What are the advantages of buying a condo/townhouse home as opposed to a traditional single family home?

Question

The condo type homes seem to be very popular at the moment but I am not sure why? What are the facts behind them,,dont you have to pay extra fees?

Answer 1

In a condo or a townhouse condo (which are both technically condos), you share the common area maintenance with the other owners.
On the plus side, your landscaping, snowplowing, exterior repairs, etc. are taken care of (usually) by a management company or a vendor picked by the management company.
On the downside, you have to pay a condo fee, usually every month, you may have common walls (and noises) with neighbors, you might smell your neighbors' cooking, interior repairs are generally your expense. Finally, you have to agree to live under a certain set of rules (usually called 'house rules').
House Rules govern what you can and can't do as it relates to the condominium community. Some are reasonable and some are strict. House rules may cover things from pets, parking, (visible) window treatments to whether you can hang a towel over your balcony to dry or whether you can grill outside.
Typically, townhouses have fewer common walls. For instance, the only common wall I share with my neighbor (in a townhouse community) is my bedroom wall is the other side of his garage wall. I've never heard anything but the door opener.


IMPORTANT:
Make certain that you read and are willing to live by the House Rules. They may prohibit pets, for instance. Also understand that house rules can be changed.
Make sure that you know what is covered by the management company or association and what isn't. For instance, I don't have to shovel my walk but in other communities I might.
Get a copy of the Homeowners' Association audited financial statements and make sure that they are and have been financially sound. Make sure that they maintain a funded capital account for large repairs (roofs, repaving parking lots)
Get a copy of a document called the 'Master Deed' which also may contain some restrictions.
Have your lawyer and/or accountant review them.

And finally, be willing to tolerate the politics of small minded people whose only authority in the world is that they serve on the Condominium Board. There's a good reason that this is their only authority....

Answer 2

Don't treat all condos/townhomes the same. They are similiar to houses. Some houses are in Housing Associations, and have regulations for maintenance, etc. The same with condos/townhomes. Some do have extra fees, some don't. The advantage is that some have maintenance and cleaning built in. You are living in a prefabricated community, and that appeals to a lot of people. They could be a little easier to rent out later for this reason.

Answer 3

The reason there are so many condos/townhomes now is because the land is so expensive the builders can't build affordable single-family homes in most areas. Most everyone would prefer a single-family home but they have to buy what they can afford. The only advantage to attached living is ease of maintenance--it's not cheaper because you pay for it in the long run but it is easier.

Answer 4

exterior of the two solutions you have won already. right here may well be my 2 factors properly worth for you. In a bad marketplace a condominium might hire out speedier than an condominium. yet a house might hire speedier than something. reason i say that's that if some thing happens to you. God helping if will on no account happen. yet a house you should hire out and could upload little or no to the final analysis. A condominium. you should hire out whether with the HOA costs and all you will possibly lose even slightly greater. basically good element may well be which you do not could restoration up the backyard. yet while the condominium desires a clean roof wager the place that funds comes from? good success