The Complete Guide to Purchasing a Condo, Townhouse, or Apartment: What Smart Investors Need to Know - Explained Simply (Paperback)

by Susan Smith Alvis (Author)
Key Phrases: shared housing unit, financing your purchase, vacation homeowners, Licensed Realtor, Certified International Property Specialist Eugenia, Eugenia Foxworth Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
While many of the steps in buying a home are the same as buying a condominium, townhouse, or apartment, there are many critical differences. This new book offers a complete overview of these special, usually smaller, residences. These units can be good options for first-time home buyers, for those who want a vacation getaway, investors, and those who want to downsize their living space. These housing units are usually less expensive than a single family home and can include attractive amenities. In purchasing one of these units there will be a lot of people to deal with, from realtors, condo boards, attorneys, to bankers. There s tons of paperwork with terms and vocabulary that read like a foreign language. In this new book you will find vital information and great strategies for finding the home you want faster and feeling confident about the purchase. You will learn to avoid some of the most prevalent and potentially dangerous and expensive mistakes made by others. The book covers the entire, unique process of buying one of these shared living houses in an easy-to-understand way, pointing out dozens of hints and suggestion as to what to look for as well as demonstrating the many mistakes common with these types of investments. You will learn how to find the best opportunities, to negotiate, finance, budget, handle pre-construction issues, set values, and make the offer. You will be able to define what you are buying (and what you are not) issues on your right to sell, lease, or mortgage. You will be prepared for restrictions pertaining to children, pets, parking, vehicles, boats, music, maintenance of windows, doors, screens, air conditioners, plumbing, club memberships, recreation facility leases, use of recreational facilities, and common areas. In addition, you will learn the advantages of using credit reports, home warranties, insurance, creative financing, closing procedures, moving plans, closing and settlement inspections, and certain legal contracts. You will have instruction in obtaining mortgages which government agencies can help, considerations for veterans, IRA use, hiring an attorney, calculating monthly payments, and establishing an escrow account. The real estate and mortgage glossaries alone are invaluable resources, even for the old hand at property acquisition.

About the Author
Susan Alvis has her Tennessee real estate license in retirement. She is the author of How to Creatively Finance Your Real Estate Investments and Build Your Personal Fortune: What Smart Investors Need to Know; How to Buy Real Estate Without a Down Payment in any Market: Insider Secrets From the Experts Who do it Everyday, and How to Become a Million Dollar Real Estate Agent in Your First Year. Currently, she is working on several non-fiction books on gambling related material as a ghost writer and under her own name. She has started writing romance novelettes under a pen name and is realizing success in fiction writing as well. Susan also speaks to teens and young adults in a gripping message every teenager in America should hear. She lives in Northeast Tennessee with her husband, Brent, and their two children, Matthew and Amber.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Atlantic Publishing Company (FL); illustrated edition edition (August 24, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1601380364
• ISBN-13: 978-1601380364
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #163,765 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #54 in	Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > Purchasing & Buying
  #76 in	Books > Business & Investing > Real Estate > Buying & Selling Homes

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Complete Guide to Purchasing a Condo, December 20, 2007

By	Jennifer L. Flaten (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The author takes great pains to dispel those lingering myths about condo ownership. She does this in a light easy tone. The book has a good layout in an easy to read format. The chapters flow nicely into one another. The author has included some very interesting case studies and anecdotes provide by others in the Real Estate field.

The book is full of strong practical advice. It also pulls no punches, she makes it clear that condo townhome ownership is not for everyone. She makes sure to cover not only the good points but the bad ones as well, especially in the area of Homeowners Associations-she explains their importance and how to deal with them. All of this done in an easy friendly manner with a welcome touch of humor.

The book is an excellent checklist for anyone considering buying.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read, good info, but fairly short with a lot of fluff, December 12, 2008

By	Brian Stepanek "flyfresno" (Fresno) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The good: This book was a very interesting read...I really liked the way that it was written, I couldn't put it down. All of the information was good, and while some of it was common sense knowledge, there were a lot of new points and questions the book brought up that really made me think. I'm really glad I read this book.
The bad: Almost half of the book's size is useless amortization tables that you can easily find online. I think they added these [...] pages with the sole purpose [...]. Because of that, I have to deduct two stars.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Condos rule! Get the inside scoop on the shared housing market, October 9, 2007

By	TwoPointers (St. Louis, MO USA) - See all my reviews

As the baby boomer generation ages, more and more retired couples will be looking to sell their houses and make the move into a condominium or town home. This book focuses on the "shared housing" market (ie, condo, town home, apartment, co-op) and why it can be a great choice for retirees, busy professionals or young families, as well as an excellent investment tool for those looking to expand their portfolios.

Susan Smith Alvis has a considerable background in real estate and the shared housing arena and she puts her knowledge and experience to good use in this very informative and readable book. Touching on the simple (the difference between a condo and a town home) and the more complex (how an investor can find a niche market in apartment or condo real estate), she covers both the advantages and disadvantages of shared housing.

Benefits of purchasing a shared housing unit include, for instance, having a swimming pool, waterfront view or exceptional location which may not be available or affordable with a standard home. However, Alvis also realistically addresses some of the sticking points shared housing brings and that should be taken into consideration by potential buyers. She stresses the importance of researching the homeowners' association in the building, the board of directors and any condo fees, dues and special assessments that may regularly impact owners. She advocates potential buyers to do their homework before buying and provides plenty of avenues to explore to get accurate information before making a decision. As well, the book is quite up front about the "culture shock" of shared housing and what to expect during your first few months in a unit.

Concerning the actual purchase of a shared housing unit, the book guides you through the steps of viewing properties and negotiating a good deal with the seller or developer. Alvis also details creative financing methods (she has written another book specifically on this topic and I would advise anyone that is looking to finance outside of a conventional loan to read it) and encourages those who are not 100% certain of shared housing to try renting or lease-purchase options first. While Alvis is certainly pro-shared housing, she does emphasize that it is not the perfect option for everyone

A notable aspect of this book is that it gives equal attention to those looking to purchase shared housing as a primary residence as well as those who might be purchasing units or buildings as an investment. An interesting idea that Alvis also brings up is purchasing a shared housing unit as a vacation get away - whether for yourself or for renting out to other vacationers. Again, with shared housing, you get a lot of bang for your buck with locations and amenities that are attractive and much more affordable than you would get with a conventional home.

Alvis' comprehensive indexes include a checklist for going through complexes and units in preparation for buying, good locations to invest in for vacation rentals, sample association bylaws, a sample engineering/inspection report and financial charts with amortizations tables to help you determine how much you can afford (including those easily forgotten condo fees!). The very broad glossary is useful for anyone involved in real estate (not just shared housing), even for those who just want to sign those papers and move into their new home!

Overall, this book is definitely a resource you should have if you are even remotely considering purchasing some type of shared housing. It is comprehensive, easy to read, balanced and full of tips and tricks. On a side note, a portion of the proceeds of this book are being donated to the Humane Society of the United States in memory of the publisher's "vice president of sunshine" so when you purchase this book, you can feel doubly good about it.