Condominium vs house?

Question

If you live in california and wanted a $400,000 small property to live in-2BR is okay, why should you prefer a house over a condominium or vise verse? yes true house is mor eprivate, but dont you pay a lot for keeping the crass cut, maintaing pool etc. i want to make up mu mind , any detailed info will help..thank you so much.

Answer 1

house

Answer 2

On a house you'll pay the expenses you mention directly, but on a condo there will be a monthly condo fee to cover the joint expenses so find out what that is before you commit to anything.

Answer 3

Condos are wonderful places to live.  I had one for 4 years and never once had to clean the swimming pool or add chemicals.  I just jumped in.  

Now that i own my home, the wind fills my pool with leaves and no one but me cleans them out.

When you go to see a condo, you make apx 1/4 of the profit of selling a house.  The condos are all the same.  Except for carpet color, the buyers always buy the cheapest.

And it takes a certain personality to live close to neighbors. And to follow the rules.  Some people can handle it. Some shouldn't live so close to the neighbors. /

Answer 4

Think about today's economy and make a decision based on you income and your estimated value after you purchase either.

Answer 5

I do live in California and get a house.  My sister lived in a condo and it was horrible!  It is like buying an apartment.  As you know houses here have really dropped.  Do some research and buy a house!  

Answer 6

personally ,if it was just me..i'd go for the condo hands and everything down...and i wouldnt look for 400..lesser

Answer 7

With a condo, you will have other people deciding what maintenance is necessary for common areas, and they will award the job to a contractor of their choice and will simply send you a bill for it - which you will have to pay. With a house, everything is under your own control. The roof needs to be replaced? You arrange to get it done - and if you're handy, you can save by doing the job yourself.

You will pay more for things like keeping the grass cut and maintaining the pool with a condo (if it has those facilities) because you pay a monthly condo fee and don't have the option of doing the work yourself to save money.

If you go with the condo, make sure you find out up front how much the association fee is. It can be very different from one association to another. And in either case, have a professional home inspection done so you will be aware of any maintenance issues that will require immediate attention.

Answer 8

First, the condo assoc fees can be quite a lot, several hundred dollars/month or more. That fee will be more than you pay for your own lawn, pool, etc. upkeep.

But, it is their rules and restrictions that are even worse. If you buy a house, though there are local municipal code requirements that must be followed, you basically can paint your house the color you want, you can plant what ever flowers you want, you can build an additional, put up awnings, put in a pool or spa, etc. etc. With a condo assoc, you first have to get their approval, and if what you want to do doesn't fit their "master plan" forget it, you can't do it.