Buying a condo in co-op building

[dpb894]

I am considering moving to hawaii and have been looking for real estate to buy but most of what you can find are condos in co-op buildings. So, my question is this: Some of the condos i have been looking at i would like to make some changes (i.e, new kitchen, doors). Is this something that do when you buy a condo and/or how do find out what you are allowed to do?

[Jim Erickson]

You have used 'condo' and 'coop' terms in you post and should be aware that they are two different forms of ownership. To try to answer your question, if you own a condominum, you can generally do anything you would do with a single family home. With cooperatives, you are more restrictive in what you can do since in essence you have purchased an interest which gives you proprietary lease rights to a unit.

In any case, the HOA documentation will spell out exactly the restrictions and rules of ownership.