Condo ownership can be an excellent alternative to buying a traditional single family house. While condos can offer individual buyers many important advantages, those that are not familiar with living in these buildings may be unprepared for what to expect, which can make it difficult to make decisions during the buying process.

Condos Will Have Owners Association And Maintenance Dues

Individuals that live in condos will be responsible for paying their membership and maintenance dues. These fees are necessary to keep the building's administration functioning and the grounds well-maintained. However, the costs of these fees will vary greatly, which will make it important to consider this when you are making bids for properties. Furthermore, you may want to review the history of these fees so that you will know whether there is a trend for these fees to rise dramatically from year to year. These increases can indicate the building's association is having financial problems, which may be a factor that you need to consider.

You Will Still Need Homeowner's Insurance

While the building's ownership association will be responsible for insuring the common areas of the premises, you should be aware that you will still want to purchase an insurance policy for your unit. This is due to the fact that you will be responsible for any problems or damages that originate in your unit. Additionally, if these problems impact other units, you could be liable for the damages that they suffer. Fortunately, the insurance costs for condo owners will usually be much lower than what those that own traditional houses will have to pay.

Not All Condos Will Allow Tenants To Rent Out Their Units

Many people may like the idea of owning a condo that they only plan on using for part of the year. During the times when they are not using the unit, they may wish to rent it out as a way of raising additional money. For those that will be buying condos in tourist destinations, there may be an intense demand for renting your unit. However, you should be mindful of the reality that many condo building associations will have prohibitions in place against renting out units on a short-term basis. Buildings that allow this practice may have special stipulations in place, such as a need to carry commercial insurance for the unit. Closely reviewing the requirements and rules will enable you to know whether you will be able to rent your unit when you are not using it.

Contact a realtor, such as from Celia Dunn Sotheby's International Realty, for more help.