| Condominums: Condos
for Sale
As more and more new buildings are constructed in New
York, condominiums are fast gaining in number and popularity.
It's not surprising considering the ease of buying a condo
rather than a co-op. As opposed to a co-op, a condominium
apartment is "real" property. A buyer receives
a deed just as though he or she were buying a house on
an individual plot of land. Each individual apartment in
a condominium receives its own tax bill. There is still
a monthly common charge similar to the maintenance charges
in a co-operative.
These charges don't include your
real estate taxes and are not tax-deductible. They also
tend to be lower than in co-ops because there is no underlying
mortgage for a condominium building. The straightforward
nature of buying a condo coupled with the fact, that in
some cases, you can finance up to 90% of the purchase price
and sublet them at will, makes condominiums the number one
choice for flexibility. Young buyers, investors, and buyers
that choose to use creative financing are urged to consider
condominiums.
Learn more about Condominiums
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Cooperative:
Co-ops for Sale
A phenomenon that's limited almost entirely to New York City, cooperative
apartments have been the traditional form of owning an upscale apartment for
close to a hundred years. In fact, in New York City, 85% of all apartments
available for purchase - and almost 100% of the grand pre-war apartments on
Fifth, Park and Central Park West - are in co-operative buildings. Co-ops are
owned by an apartment corporation. When you purchase within a co-op building,
you're purchasing shares of the corporation that entitle you, as a shareholder,
to a "proprietary lease."
Generally, the larger your apartment, the
more shares of the corporation you own. Co-op shareholders contribute a monthly
maintenance fee to cover the building expenses.
The fee covers such items as
heat, hot water, insurance, staff salaries, real estate taxes
and the mortgage indebtedness of the building. Portions of
the monthly maintenance fees are tax deductible due to the
building's underlying mortgage interest. Also, shareholders
can deduct their portion of the building's real estate taxes.
A
co-op Board of Directors has the ability to determine how
much of the purchase price may be financed and minimum cash
requirements. Generally co-op apartments require a larger
down payment than most condominium apartments, especially
in top buildings, whose ownership requirements may be stringent.
Subleasing a co-op can be difficult.
Each co-op has its own rules and they should be carefully
reviewed prior to application to purchase.
Learn more about Cooperatives
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