Quality of life and tax deduction. Many buyers chose the quality of life and community in coops over No rules in condos. Many buyers prefer the rules that restrict non resident investors and short term rentals. A portion of maintenance in a coop is tax deductible. The portion of maintenance that pays the underlying mortgage interst. A coop purchase is exempt from NY state mortgage recording tax.

Well first off, one of the major benefits of owning a co-op is the fact that they are so much more affordable in comparison to condos in the Big Apple. Of course there are other benefits as well including it being a democratic community, cost and expense benefits to sharing with other owners.

One of the pitfalls though is also one of its benefits--the democratic community. It is a double-edged sword. On one hand it is great that the community can gather and decide on issues together, solve problems as a group. But on the other hand it makes the process of doing most anything much longer. There are also many more rules and many more restrictions when it comes to what you can do with your own unit--especially if you are considering renting the unit out if you ever decide to leave the city or find another place to buy.

The link below just provides some more in-depth information about co-ops that you might find interesting.

We do not have a lot of co-ops in our area but the ones we have are definately more affordable. With that affordability come some creativeness in financing. Hope that helps.