Kevin McCormally: I am Kevin McCormally with Kiplinger's. I am here with Pat Esswein, the Housing Editor of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine to talk about condominiums. Pat, we that housing market is slowing down in a lot of the country. Is the same thing happening with condos?
Pat Esswein: Yes it is, specially in some of the hottest market in the South Western Florida, largely because there is a really over supply of units on the market, with much more to common in the next couple of years.
Kevin McCormally: So, on some of areas, prices are actually going down.
Pat Esswein: Yes.
Kevin McCormally: So is this a great time to buy a condo?
Pat Esswein: If you don't have to, it would wise to maybe give it a year, to see how things shake out.
Kevin McCormally: You think it maybe going to come down even more.
Pat Esswein: Yes.
Kevin McCormally: Let's say, I don't have a year to wait. I am being transferred to new location, I need to buy something now. How would I find the best deal in any market into?
Pat Esswein: Well, the most important thing is to look for good value. This would not be a smart time to buy the most expensive unit on the block. You want to find motivated sellers, who might even offer an incentives, say a years worth of condo fees.
Kevin McCormally: Anything else to look for define value on a condo today?
Pat Esswein: What you would want to do, is look for a good resell value. So you want a unit with a great view, easy access to parking, in a colder climate. You might want garage parking. In some luxury markets, a concierge or a doorman is considered to be very desirable. If you might be reselling to empty nester's, you want a specious open floor plan.
Kevin McCormally: Any minimum amount of time, I should probably hold a condo, if I want to get out alive financially.
Pat Esswein: Yes, you want to plan to own it for say, 3-5 years.
Kevin McCormally: Okay. Thank you very much Pat.
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