I am interested in this home

Aneeda72 said:
You own the land the townhouse sits on and they are often two stories; sometimes they have basements. You can make any internal changes you want (at least in my state.).

Condo-you only own the air space. Often internal changes much be approved.
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Sorry @Aneeda72 , but not correct. A condominium is a form of ownership, A town house is a unit with its own entrance.
Example: My mom lived in Florida in an apartment style condominium. It has 5 floors and 6 units per floor. I lived in a condominium in California that was a townhouse style. Two stories, with a separate front door entry. There was no need for approval of internal changes unless they were structural.
I was on the board of my condo for 25 years, and I had a real estate license at one time.
 
bowmore said:
Sorry @Aneeda72 , but not correct. A condominium is a form of ownership, A town house is a unit with its own entrance.
Example: My mom lived in Florida in an apartment style condominium. It has 5 floors and 6 units per floor. I lived in a condominium in California that was a townhouse style. Two stories, with a separate front door entry. There was no need for approval of internal changes unless they were structural.
I was on the board of my condo for 25 years, and I had a real estate license at one time.
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Again, it depends on where you live.

Edited. It also depends on the community especially if an HOA is involved. Even some independent houses cannot be changed due to HOA’s.
 

OneEyedDiva said:
It looks nice, clean, spacious, really like the floors and I like the look of the building. It lists the HOA fee as $298 monthly.
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Those HOA's are particular. Kind of difficult to imagine Deb stringing a line to hang her unsold sale items & spreading her carpets on the lawn. Might even not want several tables of miscellaneous glass ware & other unsold old old items.

Who knows maybe she will succeed in getting a neighbor to share their garage to store her yard sale items until she can get approval from her HOA board to hold yard sales.
 
Aunt Marg said:
That would be a deal breaker for me.

$3600 a year out the door to have your life run by asinine HOA rules, no thanks to that.
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Yeah Condo HOA fees are definitely a turn off. I wonder what that includes though. If it's heat, hot water, electric, maintenance of all common areas and as it seems to indicate... cable, $298 is not that bad. Hell...some people pay darned near $200 just for cable bundles. I've seen on home buying shows where the HOA fees are over $500 and $600 a month.
 
OneEyedDiva said:
Yeah Condo HOA fees are definitely a turn off. I wonder what that includes though. If it's heat, hot water, electric, maintenance of all common areas and as it seems to indicate... cable, $298 is not that bad. Hell...some people pay darned near $200 just for cable bundles. I've seen on home buying shows where the HOA fees are over $500 and $600 a month.
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Excellent points, OneEyed.

I didn't realize HOA fees could run so high. o_O
 
IMHO, anyone considering a condominium should be absolutely sure they understand what that form of ownership legally means in their state, as to what they own and what they do not, as well as completely understanding how their homeowners' insurance would operate within that framework as to both property damage and liability coverage.

Also, they should be absolutely sure they understand the HOA requirements and restrictions as to what activities are and are not permitted or required in their own unit as well as on condominium property and common areas.

It can turn into a legal quagmire fairly quickly. It is not something I would care to deal with.
 
Devi said:
What everyone said about. And let's not forget that the HOA can also raise the fees.
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Yup, I was reading to see if anyone brought that up. Plus it’s some HOA do there jobs and some don’t. Usually only water is paid by the HOA in our area
 
I understood the HOA in that particular condo only covered exterior maintenence (landscaping, mowing, snow removal). Also the "exclusions apply" were the lighting fixtures. I'd have to bring and install my own, even ceiling lights. This doesn't make any sense to me - the whole thing sounds fishy.
 
OneEyedDiva said:
I've seen them $1,000 and above Marg. Those were in high rise luxury buildings though that rich folks usually didn't bat an eye when they heard the fees. LOL 🤑
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I watch House Hunters a lot. In Chicago/New York/San Francisco: "...and the monthly fee condominium fees are only $1100 a month!" "Oh, good, what do I get?" "Snow removal and outside maintenance." "I'll take it!"

Our monthly HOA fees are $9 a month. We don't worry about snow removal.
 
debodun said:
I understood the HOA in that particular condo only covered exterior maintenence (landscaping, mowing, snow removal). Also the "exclusions apply" were the lighting fixtures. I'd have to bring and install my own, even ceiling lights. This doesn't make any sense to me - the whole thing sounds fishy.
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We were going to buy a house for 315, 000. The guy had no other buyers and we met ever request of his cause the house was just a few doors down from what we just sold. We wanted to stay with our friends. Then, right, before it close he said he was taking his thermostat.

Oh good lord. He was making over 150,000 from the sale and wanted his 400 dollar thermostat. We bought a different house.
 
jujube said:
I watch House Hunters a lot. In Chicago/New York/San Francisco: "...and the monthly fee condominium fees are only $1100 a month!" "Oh, good, what do I get?" "Snow removal and outside maintenance." "I'll take it!"

Our monthly HOA fees are $9 a month. We don't worry about snow removal.
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I know Jujube. I only watch the beachfront (view) buying home buying shows. One thing I hate that some realtors do on those shows is they'll say "oh this is only a little over your budget". Well the home buyers set a budget of $300,000 and the home costs $350,000 or $375,000. That's more than "a little" IMO. If the home is in the million dollar range, they may go $100,000 to $200,000 over. I also don't like when they don't even offer to get a better deal for their clients. Of course I read up and found out that by the time those shows air, the home was already chosen and is lived in. $9 a month is great!
 
Deb, make a list of your wants, needs, & things you refuse to have.

Will you be giving up garage sales.
How tolerant are you of rules & regulations.
How tolerant of people or kids around you.
Features you’d like. Fairly new. One level.
Etc, etc.

You might even give this to the realtor who is looking for you.
Saying that you will be paying cash is a great incentive for them.
 
I have to choose whether I want the freedom my own home and still have to keep up with interior and exterior maintenance (an ever increasing effort as I get older), or buy a condo or rent an apartment where some of the maintenance is taken care of, but I have less freedom. How to decide???
 
Jules said:
Deb, make a list of your wants, needs, & things you refuse to have.

Will you be giving up garage sales.
How tolerant are you of rules & regulations.
How tolerant of people or kids around you.
Features you’d like. Fairly new. One level.
Etc, etc.

You might even give this to the realtor who is looking for you.
Saying that you will be paying cash is a great incentive for them.
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Deb is not buying a condo or townhouse. 🤓
 
debodun said:
I have to choose whether I want the freedom my own home and still have to keep up with interior and exterior maintenance (an ever increasing effort as I get older), or buy a condo or rent an apartment where some of the maintenance is taken care of, but I have less freedom. How to decide???
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I can suggest how you do this, as I have before. First step. Rent an apartment for 3 months if you can. This is possible in my area. Then you will know if you like multiple family dwellings. I think you will hate it. IMO.

Then, without the old house around your neck, you can find a new house.
 

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