Condo Ownerships - Benefits and Drawbacks

Owning a condo carries several benefits, but these can be offset by the drawbacks. In order to determine if a condominium is the right investment for you, you need to understand both the pros and the cons. This will allow you to make a fully informed decision.

Benefits of Condominiums

Buying a condo as your primary home is usually less expensive than buying a single-family home of a similar size. There are many reasons for this. First, when you buy condos, you buy just the unit, not the land on which it stands. This makes the purchase price a bit more affordable. Also, much of the maintenance is included in the fees you pay for the property. The condominium owners can do the maintenance for a much more affordable rate than you as a homeowner because of experience and the opportunity to buy supplies in bulk.

Which brings us to another benefit, and that is the lack of exterior, and sometimes interior, maintenance. This is all handled by the condominium company. You will not have to worry about mowing your lawn or hiring someone to water the flowers when you go on vacation.

Owning condominiums brings all of the tax deductions homeowners receive, so you will not be losing out on those. You also own the unit, so you can paint and decorate as you want, giving you full pride of ownership.

These units often increase in value, so you are actually making a good long-term investment. When you go to sell in the future, you may end up making money.

Drawbacks to Condos

While there are numerous benefits to owning condos, there are drawbacks as well. You will have to answer to a homeowner’s association, which may place rules on the properties that dictate how you can decorate and what you can do within the doors of you own home. You will also have to pay fees to these associations. These fees cover the maintenance and security you have living in the community, but they are still an expense to consider.

Sometimes the monthly fees can go up, or you can be charged a special assessment for a major expense for repairs that are out of the ordinary or considered not part of the normal wear and tear of the property. You will also have to conform to all of the rules of the condominium association. It may not allow pets or may limit the size and type of pet you can have. You also may be limited in where you can park.

The management and maintenance crew of a condo makes or breaks your experience. If the management is poor, you are going to struggle to enjoy your new home. You also may find that noisy neighbors put a damper on your relaxing evenings at home. Adjacent units cause more noise to travel from your neighbors’ home into yours. These are all of the considerations you need to make when considering condos as a housing option for you.