Before buying a condo, there are a number of questions I would ask regarding Rules & Regulations, Bylaws and voting rights, BUDGETS, Budget Reserves for big ticket maintenance (a very important factor), routine maintenance, the Board (try to get & read several months worth of meeting minutes) and whether there are any current or pending lawsuits against the condo association (if there are current lawsuits, it may limit your financing options).

The financials of a condo association...

The survey. Buyers often indicate they would rather use the seller's "old" survey or, if paying cash, skip getting a survey to save some money.

Here's why I consider that a huge mistake. A survey shows you where the property lines are, the easements tied to the property (such as utility and HOA), where the building set back lines are per municipal code, if the property is located within a designated flood zone and one of the most important items, if there are encroachments....

Technology has definitely changed our lives, including the showing of homes for sale.

Buyers (and agents) must now take into consideration that, because of high tech home monitoring / surveillance equipment sellers may have installed in their homes, ANYTHING you say or do on that home showing has the potential to be seen/watched by the home sellers and used against you in future negotiations.

For the reasons above, I now advise buyers to keep their comments while inside...

The freedom to choose finishes and design details is what draws many people to new construction homes. But at the same time, anyone who has stepped foot into a design center knows how overwhelming (and expensive) it can be.

When it comes time to decide on the upgrades and options, it’s important to think for the future, steer clear of obvious fads and select those upgrades that will give you the most value for your dollars.

I suggest buyers focus on items that...

Flood Insurance is one of those topics that people don't like to talk about, but with Florida leading the other states with almost 1.8 million flood insurance policies, residents need to be aware that the current national flood insurance program is set to expire on September 30, 2017.

The last time the National Flood Insurance Program expired, Congress made multiple short term extensions and actually let the program lapse 4 times before they finally got their act together and passed...