If you’re looking to buy a townhouse or condominium, it’s important to note there are some significant differences between the two.
A condo is more of a legal definition than anything, referring to how the property is owned and managed.
If you were to purchase a condo, as opposed to a townhouse, you would own just the structure. The land under it would be part of the large parcel on which all the units and the common areas sit. In a townhouse, you own the land under your home.
In a condo, you pay into a blanket condo insurance policy that covers the unit itself.
This insurance, by the way, covers the structure but none of the contents of individual units. In a townhouse, you pay for your own individual policy.
Services such as landscaping and repaving of the common parking lots will often be handled by both types of associations, but condo associations will be more likely to manage minor items such as trim painting and snow removal and major maintenance such as roof replacement.
Roof replacement is more specific to condos in that they are more likely to share common roofs. Thus, it would be challenging to replace specific sections of one part versus the entire roof itself. For this reason, condo association dues can be significantly higher than dues for a townhouse.
When you’re looking to purchase a condo, make absolutely sure that you understand how much the fees are. They will increase over time as maintenance expenses rise.