Planning on buying a condo soon? If you’ve never owned a condo before then it’s important to know what to look for and consider before submitting an offer.

1 – Once the condo interior receives your approval take a look beyond to the rest of the property. Masonry, roofing, common hallways and lobby areas, parking lots and landscaping. Those un-maintained areas may later lead to those “special assessments” that can lead to unexpected HOA fees.

2 – In general, you’ll want to find something that’s updated with kitchen and baths no older than 5-10 years. “Condo years” tend to go by much faster than “detached-home years” and appraisers consider how recently those updates were done when determining values. Most anything over 15 years is not considered updated or excellent condition even if it is well maintained.

3 – Read over the HOA meeting minutes and HOA financials. Any chance or future litigation by the HOA will be documented in the HOA minutes. Banks tend to be much more conservative if there’s litigation involved so it’s best to be prepared and you can submit an offer subject to reviewing the HOA meeting minutes or interior inspection, that way you can back out if it doesn’t look like a good deal.

4 – Determine what you’ll want to do when you’re ready to sell a few years down the line. How quickly have other units in the development sold? How has the neighborhood value fluctuated over the years? Is there a limit to the number of rentals allowed by the Home Owners Association – if you’d rather not sell but rent.

About the Author | Aaron Majors

• Author's website: http://www.PortlandHomeAuction.com
• More posts by Aaron
• email the author

Born and raised in Alaska, Aaron came to Portland after serving in the U.S. Marine Corps. Aaron enjoys the outdoors, volunteering, teaching, learning, and being active in the community. Always loving architecture and buildings, it seemed natural that Aaron's passion became Real Estate. He is a member of the Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors and is always continuing his Real Estate education. He sells Real Estate in the Portland metro area and specializes in selling Homes and has an extensive background in foreclosures, Home Auctions, Short Sales, Bank Owned homes, and investments.