What to Look for When Buying a Home with a Homeowners Association

Question: What should I know about a homeowner’s association before I buy a home? Answered by Libby Guthrie

Video Transcript

Hi, I’m Libby Guthrie with Keller Williams Realty in Northern California. And today I’m going to talk about buying a home that has a homeowners association.

At the end of this video, you can request my free report giving you insider tips on how to avoid costly mistakes when buying a home.

So you’re thinking about buying a home that has a homeowners association. Here’s a few suggestions for you.

You should be able to get a copy of the documents from the homeowners association either directly from the homeowners association or from the seller or the seller’s agent. Review those documents with your financial advisor, your attorney and or your agent.

Those documents would be things like the financial statements, the annual budgets, the CC&Rs which are covenants conditions and restrictions.

And the minutes of the homeowners association meetings. Try to obtain at least the last 12 months of those meetings minutes.

The other thing to think about is the cost of the fees. Are those monthly fees that you’ll be responsible for or are they quarterly fees or are they annual fees?

What do those fees cover? Do they cover the exterior landscaping, for example, the roof maintenance, the exterior siding?

What about the gym privileges, do they cover that? Do they cover security gates and security guards?

Make sure you understand what they cover and what they don’t cover. Look into the rules and regulations and understand those and make sure that you are comfortable with those prior to buying a home in a homeowner’s association.

Are there pet restrictions that you need to be aware of? That could be the number of pets, for example, the type of pet, the size of the pet.

Are there any age restrictions? Are there any rental restrictions? What about parking regulations and restrictions? Smoking regulations? Make sure you understand those prior to buying a home in a homeowner’s association.

Do your investigation upfront so that you’re comfortable knowing what you’re getting into regarding buying a home in a Homeowners association.

If you have any questions regarding buying a home in a homeowner’s association, I’d be happy to help you out.

You can call me at 925-628-2436, and don’t forget to order your free report “How to Avoid Costly Mistakes When Buying a Home”.

I can send that to you.

Thanks.

End Transcript

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