Buying a condominium vs. House

If you are thinking of buying a home, you probably settled on one of two options: a single family home. or condominium.

After all, it’s a good feeling to own a roof (or ceiling) over your head, and depending on whether you have a HOA, you can whatever you want to make the space your own (so you know demolishing walls costs a lot of money).

However, you yet it might be better to rent an apartment.

Why you might want to buy an apartment

Condos are cheaper than houses

One of the best reasons to buy an apartment instead of a house is the price difference. Compared to single family homes, apartments are generally cheaper.

Lower price means less down payment and lower monthly payment. This means you can save serious cash.

More details: Is there a payment history for 20% t Home Down Payments?

You don’t need to worry about repairs and maintenance (at least outside)

This is one of the main benefits of living in a condominium. While homeowners mow their lawns, paint their home, trim hedges, clean gutters, prune trees, rake leaves and shovel snow, condominium owners hang out by the pool, take weekend trips, or just relax at home.

The appearance of the condominium is owned and maintained by the Homeowners Association (HOA). The owner is only responsible for the interior. But everything outside the door does not concern them. This frees up time (and money) for other activities.

Location could be better for your lifestyle

Because condos are smaller and more densely packed, they are often located closer to amenities. This is especially true in the city center with a lot of cultural events, shopping, entertainment and work opportunities.

Condominium owners often get shorter commutes to work than homeowners, who are more likely to live in remote suburbs and suburban areas.

You can use the shared facilities

Large condominium quarters are often filled with shared amenities. They can include:

• Pools.
• Tennis court.
• Gymnasiums.
• Golf courses.
• Park areas.
• Pet parks.
• Treadmills.

Most of those who live in homes have to travel to public areas to enjoy these amenities. The condominium owner has them without even leaving his home.

You may be able to improve social connections.

Surroundings of detached single-family homes tend to create distance between neighbors. In this respect, condominiums are much closer to apartments. Your home is literally surrounded by other units, and you may have others living above or below your apartment. There is also a density coefficient. Whereas a detached residential area can have one house per acre, then a condominium can have 20 or 30 units per acre.

This creates a level of intimacy that is not found in larger units. And since condos tend to attract people with similar backgrounds and interests, there is a good chance you will mix in society – in other words, you have built-in friends!

Activity becomes even more noticeable when there are common recreational areas such as swimming pools and gyms.

Why you might want to buy a home

You can own land

From a technical point of view, property ownership presupposes land. Condominiums do not have this by definition. Private houses do.

This is why, in my opinion, this is one of the main benefits of owning a home.

Yes, the property needs maintenance. But you can build a private backyard pool, set up a garden, throw backyard parties, or even play touchscreen soccer.

And that’s not to mention the benefits of having a private, fenced-in backyard where your kids (or dogs, for those of us millennials or Gen Z) can play safely.

You can avoid HOA rules

One of the inherent disadvantages of a condominium is its uniformity. Since the exterior of the house does not belong to you, there is nothing you can do about it. You may even need to get permission from the HOA to put a welcome mat in front of the door.

Home is a completely different story.

You can paint it in any color, build a children’s house in the backyard, or arrange flower beds throughout the territory. The house can be easily changed, unlike a condominium.

There is more room for growth

As your family grows, you can also develop your home. You can demolish the walls and add an extension. You can build a deck in your backyard. In some less suburban areas, it is even possible to build a guest house on the site.

Nothing like this can be done with a condominium, and even less so with an apartment.

Home is better adapted to life changes

Among all aspects of life that are controlled by HOAs, one of the most frustrating is their ability to control what you do for a living and who you live with.

For example: If you are looking to start your own plumbing business, you can often do it outside of your home. You can never do this outside an apartment or apartment.

It’s the same with living conditions. Condominiums have certain restrictions on who and how many people can live in an apartment. If your sister, son-in-law and their two children need a place to live, you can put them in your house. A condominium or apartment will likely have restrictions that prevent this arrangement.

A house is usually easier to sell than an apartment.

Literally speaking, a condominium can be a daunting task in the poor housing market.

This is because, for the most part, a condominium is a replacement home. This is the kind of property that people only buy in the most stable markets. But detached houses on private lots tend to be more liquid in all markets.

There is also the factor of individuality. Each home is unique, especially after being personalized by its owners. It is more likely to appeal to specific customers.

Condos, by contrast, are uniform. They are so similar that one device doesn’t necessarily stand out from the rest. If there are many apartments for sale in the condominium area, it may take a year or more to sell your apartment. This is the main reason why condos are often rented out.

More details: Should you buy a house on the seller’s market?

Why you might be better off just renting an apartment

Renting is generally cheaper (thanks to the costs of renovating and maintaining the house)

Simply put, renting is usually the least expensive housing option. This is in part due to the fact that apartments are usually smaller than houses and condominiums, and also because rents are usually lower than regular home payments in most markets (depending on where you live).

More details: Rent is not wasted money: why you shouldn’t rush to buy a house

There is a third factor – repair and maintenance costs. The tenant of the apartment does not have such expenses. They do not need to pay $ 300 per month to the HOA for a condominium or $ 7,000 to replace the roof of the house. All they have to do is call their landlord.

Easier to move out

The tenant has the ability to move as soon as possible. The owner of a home or condominium usually needs to sell the property in order to move.

Don’t you love your neighbor? No problem. As long as you are ready to break the lease (in other words, pay), you can go.

Apartments are more conveniently located

Because apartments are more densely packed than houses and even condominiums, they often have a very convenient location.

In addition to the city center, they can be found around large shopping centers, popular leisure spots and major transport interchanges.

For this reason, a tenant usually has more accommodation options than a landlord or apartment owner.

No invested capital

Regardless of whether you are buying a house or an apartment, you will have to pay a down payment. It can be from $ 10,000 to $ 100,000 or more. After making the initial payment, you will not have access to this capital. You cannot spend and you cannot invest.

The tenant of the apartment, on the other hand, has no unrecoverable capital and therefore has complete control over his money.

It is also a fact that many tenants will not take advantage of this huge benefit. But if you can invest your money in renting an apartment, you can get the same capital increase as homeowners and condominium owners. Only you will have more direct control over your money, as well as the ability to diversify your investments in a way that a property owner cannot.

You will have less maintenance than a house or apartment

This is both convenience and financial benefit. Like the owner of the apartment, the tenant of the apartment is not responsible for external repairs and maintenance. But, unlike the owner of the condominium, the tenant of the apartment is not responsible for interior or.

For example: If the plumbing starts to leak, the owner or manager is responsible for the repair, not the tenant.

Summary

As you can see, each type of housing has its own advantages and disadvantages. What’s great is that you can choose what works best for you.

The short answer is that none of the three types of housing is necessarily better than the others. It really comes down to where you are in life and what your preferences are.

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