Hey, everybody,
I'm finally, I believe, in a place to consider buying a condominium. I'd prefer that over a house, attractive as the idea of a house is, because:
1) Cost. Any decent house in a decent neighborhood here is 2 or more times what I feel I can pay, even with a big down payment.
2) Convenience. I've lived in apartments all my adult life, and the idea of cutting grass in 90+ F. heat or climbing up on a roof to fix shingles fills me with mild but waning interest.
I've located a very nice unit in a good complex in the suburbs here, an area I know well. It's priced below the (horrendously inflated) market value here. However, I want to replace the carpet with laminate flooring and have the walls painted. Most disturbing, the home inspection process revealed that the A/C does not work.
At my cost, I arranged for a local A/C technician to come out and inspect the system. The unit is a good 23 years old, and to replace all of it would run some $4500. Yes, I can do that, but don't want to combine it with the painting and re-flooring costs. In other words, one of these problems, or two, would be fine; but not all three.
My real estate agent, a buyer's agent, suggests having the seller bring the A/C to working condition and buy me a home warranty. Everything I hear and read about these warranty companies makes me think of extended aftermarket car warranties: i.e., I'd be better off putting that dough in the bank. My mind conjures up a hot Saturday in July with the A/C out; I can't get the home warranty people on the phone, or if I do they can't send someone until Monday; and each technician visit results in "We'll have to order the parts" and more excruciating delays.
Bottom line: Alarms are going off in the back of my head. I know buying a home is an enormous step . . . but A/C is too important to me to take a chance like this. My alternative, I suppose, would be to wait, to find a property that is in less of a fixer-upper condition, which would require a bigger down payment, etc.
Am I worrying for nothing? Are these home warranties worth so little?
I'm finally, I believe, in a place to consider buying a condominium. I'd prefer that over a house, attractive as the idea of a house is, because:
1) Cost. Any decent house in a decent neighborhood here is 2 or more times what I feel I can pay, even with a big down payment.
2) Convenience. I've lived in apartments all my adult life, and the idea of cutting grass in 90+ F. heat or climbing up on a roof to fix shingles fills me with mild but waning interest.
I've located a very nice unit in a good complex in the suburbs here, an area I know well. It's priced below the (horrendously inflated) market value here. However, I want to replace the carpet with laminate flooring and have the walls painted. Most disturbing, the home inspection process revealed that the A/C does not work.
At my cost, I arranged for a local A/C technician to come out and inspect the system. The unit is a good 23 years old, and to replace all of it would run some $4500. Yes, I can do that, but don't want to combine it with the painting and re-flooring costs. In other words, one of these problems, or two, would be fine; but not all three.
My real estate agent, a buyer's agent, suggests having the seller bring the A/C to working condition and buy me a home warranty. Everything I hear and read about these warranty companies makes me think of extended aftermarket car warranties: i.e., I'd be better off putting that dough in the bank. My mind conjures up a hot Saturday in July with the A/C out; I can't get the home warranty people on the phone, or if I do they can't send someone until Monday; and each technician visit results in "We'll have to order the parts" and more excruciating delays.
Bottom line: Alarms are going off in the back of my head. I know buying a home is an enormous step . . . but A/C is too important to me to take a chance like this. My alternative, I suppose, would be to wait, to find a property that is in less of a fixer-upper condition, which would require a bigger down payment, etc.
Am I worrying for nothing? Are these home warranties worth so little?