Whats the difference between a Condo and a Townhouse

[Peter Vincent]

So far the only thing that I can see is whatever the developer wants to call it.

 

[Michael Martin]

A condo can be a 1, 2 or even 3 story living abode. A town house is a 2 story living abode. A condo is also an apartment that you own!

 

[TRACket Paul]

 

[TRACket Paul]

And this:

 

[Ryan Schaecher]

About $40,000....

 

[Johnny O]

A townhouse can be a condo but not all condos are townhouses.

 

[Michael Cacioppo]

A condo comes with an agreement with other condo owners or the managing company that obligates the condo owner to such thing as common repairs,siding, roof, grounds,etc. and may put restrictions on use. A townhouse is a type of structure. It can be part of a condominium but it is not necessarily. I general I advice against condos. You are obligated pay your share of expenses, repairs or improvements that have been voted on by the condo association. You have no choice in wether you pay or not. The plus side is that exterior, grounds and other common areas are done for you, but you still have to pay for the services.

 

[Woppy V]

Townhouses act just as condos. You own a particular space in a building and everything within those walls is yours. However, Townhouses typically have a ground level entrance and can vary in size 1st floor / 2nd floor / 3rd floor basement etc. Condos can be both residental and commercial ~ I deal mainly with the commercial application. Condos can be located anywhere in a building example ~ A condo could very well be a 300sq.ft. closet on the 5th floor of a building and the only access to it is by walking through 3 other spaces (common areas) and up stairs shared by others (common access).... yet you still own that 5th floor closet and can sell it individually from the building without effecting your neighors in the building. Esh... before I go any deeper... Townhouse = residental condo that is for the sole purpose of being a home. Condo = an area inside of a building privately owned within the aloted area.

 

[Johnny O]

You are obligated pay your share of expenses, repairs or improvements that have been voted on by the condo association. You have no choice in whether you pay or not.

That's partly why my dad sold his condo in Florida and bought a house. He'd get a bill every few months for like $3000, for this, that, or the other, stuff that he didn't regard as necessary. Once two old guys started throwing punches at each other, as best they could, at a condo board meeting. :lol:

 

[Michael Cacioppo]

Woppy, Although Townhouses are often used in Condominium developments I believe that hey are not exclusively used in that manner. You can own a townhouse with a common wall to your neighbors, but it is all yours, you maintain and repair it as you see fit. A town house need not be a condominium.



In urban areas houses are sometime attached to a neighbor via a common wall. These are sometimes in the style of a townhouse. For example there are many townhouses in Georgetown DC, but they are not condos.

 

[Woppy V]

Mike by common wall you mean that one side can be owner 1's and the other side can be owner 2's? I think thats what read and you are correct.

 

[Woppy V]

Mike I figured I 'd check in on the info.



Via definition:



Townhouse~Dwelling unit generally having two or more floors and attached to other similar units via party walls.



Condominium~ system of ownership of individual units in a multi-unit structure, combined with joint ownership of commonly used property (sidewalks, stairs, hallways)



Woppyism:



There are other nicknacks to the definitions but the definitions are basically it. Typically when you think townhouse you think of Row Housing. And Yes there are Tons of that in DC! With Condo's you'd think of a taller building with multiple condos on each floor. Both might have to pay Condo fees... Townhouses might have homeowners association fees... etc but the main difference is the physical layout of the unit. I think that should clean what we were trying to type out earlier.

 

[TomT]

I've seen a lot of condos start out as apartments. Big mistake. Separation between units is poor and in some cases they share the same attic. Hence, when one burns down, they all burn down.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Answer: About $100K.



TJR

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

Around here the Condos look like apartments. Multi floors and units. Townhomes are two story structures with one or two garages.



In Seattle lots of apartment complexes are kicking out their renters so they can sell the units as condos. Avg price? 250-300K for a two bedroom. Not worth 100K imho.



Buy a house instead.