We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

Who has one and where?
Is it the same process as buying the primary residence?
I heard secondary residences get a higher mortgage rate... is this true?
We are looking something on the east coast (from Ocean City, MD - Florida) that we can rent out when we are not using it.
My uncles used to own a condo in Ocean City and it was great!!!

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

I was going to suggest Aruba, it' s a quick flight from NY...my friends are in the process of buying a home there, and they will rent it out when not using it.

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

Yes - mortgage rates are higher for a home that is not your primary residence.

It is *pretty much* the same process as buying your home - except I have never bought one out of state - so I don't know what the differences are there.

One of the things to keep in mind is that you need to prove to the bank that you can cover the mortgage payments even without renting the unit (You have to make enough money). Something to keep in mind when deciding how much to spend.

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

I also believe there are fewer tax breaks for second homes as well. Might want to check with an accountant before you start looking.

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

Not 100% sure but I think they may take rental income in to consideration when giving you a loan.

Also keep in mind that if you dont rent it for certain periods of time, yous still have to come up with the $ for the mortgage and that can really add up.

Good luck in your search!!

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

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Posted by kelleherkm

Not 100% sure but I think they may take rental income in to consideration when giving you a loan.

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This is true - but I believe you have to provide a signed lease (I had to do that when I bought my house to show the my investment properties were covered by rental income - which is backwards to what you are talking about Julz..but I still think it applies)

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

Thanks for your responses!
we have a lot of research to do still. Right now we want something we can afford without worrying about renting it.. by saying I want to rent it I meant that I want it to be somewhere that people want to go to, like Ocean City, where it is not hard to find people to rent it for a week or 2. I guess a condo would be better for that purpose, and since we would be out of state, a condo like my uncle had would be best... it was in a big building with cleaners and a desk that took care of the renting.
Hmmm... we really have to think about where!!! Kathy I think Aruba is too far! I want somewhere that is really easy to pick up and go to not only for us but for our families. Somewhere that my grandparents can drive to (since my grandmother doesn't like flying).
I am also looking for a place that could end up being a long-term investment. for example when my uncles sold their condo in Ocean City Maryland it was because (don't know if this is true but it is what they told me) there is a lot of erosion there and they were worried about the long term. Now I know something bad could happen anywhere, for ex. a hurricane.
Hopefully by next year!

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

Try Virginia Beach..

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

I have a friend who has two condos in Ocean City and another who has a house in Florida. I'm considering it myself. I was thinking about a condo in Florida since I'm a huge Disney fan. Though i think houses may bring in a slightly higher profit, then tend to be further away from the parks. Plus, I don't want to deal with any exterior stuff. Here's the link to some condos I've been eyeing at Windsor Pines

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

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Posted by dengal

I have a friend who has two condos in Ocean City and another who has a house in Florida. I'm considering it myself. I was thinking about a condo in Florida since I'm a huge Disney fan. Though i think houses may bring in a slightly higher profit, then tend to be further away from the parks. Plus, I don't want to deal with any exterior stuff. Here's the link to some condos I've been eyeing at Windsor Pines

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Thats exactly the type of place we are looking for. How do we go about finding places like this one, but in different areas, like Virginia, SC...? I don't know where to look!

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

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Posted by julz33

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Posted by dengal

I have a friend who has two condos in Ocean City and another who has a house in Florida. I'm considering it myself. I was thinking about a condo in Florida since I'm a huge Disney fan. Though i think houses may bring in a slightly higher profit, then tend to be further away from the parks. Plus, I don't want to deal with any exterior stuff. Here's the link to some condos I've been eyeing at Windsor Pines

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Thats exactly the type of place we are looking for. How do we go about finding places like this one, but in different areas, like Virginia, SC...? I don't know where to look!

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Maybe realtor.com? That seems to be the biggest and they cover the whole country.

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

We have a vacation home in Pennslyvania near Big Boulder/Jack Frost ski moutains. The cost is not even $1000 a month and the house is BIGGER than our home here; and we also have a time share in Cabo San Lucas, which is at an amazing resort, brand new and gorgeous/top of the line. We were able to use the interest on the time share in our taxes, and I am glad we have both places, but we would be WAY ahead of the game of life, if we did not have either place, soooo....you have to really think about it.

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

Look into the Myrtle Beach area ... Surfside Beach, Murrel's Inlet, Pauley's Island, Litchfield ...

Re: We are looking for a vacation home/condo.

when we went to the outer banks in NC this past summer, there were so many billboards advertising buying a vacation home...we only rented a condo for a week, but we used Sun Realty.