Reply to Riviera of Chevy Chase Condos

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The Riviera Condo building at 4242 East West Hwy in Chevy Chase not that far from the Bethesda stop has always had extremely high common charges and low resale values.

A small one bedroom is $1,173 a month common charge. It is a condo not a coop so that is high. The two bedrooms with a balcony and two parking spots are over $2,000 a month common charges.

I have been in building, it looks like a regular older condo building nicely maintained, has a pool, parking, gym and walking distance to Metro. But condo prices are literally selling for same price as in 2002. Zero price appreciation last 20 years.

This one for sale for $189K was worth $189K in 2002 and in 1980 was worth $70,000. How is such low appreciation possible. In 1980 Bethesda did not even have a Metro and was in middle of nowhere. Nothing like today,

Is there some type of  backstory why a building by Metro that appears nice in Bethesda has high common charges and almost zero appreciation dating all the way back to the 1970s?

Here is a recent for sale:$189K for a one bedroom condo with parking  
https://www.redfin.com/MD/Chevy-Chase/4242-East-West-Hwy-20815/unit-902/home/10688617

Here is building info. 
https://www.redfin.com/MD/Bethesda/4242-East-West-Hwy-Bethesda-MD-20815/building/2490
[/quote]

The condo fee is probably a little high, but it includes all utilities (don't know if that includes cable/internet, I'm guessing it doesn't) and a parking spot, which are going for $170-$200/month at the garages two blocks away near the Metro (per SpotHero). You also won't need to pay a monthly gym or pool membership, nor have to pay a monthly bill for an alarm system because of the 24-hour front desk.

Unbundle all of that and add in the cost of maintaining a nearly 50-year-old building and you're probably at least approaching $1200/month.

You'll pay more for newer condos in downtown Bethesda even if they have much cheaper condo fees, and often you'll pay more for less space. An almost identically sized 1br at the Crescent Plaza on Woodmont has a $595/month condo fee and includes everything the Riviera does except a pool. The difference is that the sale price is more than twice as expensive, and even with the cheaper condo fee you'll be paying $800 more per month to live there, assuming the down payment is the same. The numbers are the same for a condo at the Chase on Woodmont (which has a pool, plus tennis courts), with the big difference being the Riviera condo is 200 SF bigger and half as expensive.[/quote]

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