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Escaping Condo Jail, by Sara E. Benson, Don DeBat
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BOOK REVIEW:
"For anybody thinking about buying a condo, or even anybody serving on a condo board, or anybody who has any connection to a condo, this is must reading. Thanks a lot for a great book!" -"Your Money Matters" WGN TV
BOOK HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
* Critical 10-Point Pre-Purchase Buyer Checklist--(Don't buy without it!)
* 35-Point Manual on How to Bulletproof Your Association's Biggest Asset:
THE MONEY
* Top 10 Money Making Improvements to Maximize Your Home's Value
* The Dozen Duties of the Board
* 18 Budget and Energy-Saving Tips for Association Boards
* The 10 Hallmarks of a Healthy Association
* 15 Secret Exit Strategies!
Can you imagine putting your neighbors--who are strangers--in charge of governing your life AND your money? Today, four out of five real estate sales are in condominium or homeowners association communities. There are lots of great communities out there, but you need to know that there are some very real horror stories, too. A big shocker: Most homeowner associations are run by unpaid, untrained volunteers who are managing their share of an annual $90-billion industry. That's your real-estate investment and your money!
Co-authors, Realtor® Sara E. Benson and veteran journalist Don DeBat, have made real estate the focus of their professional lives. Both are veteran condo and homeowner association owners, and it is their own experiences with the underbelly of condo and homeowner association living that led them to write Escaping Condo Jail. The book provides valuable in-depth financial discussions, governance instructions, plus a 35-point checklist to bulletproof your association's finances.
Whether you're a property owner now, or considering buying a condo--or a property in a homeowners association--you need Escaping Condo Jail to help you protect yourself and your real estate investment as you learn about the myths and the truths of how condominium and homeowner associations work. And sometimes don't.
- Sales Rank: #721791 in eBooks
- Published on: 2014-11-05
- Released on: 2014-11-05
- Format: Kindle eBook
Review
"Written by journalist Don DeBat and Realtor Sara E. Benson, the myth of the carefree, glamorous condo life is painstakingly debunked and replaced with cold hard facts. The authors don't condemn all condo, cooperative apartment and homeowner associations. They want prospective buyers to get the information they need; owners to know their rights; and board members to know what they're doing. The book is carefully researched and full of information sorely needed by the one in five Americans that have bought into the lifestyle." -The New York Times
"For anybody thinking about buying a condo, or even anybody serving on a condo board, or anybody who has any connection to a condo, this is must reading. Thanks a lot for a great book!" -"Your Money Matters" WGN TV
"I am deeply impressed. "Escaping Condo Jail" is a contribution of highest purpose and profound mission. Both of you have brought to the forefront a level of awareness, which, under the circumstances, cannot be ignored...that must be addressed. I can see this book not only as "required reading" in the university classrooms of our U.S.A.--and other countries--but as an instrument for the improvement of peoples' lives all over the world. Your vision is admirable. We congratulate you and we thank you for the care you have demonstrated." -Mary Mikros, Ph.D. Retired award-winning school principal at J.C. Orozco Academy, Chicago(Letter to the authors)
Most helpful customer reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
Much Needed Advice!
By FYI
Thankfully, these highly informed professionals share a much needed counter-point to the romantic ideal of buying a condo or loft. After losing years of sleep and savings on a condo-nightmare, our experience can emphasize how necessary "Escaping Condo Jail" is. This excellent, informative book, by Sara E. Benson and Don Debat, was not available when we bought a loft eight years ago. We sure could have used it to ameliorate our naivete regarding the complexity of condo life. Ironically, in our historic loft re-development, a large section of the inner courtyard area resembled a classic prison, with open, metal stairs and walkways. I nicknamed it Alcatraz.
Importantly, the authors describe the lack of transparency of the Homeowner's Association's (HOA) governing Board of Directors (BOD). I served for years on our loft's BOD, and am very familiar with this truth. A BOD can alter the governing Rules and Regulations at any moment. Even if what you read sounded fine when you bought a loft, stability and predictability aren't aspects of condo life. For example, our Property Management Company colluded with BOD-members (personal relationships). They attempted to change personal property, like our heating/cooling system, into a so-called "common element." This would have allowed them to enter all our homes every few months. Apparently, this kind of shenanigan is not uncommon in condo communities. They even demanded our keys. It took an enormous fight to prevent this intrusion and protect our privacy. Be sure the HOA and Property Management Company don't require duplicate keys, unless you desire them to have access. Change the locks after you move in. Define the common-elements and common-property, who is responsible for what. Ironically, despite being on the BOD, it was a daily, time-consuming battle to prevent abuse by the managers, the community's developer, and other BOD members.
Don't become enamored of the space. As the title of this book shows, imagine your loft/condo is a prison you may not be able to escape from for many years. There's always somewhere else to live! Often, "cool" historic re-purposed properties, like vintage schools, may look interesting when transformed into modern loft communities - don't be fooled! These sleek spaces were never intended for human habitation, as real homes.The bells and whistles won't change that the framework, the skeleton, is all wrong. Ignore artistically exposed brick, historic wood floors, stainless appliances, etc. Across the country, lofts in redeveloped historic sites all look alike, and contain all the same drawbacks. If you do look at a property, ask the realtor to wait outside (we did, but not long enough). If you have a partner, ask them to stand outside the door and make noise, verbally and walking around, so you know how sound carries in the building and into the unit, and how it might affect your quality of life. Spend lots of time inside the condo prior to making an offer, and don't let the realtor rush you through.
HOA dues, their amount, and their percentage of your mortgage can hurt future values; try to discover how often assessments are raised. Our HOA Dues rose significantly only one month after purchasing the property. Pet policies can change in a heartbeat; a week after we moved in, new BOD Rules changed from a no-pet policy to anything goes. Large, barking dogs are now unhappy, yardless residents of this yuppie ghetto. Is privacy preserved if a complaint is issued against another resident? With noise, our Property Management Company supported their noisy tenants over quiet homeowners. None of these issues were disclosed prior to purchase.
Research previous tax records for the property to help determine fair value. We were hit by tax-lightening, a sudden increase in taxes post purchase. Read police reports for crime in the area. What is the security level for the community? Are short-term leases allowed? How are renters evaluated?
Read through any condo community's governing documents with a fine-toothed comb. Learn about the distinctive characteristics of communal life in a loft/condo development. Demand the financial status of the Homeowner's Association, and discover whether Reserve Fund is healthy. How many homeowner's are delinquent in the dues payments? How many in foreclosure? What is the rentals vs. homeowners living in the development? That number affects home values, loan possibilities, and your insurance rates.
Ensure that the home-inspector isn't paid by the homeowner or realtor, but that they work for you. We were lied to about square footage by the inspector and the developer, this is not unusual! Square footage discrepancies in lofts and condos will seriously impact resale value. We were also lied to about the "hidden" dryer vent. It was not hidden, the dryer actually vented within the unit, with no outside outlet due to "historic" architecture! Not good for indoor air quality. We bought a condo in an inflated market; facing painful disability, we thought a condo would be a solution, easier than owning a detached house. What a joke! Between loss of equity (massive negative "appreciation"), high local taxes from the new development, condo fees, etc., we will be negatively impacted by this condo boondoggle for the rest of our lives. We finally unloaded our prison at a massive financial loss, and wish we'd had "Escaping Condo Jail" to read prior to our dreadful decision to buy our condo. Footnote: After moving, I discovered my health had suffered. I had a large tumor on my neck that doctors said was from a suppressed immune system. All the relentless stress from living in such an inhospitable, hostile environment likely did not help. The loft's value dropped precipitously, we lost our all equity and quite a bit more. Good luck, and read this book in order to have a better experience than we had.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful.
I was amazed at some of the remedies for homeowners at our ...
By Shelly Marshall
Although Sara's book is about Condos and I mainly deal with HOAs and POAs, most of the principles are the same. She is a real estate broker and gets much more detailed and legal than I do in my work book for homeowners "HOA Warrior", yet her suggestions and advice are invaluable and have been a surprising resource for me. I was amazed at some of the remedies for homeowners at our disposal that I had not known existed. Some of the approaches might be too technical for the average person trapped in an Association or Condominium, but even so, you can take her book to the expert, your attorney or real estate agent and give them some ammunition for your case.
Her book is full of the HOA horror stores those of us in advocacy positions have become all too familiar with. But we need to know what can go wrong to begin to understand how to prevent it or fix it when it happens to us.
A surprising solution is her suggestion that serving on the board be mandatory. This quote particularly made me laugh, "Most of the angst of running for the board would be removed, because all association members would be eligible to be called upon to serve their terms. Do you risk ending up with the “village idiot” as a board officer? Of course, but nothing could possibly be any worse than some of the politicians who have held office in Washington, DC."
For anyone trying to walk through the maize, this is a horror story in the sense that the bad guy keeps rising no matter how many times you think you have beaten him. Yet at least it offers some creative ways out, things you may not have considered. I think Sara's book is a great addition to the growing number of resources for owners fighting their way out of HOA Hell.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful.
A Must-read for Current or To-be Condo Owners
By Greg Borzo
Condominiums are the riskiest form of real estate ownership. Just ask JoAnne, whose story is recounted in Escaping Condo Jail, the definitive book about how to handle the trials and tribulations of condominiums and homeowners associations.
Three months after JoAnne closed on a gorgeous, sun-drenched condo in Manhattan, she was hit with a $60,000 special assessment. JoAnne had ninety days to pay or face foreclose.
Alas, JoAnne has plenty of company. Steve had to move out of his condo in Orland Park, Florida, after mold caused by seeping water started ruining his health. James, 79, was butted in the stomach at a condo association meeting in Chicago due to a disagreement about rental restrictions. And a hoarder in Atlanta managed to burn the building down before the community association manager was able to gain access to his unit.
In their carefully researched and thoroughly footnoted book, authors Sara Benson and Don DeBat lay out these and scores of other stories about the risk of condo ownership. They are experts in this field, having worked in the trenches for years – Benson as a Chicago realtor and consultant to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and DeBat as a real estate editor at two major Chicago newspapers.
While Escaping Condo Jail alerts readers about what can go wrong with condo ownership, it does not stop there. The 613-page book is chuck-full of tips, advice and useful information. Its lengthy appendix is replete with sample forms, check lists and a comprehensive glossary.
The book includes detailed histories of the condominium movement; the real estate market, in general; fair housing issues; urban revivals; banking practices; legal cases; and economic trends. All these forces have made homeowners associations the most common form of home ownership in the United States as well, perhaps, the most perilous. The wealth of information the book provides should make the condo lifestyle work for anyone, despite the pitfalls. One helpful but surprising recommendation is to never pay cash up front for a condo. “Keep your cash in your pocket and make you lender a partner in risk management.”
If it does not, however, Escaping Condo Jail – as its name implies – offers unhappy condo owners multiple exit strategies. These including the short sale, strategic default, loan forbearance, selling; renting; squatting; negotiating “keys for cash,” or even finding a way to fall back in love with your unit and staying put. One fascinating exit strategy, described as an “ace up your sleeve,” is to check who holds the promissory note on your condo. “The theory is that a ‘naked’ mortgage – a mortgage without a promissory note – cannot be foreclosed upon.”
As either a guidebook or a good rousing read, Escaping Condo Jail is both informative and entertaining. It could also save you tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. - By Greg Borzo, author of The Chicago “L”
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