I respectfully disagree, Scarlett. Many of us prefer not to deal with the added responsibilities of single-family-home ownership. I have no desire to deal with my own trash pick-up, landscaping, searching out of contractors, etc., etc. I pay a monthly nominal fee to my (extremely well-run) management company and they handle all of that for me. The biggest key to having a good condo experience (as with anything) is to do your homework before you buy into a building. Ask for a copy of the minutes from the last three board meetings. This will give you a good feel for how the association and building run themselves. Also ask to see all the financials. THIS is a biggie: if something raises a red flag, you should probably continue your condo search elsewhere. By all means, DON'T sign on any dotted line until you've had your attorney or accountant review these documents as well. Resale value is a major factor if you don't plan to live in the property for a significant time period. The less time you live there, the less equity you'll have -- just like any real estate. But everybody has to live somehwere. Condo living offers a wonderful, low-hassle lifestyle. You just have to find the fit that's right for you.

We kind of flip flopped with the sleeping situation. DD dated someone for 2.5 years post college but they lived in separate cities 2 hours from each other (we live 6 hours from her). He came here twice and we put them in separate bedrooms (all of our spare rooms have twins, with one room having a trundle). That was our first experience with a BF/GF staying over so I think we just weren't ready for it yet or maybe because it was DD, not DS...I'm not quite sure. Later, youngest DS moved to Chicago after college and dated somone for a year, then they moved in together. When they came to visit, it seemed kind of dumb to have them in separate rooms since they were already living together. I set up the trundle but they ended up squishing into a twin....ah young love! I like your criteria MTN of working adults.

qdognj - I admit that it's a staggering amount of money and that the upkeep is substantial. My sensibilities wouldn't allow me to do it because I'm of the same mind as you. It would be so much easier to book a vacation, a nice vacation, anywhere in the world for those annual costs and still have change in the bank. I wouldn't have to worry about hurricaines, rising insurance or taxes, etc. But it's still no different from buying way more house than one needs - they can afford it and it gives them pleasure. Now, if they are using their vacation home as an investment, if it's being done at the expense of other important financial goals, or they just can't afford it, then that's a whole different ball game.

This post is over a year old. I'm surprised the lake level in that area was so low -- they got more rain in the NE part of the state than in other parts of the state, but last year was the first year we started to get a break on the drought and at least some lakes started getting recharged. This year has been wetter and seems pretty normal, but they say we are still a bit low. I bet that lake is back near normal now, but the folks out west are still in dire straits. I suspect the guy was having a really hard time last year and reacting out of fear for his livelihood or that place at least. His upset is understandable -- it's a beautiful setting and he had no control over the weather, but he shouldn't have acted as he did. An apology for not letting you know what everyone in Texas knew 00 that the lakes were all way down and the heat was taking a toll on everything and an invite to return when the lakes was recharged would have been the more gentlemanly thing to do.