Parents invested in a condo conversion at the tail end of the ’70s boom. After brief appreciation the market tanked, and comps fell by 40% or so (for those units that actually sold). The seller failed to disclose that the complex was in the middle of a flood zone, which everyone found out the hard way a few years later. By then the lender (a well-known S&L of the era) was the only party left to sue. HOA fees doubled within a few years due to vacant units.
They were able to sell at a break-even price in 1989. Since then the complex has gone through a major boom-bust cycle and comps aren’t that far above 1979 levels.
