There are some vital differences you should know about a townhouse and a condo if you want to rent or buy a condo or townhouse or merely looking for Myrtle Beach townhouses for sale. As for townhouses or townhomes, adjacent homes share one or two walls of each house since they are individual houses placed side-by-side. A condominium or condo is housing that the homeowner owns a specific part of a larger property, almost like an apartment within a complex. In contrast, all condo residents communally own all other connecting areas of the complex.
As both types of housing are found more frequently in urban areas, townhouses are built with square footage and have lower HOA fees, while condos are smaller with higher HOA fees. You will find a few differences between a townhouse and a condo below.
HOA Fees
Most times, HOA fees for townhouses are usually much lower and cover a small set of services, including lawn care and waste service. As for condos, their HOA fees are much higher than townhouses. Apart from having more shared spaces, the fact is that condos have some unique amenities that require more money to cover like a rooftop barbeque or an exercise room. Other monthly HOA fees that may be included are DSL or cable internet service, water, insurance coverage, and other utilities or services.
Land Ownership
You own the land that you build your home on if you own a townhouse. As for the condo, you don’t own the land if you have a condo. You are only entitled to the space inside the apartment that you own. Ultimately, you must pay property taxes, whether you own a townhouse or a condo.
Common Areas
You will enjoy fewer common areas if you own a townhouse. The typical consideration for townhouses is that they are independent and individual homes, usually with garages/carports and private yards that can be fenced even when they share one or two walls. The spaces jointly owned are quite small. However, a broader neighborhood with a communal area like a park, pool, or a small playground, can be part of townhouses in some cases.
As a homeowner, you own all exteriors and common areas in a complex of condos. These areas are in good condition and are kept clean through the HOA funding. Even the roof of the condo is communally owned.
Structure
Your ideal townhouse is designed within a row of connected houses, which doesn’t make it an apartment. Most townhouses are typically two to three-stories tall and are built more narrowly than the conventional detached homes. As for condos, their standard configuration is that of an apartment within a complex. A townhouse shared one or two walls with the other homes based on where it is in the row. The interior space of the condo can belong to you, and you can jointly own the spaces outside of a condo, including the building’s roof, pools, garages or parking lots, exercise rooms, halls, and others. Though it is not common, a condo can be an independent office within a multi-unit complex.