snow or mowing the lawn! Condo living means someone else takes care of the plumbing problems or roof maintenance for you. There may be some cases, if it’s your fault, where you will have to pay.

Cost
While condominiums have a wide price range, the lower range is often within the budget of first-time buyers and singles who may find single-family houses unaffordable.

Perks and Amenities
Most condominium developments offer a range of amenities in the common areas. This means that you may have access to a swimming pool, gym or tennis courts that you would not be able to afford on your own.

Disadvantages:
You Own Zilch
When you buy a condo, you do not own the land beneath the building, you simply share an interest in it. Realistically, you just own the space between the walls of your unit, and the rest of the common areas you share the ownership with the other tenants.

Community Living
Shared walls and common areas mean that you are more likely to hear your neighbors or run into them more often. Also, as part of the homeowner’s association, you will have to coordinate with neighbors to come to decisions regarding the common areas.

Fees
Monthly condo fees go toward maintenance and repair of the common areas. There are occasionally additional assessment fees to handle larger repair jobs. Remember that these fees can pay for amenities that you don't use anyway , such as the swimming pool.

Resale Value
Condos tend to be more affected by market trends as compared to single-family residences. If the market takes a downturn, condos are usually the first to suffer and the last to recover.

Rules
Condos are governed by a set of rules called Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions, aka CC&Rs. This can include restrictions on noise levels, pet ownership, renovations, and even what kind of curtains you can put in your windows.

The Association
Because the condo association is made up of homeowners rather than property-management professionals, the association may be weak and inefficient. Note that if you want to make changes to your unit or if you want to rent it out, these are the folks you will need to get approvals from.

Just remember that condo ownership is totally different from owning a house, and you need to make sure that the condo lifestyle is for you.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Mario is a retiree living in the middle of the Las Vegas desert. In an effort to relieve his boredom, while at the same time make some money on the side, he has started promoting a varied collection of sites, so if you are looking for any add-ons for your ipads or if you are interested in discounted weber gas grills, check out his sites.

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