Whenever San Francisco holds its annual condo lottery in February, the winning homeowners put their game plans together. Some immediately embark upon the condo conversion process, while others quickly decide to sell.
My colleagues and I have noticed a few listings coming on the market that are being classified as condos—but which are really TICs in buildings that recently won the lottery. It’s important to note that until a building is fully converted and all units are officially condos, you can’t call a TIC a condo. Even if everything is on track for condo conversion.
This is a good distinction to make if you’re a buyer who’s not interested in completing someone else’s condo conversion. And sellers, it’s important to recognize that condo conversion does incur quite a few fees, so expect buyers to factor those costs into the price they pay for your TIC.