Boston Real Estate News

As an exclusive buyer agent in the Greater Boston area my first and only allegiance is with my client, the home buyer. My clients are serious, have their financing lined up and are looking for a property that is going to meet their needs. After searching for a while, they have one or two properties in mind that they are seriously considering and the decision process begins to change from one of "will it meet my requirements" to "how confident am I with the property".

Home buyers today that are considering buying a condo have much more information at their disposal via the internet than even just a few years ago. However, there are some pieces of information that are not public knowledge that the seller and the listing broker need to provide. In many cases, this information is going to impact the ability to get financing or determine whether they are going to be interested in the property to begin with (e.g. the condo assn being pet friendly).

When these pieces of information are not readily available, the condfidence of the buyer quickly begins to erode and I have had many clients "pass" on a property that they liked very much just because the sellers and their agents have not been able to answer some basic information about their property. I have been on many, many showings where my client and I leave and the client turns to me to say something like "If they have no idea about what they are selling, I'm not comfortable buying".

Here are a few basic questions that the listing broker and the seller should have readily available answers for before they start to market the property:

What is the owner-occupancy of the condo assn?

Does more than one person / entity own more than 10% of the units?

If there is commercial space as part of the association, what is it's percentage of the association?

Is the building pet-friendly? If yes, are there any restrictions?

Are there any special assessments pending? When was the last special assessment? What is the amount of the reserves for the condo assn?

Is the building professionally managed? If not, how are services such as trash removal, snow removal, common area cleaning / maintenance handled?

How old is the roof and boiler / heating system (if applicable)?

When was the last time the condo fees were increased?

HOME SELLERS - Make sure your agent has the accurate answers to these questions readily available - it may mean the difference between a deal that comes together and stays together or many more days-on-market for your home.