It’s time to sell

“Use the same measure for selling that you use for purchasing.”
—Abu Bakr

There are times when it is best to sell your condo unit and move on. You may love your unit and you planned to stay in it until you die but circumstances change and you need to accept reality.

The signal
As the Russians closed in on Berlin at the end of World War II, the Berlin Philharmonic played Wagner's Götterdämmerung on a live radio program as signal—to all in the know—that it was time to flee the city.

In Saigon, a recording of Bing Crosby singing "White Christmas" was broadcast on the radio on 30 April 1975, as a secret, pre-arranged signal precipitating the U.S. evacuation from Saigon.

The radio will not signal you when it is time for you to sell your unit but there is usually one owner—someone who is a minority director on the board or someone fighting the board that you look up to—and when that person puts his or her unit up for sale, that is the signal to get out.

Here are some other signs that tells you it's time to move on.
1.
 A few months after moving in, after talking to some of your other neighbours, you get a strong feeling that you made a big mistake.
2.
 You have obnoxious neighbours and the board is unwilling to deal
with them.
3.
 The building structure and machinery is deteriorating. (Read the Reserve Fund Study, it can tell you when this is happening.)
4.
 Maintenance is sliding. Windows are not getting washed, burnt out lights are not replaced and the carpets are dirty. The lobby furniture is looking ratty or there is none.
5.
 Amenities are closed for maintenance and are not re-opened.
6.
 Lower-income people are moving into your building.
7.
 There is a lot of political infighting in the corporation and there is constant petitioning to remove or replace the directors.
8.
 There is constant turnover in property management companies, superintendents and contractors.
9.
 The reserve funds are underfunded and the operating budget is
running a deficit.
10.
 The monthly condo fees have not been raised for the last several years.
11.
 You are quarreling with the manager and the board.
12.
 In a rising market, your property values have stopped rising and are starting to drop. The units in your building are staring to sell for less than the neighbourhood average for equal-sized units.
13.
 The number of renters is increasing because owners want out and are having trouble selling their units.
14.
 Rules are not enforced. The balconies are used as storage rooms and there are abandoned cars in the parking garage.
15.
 The board will not allow owners to inspect the corporation’s documents.
16.
 There are no or few Annual General Meetings with audited financial statements.
17.
 Roaches are a big problem and owners will not let the contractor in to spray their units.
18.
 There are tensions between different ethnic groups.
19.
 Your not happy living there anymore.


Last word on a considerate community
The Virginia Gazette
24 November 2016

I live in a small condo and townhouse community here in James City County.

It was a very nice place to live once. In the past, neighbors were kind, considerate and helpful to each other.

Now not only did the cost to purchase in the community go down, the community went down in neighbors being kind, considerate and helpful to each other and went up in neighborhood bullies.

The new wave of residents in this small community now argue over parking spaces, loud noise and pets. I've noticed neighbors who walk their dogs on the small patch of grass area directly in front of condo units. I'm sure they wouldn't like neighbors walking directly up to their units (condo or townhome) to let their dogs relieve themselves.

I've also seen an increase in young children in the community and noticed adults allowing kids to throw balls near vehicles.

Take your children to the designated play area in the community to play catch. Just be considerate to your neighbors and let’s keep our community clean, kind and considerate.

Forget the lecture. It's time to sell.—CondoMadness


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