Condo vs. Townhome – The Domino Effect

Are you confused about the differences between a condo and a townhome? You're not alone! It used to be that condos were apartments owned by the person who lived in them.A townhome, or townhouse, was one of several connected dwellings lined up side by side.

Today's definition of condo means any individually owned subdivision of a larger structure owned by another entity.There are apartment condominiums.There are townhouse condominiums.

Let's talk about the pros and cons of each of these, and to make it easy we'll just refer to them with the good old-fashioned words, condo and townhome.But it's so hard to choose between them!

If you buy a condo, you are basically buying the living space.You won't own the walls-because the walls are part of the exteriors that are owned by another party.The most expensive condos are those on the top floor of the building because then you have no neighbor above you.

Almost equally desirable is any unit on the bottom floor of the building, because there's no one below you.Because one person's floor might be someone else's ceiling, condo rules often call for noise restriction. Sometimes you have to cover a certain percentage of your floor space with carpeting.

If you buy a townhome, you're buying a dwelling from top to bottom. On your sides, the walls are considered to be the property lines.It extends in the front and back to its property lines.

Condos tend to be a little more restrictive about pet ownership.Many condominium developments identify some units for pet owners and others for non-pet owners. That means you have to decide before you buy if you want a pet or not.

Part of the fee goes toward insurance just like townhomes, but it's usually a bigger fee.Condo buildings offer laundry facilities, party rooms, exercise rooms or saunas, or other amenities that are fee-for use, but which have to be covered in the event of disaster.

Both townhomes and condos come with association fees.Potential buyers need to consider that those fees take the place of maintenance costs they would incur if they owned a house.Association fees charged to townhome owners are generally less.They cover things such as snow removal or lawn care, trash removal, and a fee for hazard insurance in the event that some catastrophe ruins the entire complex of homes.

Fees paid by condo owners are a little higher because they cover everything we mentioned plus heating, water, and sewage.They cover maintenance of shared amenities such as a pool or tennis courts.

Making your decision really is a process of narrowing down what you want, because for each pro that you identify you also get a con. Your choices affect one another like dominoes.

What's your available money? The purchase price of a condo is generally less than that of a townhome. And that relates to...

Space: The condo is smaller. A townhome has two or three levels. A condo has a storage bin. A townhome usually has a basement. Even when the square footage is just about even, the concept of having multiple stories just seems like more of a luxury.

Association fees: The condo comes with higher fees. And this correlates with...

Maintenance responsibility: The townhome has more maintenance responsibility to offset the lower fees.

Autonomy: The townhome wins here if you want to defer your decision on pet ownership, or if you don't want someone dictating your floor or wall covering choices. And that ties into...

Amenities: You have more autonomy with a townhome, but you won't get the amenities of a condo.

Our recommendation? Look at several properties, and consider the above six points as they relate to each property.Ultimately, the choice is yours.

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