Is a condo an overpriced apartment?

Question

Is a condo an overpriced apartment?

Answer 1

A condo is essentially ownership in an association.  An apartment is generally a rent or lease situation.  

Answer 2

Condominiums offer an affordable option to people who maybe priced out of the traditional single family home market.

Answer 3

When condos became popular, some landlords began converting basic apartment units into condos.  I'm not sure that is done much these days.  But no, condo's are not overpriced apartments.  They often much more attractively decorated and have numerous other perks that basic apartments don't have.

With a condo you can accumulate equity.  the downside is that  you can also lose money owning your own condo if the market goes down.

Depending on how long your mortgage is you may not have to worry about rent increases for a long time since you are paying mortgage payments and not rent payments.  

You can make renovations within your condo unit.  You can't if you're renting.

Condos often come with many perks like built in dishwasher/ in suite laundry/jacuzzi/hardwood flooring etc.

The downside is that the annual maintenance fees can be very costly and if something goes wrong with the place structurally the cost of repairs is shared amongst all of the owners.  This can add up to thousands of dollars if the roof needs repairing for example.

To me one of the biggest fears I would have living in a condo is having noisy neighbors.  Condo owners are generally allowed to sublet their units out so it is often not the condo owner living in the unit.  A nightmare for me would be having a noisy renter next to me.  Because if I own my own place I could not just hand in my notice and move.

A big advantage to renting an apartment is you are not locked into the place and when repairs are required.  It is someone else's responsibility.  If things are not going well and I want to move I just give one month's notice and I'm gone.

Answer 4

In my opinion it is....Same issues...people above you...beside you...More money...HOA fees....You could not Give me one :)

Answer 5

No.  Owning a condo is a much better use of money than renting an apartment.  If you own for 20 years vs. rent for 20 years, the APARTMENT is overpriced....you've spent money that you'll never get back.  Owning the condo is an investment and the money isn't wasted - you've got something to show for it.

Answer 6

You own a condo UNIT but not the building, you can do things to the interior but if it is construction you have to get approval.  I am a firm believer that condos are overpriced apartments, living in a condo is like an apt but you pay MORE for your name on it instead or just borrowing it for the time being.

Answer 7

You own something with a condo, and the mtg and maintenance I pay on my place is less than I would pay for a smaller apartment.  I have a 2 story townhouse with a private yard and a full basement, 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.  I paid $30,000 less than the cheapest house available in the school district and got a nice home in a nice area instead of a total dump.  

Some condos started life as apartments.  Those may not be as good a place to live as one that was always a condo.  Depending on what they did to convert it from apartment to condo, you may have thin walls and landlord grade fixtures instead of what you would have in a condo which is built more like houses are.