condo with no HOA?

[kakarotto]

I appraised a property today. Legal description says it's a condo and the platmap says it's a condo. it is detached. the homeowner said it's not a condo and said there are no hoa dues, and in fact, there is no hoa. the homeowner kept telling me it's an SFR. all my information tells me it's a condo, and i have never heard of any condo not having an hoa. thoughts?

 

[Randolph Kinney]

I appraised a property today. Legal description says it's a condo and the platmap says it's a condo. it is detached. the homeowner said it's not a condo and said there are no hoa dues, and in fact, there is no hoa. the homeowner kept telling me it's an SFR. all my information tells me it's a condo, and i have never heard of any condo not having an hoa. thoughts?

Call the city and get the current zoning code and description along with requirements.

Aslo, if you go back in time to find MLS reports of sales in that "Complex", do they show any HOA fees paid or the name of the HOA?

 

[Scott R Marshall]

It may be a hybrid. In my state there are steps which must be taken in order to become condominiums. Is it the same in your state? Who owns the land? Who maintains the exterior? Are there common areas? The more of these answers you gather the more you will be better able to determine what you have.

I will give you a local case: Subjects complex is recognized by the state as a condominium project. There is an HOA. Owners own the ground directly under the footprint of the home but do not own the ground under the porches, patios, driveways, etc. Home owners are responsible for all exterior maintenance of the home but not the porches, patios, driveways, common areas, etc. So homes in this area share characteristics with both SFR's and condos. I completed it on the condo form as it is recognized by the state as a condo but I do not know if I could fault someone for doing it on a 1004 if they provided explanations as to why.

 

[Webbed Feet]

I appraised a property today. (So you've arrived at an opinion of value and reported it already, huh?) Legal description says it's a condo and the platmap says it's a condo. it is detached. the homeowner said it's not a condo and said there are no hoa dues, and in fact, there is no hoa. the homeowner kept telling me it's an SFR. all my information tells me it's a condo, and i have never heard of any condo not having an hoa. thoughts?

Who is the expert, you or the property owner? Don't you think it is time you learn how to find out if a declaration of condominium was recorded or not?

 

[Noreen]

Homeowners "words" aside, ( documents trump words, in my state) In my state, if the deed is recorded as a "Condominium" then it is a condominium. If there are supposed to be fees associated with the maintenance of the "greenbelts" or common grounds then this is in the declaration too, where they are paying or not paying, it does not mean they are no an "encumbrance" on that property, impacting title. Someone posted on here once that the "Assessors Records" are your friend, truer words were never spoken. In my state, some of the towns are on line but your due diligence is to go to town hall, read or look at the deed ( I get a copy when I can and scan it in my report), go to building/ planning and see what is legal, what is not. If we do not do our "Due Diligence" we are asking for a whole lot of future pain. But on line or not ( which is great for verifying your comps sites & GLA) the subject has got to be researched from start to now. when possible, at least the attempt.

 

[hastalavista]

Don't you think it is time you learn how to find out if a declaration of condominium was recorded or not?

The above is the advice I'd follow.
In California (I don't know if this is the same for other states), the declaration of condominium association is required to be reported in the preliminary title report. When I have a question like the OP's, I request a copy of the prelim to make the definitive (as far as I'm concerned) judgment.

Also, in some markets, it is a rare but not a non-existent event to have a project that was originally designed as a condominium project, but then somewhere along the line, it was finished as a non-condo minimum project. There are several down in Southern California and there is one such project in the city next to where I live. If one looks at the public record data, it appears to be a condo. However, they are not; they are typically PUDs (what we consider SFR ownership with HOA dues) or, in your case, may be a SFR/non-PUD/no-dues.

 

[AnonApprsr]

I've done condo complexes where it's 4 or maybe 6 units, could be detached, with not HOA set up.

 

[CANative]

The above is the advice I'd follow.
In California (I don't know if this is the same for other states), the declaration of condominium association is required to be reported in the preliminary title report. When I have a question like the OP's, I request a copy of the prelim to make the definitive (as far as I'm concerned) judgment.

Also, in some markets, it is a rare but not a non-existent event to have a project that was originally designed as a condominium project, but then somewhere along the line, it was finished as a non-condo minimum project. There are several down in Southern California and there is one such project in the city next to where I live. If one looks at the public record data, it appears to be a condo. However, they are not; they are typically PUDs (what we consider SFR ownership with HOA dues) or, in your case, may be a SFR/non-PUD/no-dues.

A good example is the Oakmont development (adult community) in Santa Rosa. When it was first developed "condominium" was not well understood or defined. Most of the documents, MLS descriptions, and other data still says "condominium." But it's just a PUD. Whenever dad, my brother or I have an assignment we include a scanned letter from the development's law firm stating it is NOT condominium.

 

[Lloyd Bonafide]

I don't know what county you are in, but in this county there are lots of condos with no HOA fee, no common areas, no active association, etc. They can be attached or detached. I would probably try to report it on the 1004 form as a site condo, (with the clients' OK if the client is a lender.)

 

[TC]

Do some legwork, it ain't that hard.