CONDO vs. HOUSE
Is Condo Living Right For You?
Real Estate Market in Seattle is very robust and fast moving; however, don’t let it rush you into an uneducated decision. Buying a home is one of the biggest and most important decisions you’ll ever make. Whether you are a first-time buyer, or a veteran homeowner looking to trade up or make a new start, you will inevitably be faced with a number of questions. Your answers will lead you to the home that’s right for you.
One of the most fundamental questions all homeowners face is whether to buy a condo or a single family house. There are advantages and disadvantages to each and only you can know what’s right for you.
For many Seattle buyers, it is an easy decision. With a job market growing fast and city living being very convenient for those who work in or around downtown Seattle, a condo in high-rise or a mid-rise downtown building is a great choice, especially if you can “score” a unit with a view. Most condo buyers in downtown really enjoy everything Seattle has to offer—the restaurants, theaters, concerts, night live. Belltown, Capitol Hill, Westlake, and Lake Union condo buildings have some of the best walk scores around; you can walk almost everywhere and still have easy access to highways when you need to get out of the city.
Many Seattle buyers choose the Magnolia, Queen Anne, Green Lake, or Wallingford condos for the close proximity to downtown Seattle without the busy city life. Knowing that your neighbors will conform to the covenants, you can enjoy the uniformity as well as peace of mind knowing that someone else is keeping an eye on building’s routine maintenance and repairs. It doesn’t hurt to live in a building with “healthy” reserves that pay for repair and replacement of many major components, such as the roof over your head.
Like all things, living in the heart of the city comes with tradeoffs. For the price of a Downtown Seattle condo, you can often buy a larger home just a 20-30 minute commute away. Living in a downtown building, you should be okay with having less storage, less parking, and no yard for Fido.
In the city or not, owning a condo has other tradeoffs. As a condo owner, you share decision-making for the building with all other building owners and pay condo fees to cover the costs of insurance, management, maintenance, capital improvement, and other upkeep. Parking in condos can often be a challenge and rules and regulations created for everyone’s equal enjoyment of their home have to always be followed.
On the other hand, there are many HOA’s (not to be confused with condominiums) in and around Seattle that offer a combination of condo and house living. Those are usually single family homes or duplexes that offer all that a house has to offer, yet located in a neighborhood of other similar homes where all owners have to conform to the same set of rules for things like general exterior maintenance, curb appeal, and excessive noise. With fewer neighbors, more control, and a more lenient set of rules, HOA living proves to be a perfect way to go for many Seattle homeowners.
If you are considering purchasing a condo or a home within a Homeowners’ Association (HOA), give consideration to the following:
- Location – Where do you want to be? Are there options for both condos and single-family houses in this area?
- Privacy – Is it important to you to have complete privacy or do you find close neighbors to be a comfort?
- Responsibility – Do you need total control over decisions affecting your home or are you attracted to the idea of sharing decision-making with your neighbors?
- Maintenance – Are you a homebody who enjoys getting dirty in the yard or are you delighted with the idea of never having to cut a blade of grass again?
- Budget (purchase price) – How much do you have to spend? Depending on where you want to live, a condo may be the only option that meets your budget.
- Budget (monthly condo dues) – Although condo dues are low in many buildings, some have monthly dues that are very high. Always consider not only the monthly amount but what’s included in your dues (for example: if most utilities, cable TV, and master insurance are included, your high dues might still be lower than what you would pay for the same items living in a single family house).
- Rules and Regulations – Are you okay having to follow the rules of a condo Association? Keep in mind, rules are created for everyone’s equal enjoyment, you might not be able to have loud parties in the middle of the night, but guess what? Your neighbors won’t be able to have them either.
These considerations and others will help you determine the best choice for you now. And just remember, if your interests and priorities change in the years ahead, you can always sell your home and make a move, this time with experience as your guide.
Keep in Mind: Regardless of how many homes or condos you bought or sold, you don’t know what you don’t know. Most real estate agents have no condo background and treat a condo transaction just like a single family house transaction. It’s always unfortunate to see a new condo owner unhappy because their real estate agent never told them that pets weren’t allowed in the building and Fido can’t stay. Or when a realtor wasn’t able to help interpret the financial health and reserve status of an Association and the new owner is stuck paying thousands of dollars for a special assessment they never saw coming. This happens a lot more often than one might think. Condo transactions are complex and unique in every way. Whether you are buying or selling, pick a Real Estate Condo Expert that will guide you through every step of the process.
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