Definitely pay attention to the HoA. Some are definitely bad, but most are honestly middling. If you getting a shared wall place (Condo, Townhome, etc) you will most likely have one.
Make sure you pay very close attention to what the HoA is responsible for and what you are responsible for.
- Most likely the HoA will take care of lawn care and exterior paint etc but make sure
- Hoa will likely handle roofs as well, but make sure to find out if they have reserves for it or not as part of your monthly fee. If there are no reserves that means whenever you need a new roof expect a big bill. If there are reserves you might get a bill still if they misbudgeted but it should be less
- Really if possible just look into the financials of the HoA and see if they have a decent amount of cash on hand to handle emergencies and stuff
- It's also a good idea to see what kind of home insurance you will need, basically whether the HoA is insuring the roof or if you are because it will impact the insurance you pay each month.
- And the obvious, look into the bylaws etc and see how strict they are.
Also not sure where you live, i'm in florida so things to keep in mind depending on area:
- Good idea to know the age of the roof in general, roofs older than 15 can get harder/more expensive to get insurance for
- I've run into some insurance companies that want the water heater to be no more than 15 years as well (Depending on the size this could only be 1000 dollars though)
- Also check if youre in a flood zone to see if you will need flood insurance