Kevin McCormally: I am Kevin McCormally of Kiplinger's and I am here with Pat Esswein, the Housing Editor of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine, to talk about Condominiums. Pat, we know the housing market is slowing down in a lot of the country, is the same thing happening with Condos?
Pat Esswein: Yes, it is, especially in some of the hottest markets in the South-Western Florida, largely because there is an real over supply of units on the market with much more to come in the next couple of years.
Kevin McCormally: So in some of the 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 be wise to maybe give it a year to see how things shake out.
Kevin McCormally: You think it's 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 a new location, I need to buy something now. How would I find the best deal in any market that I go 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 incentive, say a year's worth of condo fees.
Kevin McCormally: Anything else to look forward to find value on a condo today?
Pat Esswein: What's you would want to do is look for good resale 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 nesters, you want a spacious 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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