Since its founding over a century ago in 1915 and thanks to its timeless allure, Miami Beach real estate has continued to remain a hot commodity for buyers from all over the planet. Most recently, history has exponentially repeated itself and many of our local markets have flourished, thanks to renewed interest in Florida's coastal lifestyle and favorable tax laws.
Note - The notes below are solid, timeless advice for anyone looking to buy a condo in Miami Beach and also in other parts of Florida. I prepared these notes based on the experience I gained over the years across various condos in Miami Beach that I have sold. With that said, no blog post will ever replace the time, energy and attention that's gained when working together towards a purchase or sale.
Impact Windows & Doors
Here's some timeless advice: Unless the price makes up for it, do not buy a condo without impact windows and/or shutters. It's been a few years since Miami was affected by a major hurricane, but it's more important than ever that the homes in our community can withstand the types of storms we've seen affect other parts of the state.
Not only will having impact windows provide peace of mind, but also provide savings in the form of a lower insurance bill. State legislation was passed in 2002 requiring insurance companies to provide homeowners with discounts on their property insurance if certain features are added to their policy that reduce damage or loss from a windstorm. These special premium discounts were officially rolled out in 2003 and remain active to this day.
Parking
With or without a parking spot, you can live, thrive, and find success in Miami Beach. But fair warning: Be ready to drive around in circles if your condo does not include a parking space. By focusing on condos in Miami Beach that include deeded, or assigned parking, you can dodge the discomfort.
For some, not having a parking spot will not be the end of the world. I'm also not suggesting that a condo should be disqualified from a buyer's search if the condo only features street parking. I recommend any buyer reading my note on parking as advice on how to determine future lifestyle choices.
Review The Condo Docs Carefully
Due to the sad tragedy that affected our local community of Surfside a few years ago, the need for stricter due diligence has been a must for condo buyers, regardless of the age of the building. As condo experts, helping our customers on both sides of the transaction with their condo docs is one of our most important tasks. For buyers, we have, and will always encourage them to read the documents carefully, and to freely ask questions or seek assistance throughout the due diligence period. With sellers, we strive to ensure that the listings we represent include the condo docs as MLS attachments from the moment the property hits the market. On many occasion, obtaining the condo docs prior to listing can be a cumbersome task, but it has proven to be worth the extra step based on the feedback from buyers and fellow colleagues.
Get Educated on Financing
I could probably write an entire post on this topic, but since this is a broad list of observations on condos as a whole, I will aim to keep this as simple as I can: Condo financing is not the same as financing a single family home.
The last sentence above is true on any condo across the country, but even more so in Florida due to very specific Fannie Mae guidelines that only apply to condos in our state. If you're a condo owner looking to sell, make sure the agent you choose to represent you has sold a variety of condos in his/her career. Ask for his/her track record with condos and look at his/her most recent sales if necessary. The same applies for buyers looking to purchase a condo. If financing is required to buy, I would make it extremely important to work with a lender that's familiar with Florida's condo guidelines. This could make or break a deal and as agents, we don't have control over the work performed by the lenders picked by the buyers we represent.
To this day, I take pride in knowing that although I sell properties of all shapes and sizes, over 60% of my sales have been condos.
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