I'm considering purchasing a home in ffx, near fair oaks mall. I can afford a condo but some people say it's harder to sell than townhouses. I was thinking of living in the condo until it's paid off 5-10 years then renting it out. Is that good idea, what should I be looking out for when purchasing?

Condo: More rules, more neighbors, more renters, less appreciation over time, less maintenance for you to worry about, less storage space.

Townhouse: Still lots of rules, but generally only outside stuff, generally retain value, you have to mow that tiny piece of grass and shovel snow.

Downside to both are the annoying board nazis who truly believe they are doing you a favor by keeping you in line.

If you get a condo, get the top floor- otherwise good luck when the family of 8 who likes to wake up at 5am and rearrange their furniture every day and sounding like they're dropping bowling balls moves into the 2 bedroom condo above you (true story).

If you're talking about the garden 3-4 floor type condos....don't bother. Those places are horrible to live in because of noise. "High rises" with concrete floors are much better.

exffx Wrote:
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> If you're talking about the garden 3-4 floor type
> condos....don't bother. Those places are horrible
> to live in because of noise. "High rises" with
> concrete floors are much better.

I live in one of those 3-floor garden condos, living in earplugs and Bose noise-canceling headphones, except when the neighbors upstairs are away, when it is lovely & quiet (but that doesn't last).

Do NOT under any fucking circumstances EVER buy a mother fucking goddamn condominium. Take a part-time job. Brown bag lunch. Take the bus. Do WHATEVER it takes! Do NOT buy a condo EVER!

A condo is the same as a timeshare. You really never own it but you pay out your ass for it.

A condo is like a boat.
Your second happiest day is the day you buy it.
Your happiest day is the day you sell it.
Very few people ever buy a second condo to live in themselves. They learn from their mistake.

I bought a brand new condo in Greenbelt years ago. Three years after I moved in
the water pipes started to develop pinhole leaks. The subcontractor/plumber
who had installed them used substandard materials. The company had since
disappeared and the entire complex had to be refitted at the homeowners expense.
Fortunately, I'd sold mine at the time the holes in the pipes were becoming
apparent and had no idea until after the sale. That was a close one.

Condos (ie apartments) are a dime a dozen

Condos are not now nor have they ever been a very good investment - unless you're willing to hang onto one for 20 or more years in an 'up and coming' neighborhood (like parts of DC). Single family homes are by far the best investments, townhouses come in second.

If you insist on buying a condo, get a two bedroom. Check the HOA reserves and any current or past special assessments. Snoop around to find out if there are any major issues of concern (e.g., impending assessments for crappy balconies, major updates, etc.). It is critically important to know the percentage of rental units in the complex; if it is high (check the lender's requirements) then it will be next to impossible to get financing. Also, you're stuck until you sell with the monthly assessment; those can vary all over the place but will probably be several hundred dollars/month.

One more thing...I remember that some condo complex around Fair Oaks had a MAJOR mold issue some time ago. You should look into that. Bottom line - do your homework.

Came back to add:

A townhouse is SLIGHTLY better in that they tend to have better noise protection from your neighbors (ON THE INSIDE)- but it doesn't help when your master bedroom windows faces the rear deck area and your neighbors love to throw loud get togethers late into the night. Loud voices and clanking bottles and music when you're trying to sleep sucks. The windows can only muffle so much noise. That and if they have loud barking dogs...sheesh!!!


If you truly value your peace- get a SINGLE FAMILY HOME on a good QUARTER ACRE++ so there is room between you and your neighbors. Also get a good HIGH WOODEN FENCE so your neighbors can't see you tanning buck naked, hehehe.

Yes I agree with the above poster- brown-bag it, catch the bus, do what you have to to save up for a SINGLE FAMILY. I understand if you don't make enough money to qualify for one in Fairfax County...bite the bullet its worth it to move out Fauquier, Stafford, etc to get the house vs putting up with rude neighbors.

The same rental issues that happen in condos happen in townhouses too as people rent those out. Get stuck with shitty rental neighbors- same problems as in a condo.

Only reason I'd live in a condo/townhouse is to be closer to work. For my sanity, I'd pay more to have the SFH.

Now I'm waiting for the REALTORS to come in here and try to say something silly in defense of condos/townhouses. A townhouse is basically a horizontal condo (neighbors on your sides instead of above you and extra floors as most are narrow and you are climbing stairs all day!)

You do what you gotta do. A condo has a high condo fee 250 a month at least round FX and that's equal to paying 30-50 grand more with out the condo fee. And any condo I have ever seen that's a high rise or has a elevator has a higher condo fee. 400- 500 dollars a month. That's a lot of mortgage money.

Condos sales can be hot, or they can be cold as ice. It depends on if its a buyers or sellers market. Right now its a sellers market. In a buyers market yes they are MUCH more difficult to sell.

If you want to invest, forget Fair Oaks, go down to Huntington and buy a 350k dump town house with window AC units. Sooner or later that areas booming as the Metros there, Its close to the river , parkway, biking, jogging, a nice area unless its at night for now. They are building yuppie luxury high rise apts there now, soon it will be a "model community" full of lively vibrant diverse young politically stupid Democrats and be Sky $$$$.

What headache said.

With condos you have no privacy when it comes to noise.

With townhouses, noise is a bit better, but I always hated how the back decks were right next to each other. It's very hard to have any sort of privacy. People can unintentionally look in your windows or they can look out their windows and pretty much see what you're doing.

I sacrificed living further out to get a SFH with decent privacy. At least here I can stay forever if I had to and be happy. I would have killed myself long ago if I was stuck living in my condo.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/12/2015 12:15PM by exffx.

I own multiple condos, though I wouldn't live in any of them they make great rental properties.

The only upsides to condos are, higher NOI when it comes time to rent and it's easier to find a tenant.

Do your homework, you can find plenty of 2br condos in Fairfax with condo fees of under $200 per month. Check their finances make sure they have plenty of savings, etc. Avoid mid rises and high rises, I personally like the townhome style condos. Low condo fees, less people, less noise, etc.

Thanks for the great info, everyone! The main reason I want to get a condo is to have another income. If I own it, it would provide my family with an extra income off the rent. I'm wondering how hard are they to rent out? If condos are a bad investment, what would you recommend investing in for an extra income? I work in DC and really don't want to move any farther than where I am now, in ffx.

Thanks condo owner. Didn't see your post until after I posted. How much income do you make off each unit, if you don't mind me asking. That's what I'd like to do.

Steve2020 Wrote:
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> Thanks for the great info, everyone! The main
> reason I want to get a condo is to have another
> income. If I own it, it would provide my family
> with an extra income off the rent. I'm wondering
> how hard are they to rent out? If condos are a bad
> investment, what would you recommend investing in
> for an extra income? I work in DC and really don't
> want to move any farther than where I am now, in
> ffx.


Avoid the high rise condos, and you will find associations with low condo fees that will give you good cash flow.

Finding a tenant is always easy, if you're pricing it at fair market value. It's the Jews and Indians who think they can get $300 more a month than everyone else that have their units sitting on the market for 2 months vacant.

What is your budget and how many bedrooms are you looking for? 1 and 2 bedrooms condos in older complexes will give you the best returns.

Do you really want to live in a condo just to rent it out and make $500 - $2k a year until your mortgage is paid off?

I would save up for a SFH, or TH and then look for a rental condo after if you 're still up for becoming a landlord.

Assuming you're putting 20% down, with a 4.5% 30 year mortgage you can make $100 - $200/month on a 1 bedroom condo or $200 - $300/month on a 2 bedroom condo.

A 4 bedroom single family home for example, would put you in the red by about $200 - $600 per month depending on price, size and location. Though, appreciation on the SFH in the long run will be much better.

My budget is 250K. I found a lot of units near fair oaks mall that are in that range. That are TH style condos. I plan on living in the condo for 5-10 years and try to pay it off in that time. Then move on to buying a TH or SFH. If I owned the condo and the fees were low it could pay for a big chunk of my mortgage. You're right though, it wouldn't be worth it if it was only making 500-2k a year.

I'm looking for a 2 bedroom. I don't have any kids now but a 2 bedroom would give me enough space for when I do.

I've owned both, the difference is yard work and if you can BBQ. You also get a little more privacy in a townhouse. Parking is still a bitch at both.

In a townhouse you are responsible for the roof.

I have seen that its cheaper to rent a condo then buy, there's lots of rental deals out there. 20% down is not much stake to get the mortgage way down.

Many condos rent cheap as the owners have a large % down and there holding the investment till the price goes up. In Annandale 2 br condos on Americana Dr were 80k in the late 90's 120k in the early ought's and went all the way up to 250k when the bottom fell out.

Don't forget that if you rent a condo out to a Sponge,Leech or someone too lazy to work, a Obama voter, you may have to spend 5 -6 months of payments without a dime plus legal fees, and other expensive getting them out. It is not easy and renting out any property with only a small % in it you need a good cash stake so you don't get in a jam and lose it.

>what would you recommend investing in for an extra income?

The best investment is to buy a semi auto assault weapon once a month or a semi auto handgun, keep them brand new in the box, stock pile ammo, gunpowder primers, shells and bullets. They will be worth their weight in gold if the Democrats ever get any solid majorities again which is next to impossible as they people are fed up with Illegals as well as those pesky Sponges Leeches and too lazy to work folk.

Or if you like stocks... Shiss dont tell anyone.. FFU secret stock tip, Buy stocks in firearms companies like Glock, Sig, Ruger, and all the ammo makers. .You owe me for that one. Its worked like a champ since the Worlds Greatest Gun Salesman Obama has been around, but you better hurry, the Next President will be with the GOP!.. But you'll still make money on the stocks
as they rise every time the words "Ferguson" or "Baltimore" or "Illegal Kills"
is on the news. True! True! Its True!

Holy crap, a FFU thread with actual feedback and (sorta) intelligent thought!

I will echo the statements given by Double Action Jackson, Headache, and exffx: condos are a PITA.

I got one in Alexandria in 2011 right before the BRAC relocations to Ft Belvoir started in earnest. Decent location off Rt 1, and good view, but parking with a bitch and everyone on my floor were annyoing cunts. Little shit started to annoy me, like how slow the elevators were, how easy it was to hear shit from the hallway, and how much of a clusterfuck it was all the time. Sound insulation was pretty good in the actual condos, tho.

Moved to Loudoun in 2014, still own the condo and renting it. It's fine for a few years, and is a decent rental property, but if I had to do it over I would not go the condo route. Probably a townhouse or SFH and a bunch of roommates.

> It's the Jews and Indians who think they can get $300 more a month than everyone
> else that have their units sitting on the market for 2 months vacant.

This. Put it up for rent on CL for 1550/mo and had 2 tenants in just under a week an a half, Army folk who STFU, don't cause problems, and pay me with BAH.

Double Action Jackson Wrote:
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> You do what you gotta do. A condo has a high condo
> fee 250 a month at least round FX and that's equal
> to paying 30-50 grand more with out the condo fee.
> And any condo I have ever seen that's a high rise
> or has a elevator has a higher condo fee. 400- 500
> dollars a month. That's a lot of mortgage money.
>
> Condos sales can be hot, or they can be cold as
> ice. It depends on if its a buyers or sellers
> market. Right now its a sellers market. In a
> buyers market yes they are MUCH more difficult to
> sell.
>
> If you want to invest, forget Fair Oaks, go down
> to Huntington and buy a 350k dump town house with
> window AC units. Sooner or later that areas
> booming as the Metros there, Its close to the
> river , parkway, biking, jogging, a nice area
> unless its at night for now. They are building
> yuppie luxury high rise apts there now, soon it
> will be a "model community" full of lively vibrant
> diverse young politically stupid Democrats and be
> Sky $$$$.

Overall good content as always, D-Jax...

One quibble...I would avoid Huntington. Yes, you get Metro access and its improving but, much of that area floods and floods frequently. There's a reason that area has sat this long while the neighborhoods to the south were improved first. Deals can be had in Huntington, no question...just don't keep anything valuable that you would be sad to lose in a flood below the 2nd floor.

In Virginia, you can kick out Obama voters quite quickly, 2 weeks - 1 month. Now in MD or DC, yea may as well just try to pay them to move. PG is the worst place, you have to have your rental inspected every year and a whole lot of other bullshit. You can get a 1 bedroom condo minutes away from DC for like $50k last I checked a couple years ago. Still, fuck that.

The good thing about Fairfax is the quality of tenants are good since people around here are educated and usually working for the government or military.

Run, don't walk away from any complex with an elevator. Elevator and Off route 1? You couldn't pay me to own that.

Steve2020 Wrote:
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> I'm considering purchasing a home in ffx, near
> fair oaks mall. I can afford a condo but some
> people say it's harder to sell than townhouses. I
> was thinking of living in the condo until it's
> paid off 5-10 years then renting it out. Is that
> good idea, what should I be looking out for when
> purchasing?


As the economy continues to faulter, top economists, as they have already correctly predicted, there will be another housing bubble pop. Condo's are the hardest hit in this. Town homes (fancy named row houses) are next in line.
They are both the 'less desired' type of housing offered in the brutal housing market.
Try to consider ignoring the false economic reporting of the Real Estate Ass. groups with heir full of BS media control. They love to brainwash us all in the name of them (and not you) making big easy money in their field of theft.
The (our) government is 'in bed' with all this. Knowing very well how the greedy taxation processes involved in it benefit it as well. Helping to secure the money flow into their salary's and self given pay raises.
You, everyone, need to look at all this extremely elaborated 'screw the average citizen' extortion of money system a little more objectively. In 'bottom line reality' ways.
Attachments:

Yes I would stay away from the Hunting Creek side as it floods.

Blaine Dr the Metro side does not have the flooding issues, and condos down that way are going up too even the old ones down near Telegraph and in the Belle View Belle Haven area too. Though Belle View floods also. The water was 3 feet deep there after Isabelle. The area does have a lot to offer for young and old people. I could hang there for 3 days and never use a car just walk or bike, take Metro or a bus. A friend bought one there for 68K back in 1986 , now there going as said 350k.

Your right about elevators, they take a lot of expensive maintenance burn lots of electricity, insurance expense, inspections and if one needs replacing $$$

If you've got money a nice high rise condo is great ,if you can afford a 500-600 maybe more fee a month for a luxury unit.

If your renting you may want to place a add in Air Force Times, Army Times Or Navy Times, Military people and DOD civilians usually take care of a unit and wont burn you on paying. Of course if there ordered out of the area they can leave in a NY second. But Ill take that in a NY second over a deadbeat.

headache Wrote:
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> If you truly value your peace- get a SINGLE FAMILY
> HOME on a good QUARTER ACRE++ so there is room
> between you and your neighbors.

This is the optimal course of action. SFH where they are 3 feet apart is not that much better than a TH.

However, what good is this advice to the 100s of thousands of folks that don't have the income for a quarter acre SFH?

Just get a decent education. Problems like this are for losers.

thanks everyone. I really appreciate all the input.

i'm a rich euro escaping taxes in the usa and looking for a top notch place to educate my kids

i hear fx co va is a safe haven for illegals and operates as a corrupt welfare state.

HMMM... sounds smart ... only if your planning to be a criminal running scams inside the gov.

headache Wrote:
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> If you get a condo, get the top floor- otherwise
> good luck when the family of 8 who likes to wake
> up at 5am and rearrange their furniture every day
> and sounding like they're dropping bowling balls
> moves into the 2 bedroom condo above you (true
> story).


Heh, I lived in a top floor condo, and you should have seen my A/C bills when summer rolled around.... Something to consider. OTOH, I also lived on a second floor condo. We had water problems one day, and the gal upstairs decided to turn her sink on full-blast so she'd know when the water went back on. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but they didn't turn the water back on until 2AM. Does the word "waterfall" convey the image?

Not just to the OP:

If you're going to rent out your condo, please for the love of God DO NOT RENT IT TO ANYONE ON SECTION 8. Just don't.