Just wanted to say good luck on the Condo search. I myself have had some offers to relocate to Rhode Island and California. Both places after researching the cost of living increase versus the amount of salary increase didn't weight out appropriately and found myself staying here in Texas due to it.

Just sucks that a house that is approxe 150 to 200k here in Texas on a good sized plot of land can cost 400 to 600k in other parts of the states. In California land prices are crazy. I have a friend who moved out of her house that was given to her from her parents that was on a half acre lot and even though the house she lived in was so crappy the land was worth so much that by moving to a brand new house that was only on a small lot she saved money.

Most of the technical things you probably need to know has been posted above but I did want to mention one additional thing when looking at Condos alot of them are similar to home owners associations in that they can limit alot of the decisions you make to adding anything to the building. Paint colors, addition of things like swingsets, storage sheds to back yards, or even something seemingly trivial such as Satelite dishes or yard decorations may require permission or even a permit from the organization. So that may be something you may want to look at.

Keep in mind that association rules are typically deed restricted versus city wide ordinances and not all homes or condos are in associations that has such aestetic regulations.

Anyway good luck to you and your family and your recent move.

/wave.