My wife and I love condos, both investing in condos and living in condos. When we take our clients out to look at purchasing condos we make sure that they're fully aware of some of the things that can make or break how happy you are with your decision that you purchased that condo.
As Scottsdale Realtors we see a lot of Scottsdale condo communities. Whether the community is in Old Town or North Scottsdale, there are things that you want to make sure you notice when evaluating whether a condo community is a good fit.
The following list is just a few that you should take into consideration before making an offer on a condo:
- Noise - You want to get a good sense of what kind of noise you're going to hear in your condo. In general, if you're a person that really hates to hear your neighbors condo living probably isn't for you. If you're okay tolerating a bit of noise but don't want to constantly hear your neighbors, you're like most people that live in condos. Pay attention to how much outside noise you hear when you're viewing the condo. It may be a good idea to have someone go out into the hallway and make a little noise to see if you can hear it inside the condo.
- Grounds - Pay attention as you walk around. How clean are the grounds? Do you see maintenance people around? If the grounds aren't well kept now they probably won't be later.
- Trash - Is the trash area clean? It gets hot in Arizona in the summer and that certainly includes Phoenix and Scottsdale! If trash is infrequently emptied it can start to smell quickly. Pay attention to how clean the dumpsters and trash receptacles are, if they're dirty now they may smell in the summer.
- Night - Take a look at the condo community at night. The community may look great during the day but have lots of visible deferred maintenance at night. Items like lightbulbs being burnt out can have a very drastic look.
- Financials - Always take a look at the Home Owner's Assoication's financials. If the HOA doesn't have enough money it's likely that there will be a dues increase or a special assessment. You want to make sure that the community is covering its regular expenses as well as depositing a decent amount in reserves. Developers often set the dues as low as possible to attract more buyers, be wary of HOA dues that "seem too low."
It's often good to just speak to your potentially new neighbors and ask them what they think about the community. If you a real estate agent with good knowledge of the Old Town Scottsdale condo communities they can help steer you towards the better built and fiscally responsible condo communities.
When purchasing a brand new condo, especially the new and often times awesome luxury condos, you need to evaluate the risk that you're taking on. By no means am I ever saying not to pull the trigger on that new shiny building, just be aware that purchasing a brand new condo can be like purchasing a brand new car, you're often times going to lose some money the moment you drive it off the lot.
Contact us to view Scottsdale condos for sale. Use our website to browse all Scottsdale homes for sale or we have specific searches such as Old Town Scottsdale condos for sale or North Scottsdale homes for sale.
If you'd like to learn more about specific condo communities you can use our contact form or call us at 480-387-3990.
What other things do you look at before purchasing a condo?