My Condo Came with a Pile of Cash: The Unrecognized Costs of Traditional Home Ownership

Picture this: you’re buying a traditional home and you arrive at closing to find the previous owner handing you a surprise pile of cash! “Here,” they say. “You paid us a fair market value, but we had set aside $12,500 for a roof, which is 1/20th of the cost of a new roof, and we want you to keep that money for this beloved house. Oh, and here is another pile of cash for the furnace replacement we expect in 5 years. … And here is another for the driveway; it won’t last forever.”