The following article was written by Ivor Hegedus, a non-REALTOR who lived in single-family homes all of his life and only recently purchased a condo as his primary residence. We feel it is a good idea to get an insider’s perspective about “Miami condo living” – hope you find Ivor’s point of view helpful.

Things you should know before buying a Miami Condominium

In general, lets ask ourselves – what is a condominium?; is it just a big building with a great number of apartments each of which are owned by someone who pays a monthly maintenance fee as well as an annual property tax payment? If you answered “yes” to the above question, you are only 5% correct because there is much more to it than that; there are advantages and disadvantages in owning a condo; there are regulations, bylaws designed specifically for that condominium first by the developer and after, by the current and/or previous owners, etc, etc, etc. So let’s mention most of the points that are part of the unanswered 95%.

In simple terms, the most common advantage is that the maintenance of the common areas is done my others without the worry of the individual owner who should maintain the inside of the unit. Another advantage is that the unit may be safely closed or shut-down when the owner goes on vacation; intruders are less likely to break-into a condo than into a single family home. There are also what may be advantages to some, but are disadvantages to others; there are rules that should be followed by all dwellers of the condo units yet some of the dwellers don’t pay attention to the rules and regulations. A perfect situation occurs when every unit owner and renter has the common sense to do things in a way that does not bother or annoy fellow unit owners/renters. This does not only include noise, but also the maintenance and cleaning of each unit. All buyers must remember that the residents that are part of a condominium, come from many different backgrounds, have different education and thus, have different sense of values. On occasions, the results may be annoying.

The “Rules & Regulations” and the “Condominium bylaws” are two separate sets of documents. The first provide the behavioral rules of the Condominium and includes penalties that are assessed when breaking a rule. As a buyer you should ask your real estate agent to get a copy of the Rules & Regulations before going to the interview.  You will be asked to sign a document stating that you have received, read and understood the “Rules & Regulations”. The bylaws are all of a legal nature where procedures to form a Board of Directors through general elections are specified, changes by addition and/or removal and modifications are established, what is allowed and what is not, etc. Consequently, you must be aware of bylaws that are important such as:Are Pets allowed, if so, what are the limitations?

• Are rentals allowed, if so, what are the requisites?
• Can a renter vote?
• What is required to change a bylaw and what is the procedure to follow?
• How can a unit owner form part of the Board of Directors?
• How many unit owners attend a normal Board Meeting?
• How much money is there in the Reserve Account?

In addition, ask the following questions:

• Is there a limit on the number of persons including children that may live in an efficiency, a 1-bedroom, a 2-bedroom or a 3-bedroom unit?
• Are there any limitations as to the number of vehicles that may be parked on the property?
• How often does the Board meet and can anyone participate (not just attend) in the meeting?
• When was the last special assessment, how much was it for, and what was its purpose?
• Are there any special assessments planned for the coming year?
• How are the maintenance fees distributed?
• When was the last time that the building was inspected by:
  • The fire Department
  • A structural Engineer
  • A roofing specialist – When will the building require a new roof?
• Now that there is a law requiring unit owners to have home-owner’s insurance, do all unit owners comply?
• How many units are currently in foreclosure, do not pay their maintenance and are affected by the current economic conditions?

Example of a bylaw that has hindered sales in a Miami condominium:
At a 138 unit condominium, a bylaw may be altered once a year by the majority vote of the unit owners. To assure that the issue goes out for a general vote, 30% of the unit owners must sign a petition that will force the Board to include it in the agenda of the annual meeting; this represents a minimum of 42 signatures.
Once this part is achieved and the general meeting is legally in session, there must be no less than 70% of the voters represented by either being at the meeting in person or by proxy – this is a minimum of 97 legal voters.   Note: legal voters are unit owners that have paid all their dues and are in good standing. The majority of the legal voters (that is 49 voters) then decide in favor or against the proposed changes and or amendments. These numbers seem easy to obtain, but when you consider that only 15 at most attend the regular monthly meetings, to have 97 persons represented, is an issue that keeps the community unable to make the proper adjustments to keep up with the times.

The general recommendation is to prepare your questions in advance to any meeting. Some of the proposed questions have been included above. Good luck with your Miami condo purchase.

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