7 Tips for Buying a NJ Real Estate Condo or Townhome

What to do in order to avoid regretting your NJ Real Estate purchase

House hunting can be a very exciting as well as daunting process. In today’s NJ Real Estate market, the odds are certainly in favor of the buyer as prices and mortgage rates are at historic lows along with a large amount of inventory available. The average length of time it takes to find a home varies anywhere from one to three months, sometimes longer. If you are in the market for a condo or townhome, here are seven important questions to ask in order to make your purchasing decision easier:

Attend association board meetings

Community and homeowners associations can provide information that a seller may otherwise neglect to inform you of. Attending association board meetings can make you aware of any issues that the community might have including damaged roofs or landscaping problems.

Hire a NJ Real Estate Attorney

Although purchasing a single family home can be a simple process, condo and townhome communities present many more challenges as you are sharing space with many other residents. A NJ Real Estate attorney can review bylaws to clarify the rules and regulations with you and contact the local court of law to find out if any residents have filed suits against the association.

Research the community

As a new resident, you want to know the financial stability of the association in which you are paying your monthly dues. By contacting the association directly, you will be able to learn of the rate of delinquency, if any, of present owners that could possibly indicate dissatisfaction or financial hardships of the association.

Inquire regarding insurance

One of the most important things you can do to ascertain the safety of yourself is to obtain a copy of the certificate of insurance. This is essentially a synopsis of the association’s policy which states what is covered and what you as an owner are responsible for. Additionally, you will want to get an insurance policy of your own to protect your personal belongings along with anything else not included in the association’s policy.

Find out about the reserve fund

A portion of your monthly association dues will be allocated to a repair fund to cover the cost of any routine maintenance or damage done to the complex. Depending on the age of the community, reserve funds should contain anywhere from ten to over fifty percent of the cost of replaceable items such as roads or roofs.

Ask about the management company

Be aware of who is in charge of managing your community whether they are living in the actual complex or stationed hundreds of miles away. Ask other residents about the upkeep of the community and the timeliness of response to maintenance calls. This can mean the difference between having a pleasant experience and living a nightmare.

Is the community open to renters?

Inquire about the rental policy if the rental rate of your community exceeds ten percent. A NJ Real Estate attorney should review the bylaws and possibly obtain a copy of the association’s rental lease to learn of guidelines and requirements of tenants such as credit checks and security deposits. Also, speak to other residents of the complex to get their opinions on the quality of the tenants to see how strict the association is about renting.