The condos were furnished but empty...

[omni550]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rayinpenn I'd like a two car garage ... still I'll need parking for 2 more.

At my condo, all condos and villas have a spacious , super deep 2-car garage and a lovely paver driveway that will easily accommodate another 2 cars. And, most importantly, no golf course.

My sister's one-year-old condo (20 minutes away) has a single-car garage with a driveway for another car, but other condo units in her complex have 2-car garages....plus the builder installed visitor parking for 4-5 cars between every few buildings, so there's plenty of parking available for owners and guests. No golf course there, either.

omni

[rayinpenn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by omni550 At my condo, all condos and villas have a spacious , super deep 2-car garage and a lovely paver driveway that will easily accommodate another 2 cars. And, most importantly, no golf course. My sister's one-year-old condo (20 minutes away) has a single-car garage with a driveway for another car, but other condo units in her complex have 2-car garages....plus the builder installed visitor parking for 4-5 cars between every few buildings, so there's plenty of parking available for owners and guests. No golf course there, either. omni

And what state might this be in?

[omni550]

Quote:

Originally Posted by omni550 Here in SW FL many condos are sold "turnkey" with furnishings, accessories, and everything included (sometimes even down to knives and spoons). Many owners move to new places and simply love to buy and decorate their new places with different themes/colors, and are sometimes upsizing or downsizing, so they prefer to choose new items for their new abode, sometimes hiring designers/decorators to assist. Thus they prefer to sell their old places turnkey. I know several couples who move every few years in this manner. Other "turnkey'' units may have been used as fully furnished and outfitted seasonal rentals and the owners have decided to get out of that rental business, so they sell the units "turnkey'. This is what my cousin and her husband did. They bought a 2-bedroom condo turnkey, rented it out for a few seasons and sold it turnkey. It's often easier to sell in a snowbird market when everything is tastefully decorated and already 'in place'...just bring your toothbrush as the realtors like to say. I've noticed that often units that have been vacated by someone who has moved on to assisted living often have their furnishings discarded or donated, as the decor may be so outdated that it hampers a sale. As for selling a unit in a golf course community, that is hard to do. (I read a statistic recently that said only 17% of Americans over 50 golf.) Those units here typically languish on the market. When they do sell, they go for much less than a comparable non-golf course community, as educated buyers know they are buying into an expensive proposition -- the monthly contractual commitment for club and golf course fees can be prohibitive.... and, if they look ahead, resale can take seemingly forever. I know a couple that is paying $14,000/yr while their large old golf course home sits vacant, as they moved into a [new contruction] condo (with no golf course or tennis courts) less than a mile away. They no longer golf. They often go back to the old place to have breakfast, lunch or dinner at the clubhouse simply to get some value out of their "social club" obligation. After moving out over a year ago, I'm sure they'd love to be rid of their old home and it's costly fees altogether. omni

My sister just informed me that this couple is spending $40,000 a year for their old golf-course condo (much more than the $14,000 that I had mistakenly thought).

omni