Home Buyers Seminar Lesson 6 - Types of Homes Continued

Home Buyers Seminar Lesson 6 - Types of Homes - Continued

Next on the list of types of homes are townhouses.

Town houses often make an excellent "middle ground" between a detached single family property and a condominium (to be discussed in the next lesson) because they may offer attributes of both.

The basic description of a townhouse is a home that is attached to one or more other houses.  However, it does sit on a parcel of land that you also own.  Townhouses can range from a unit that only shares a common wall with one other property or duplex to triplexes all the way through large townhouse communities with hundreds of similar homes.

There is a good degree of variance in the way that townhouse communities may be structured.  It may be a simple arrangement (as with duplexes and triplexes) that each parcel of land and the home that sits on it is separately owned.  In the case of larger communities, you will generally have an additional shared ownership in common areas of the complex as well as any amenities such as play areas, pool, tennis courts etc.  This ownership you will share jointly with all other townhouse owners in the complex.

It is always important to make sure you have all of the information regarding the Homeowners' Association as you can, since the association can have a considerable impact on your ownership experience.  The Virginia when purchasing a property within an owners association you should receive a copy of the Covenants and Restrictions plus additional documents for review.   Your agent will explain the process to you.

Now let's talk about the advantages with this type of home.  In many townhouse developments you may have exterior maintenance and repairs.  There may be lawn care also depending on the community.  There may be other amenities like a pool, tennis courts etc.

One of the disadvantages of course is that to enjoy these benefits you will most likely be paying a monthly, quarterly, or yearly association fee.  This can range from $20 a month to well over $100 a month depending on what is being provided.

You will also be giving up a certain amount of privacy when you compare this type of home to a single family home.

Also, your options for changing the exterior look of your house may be very limited.

In the next lesson we will be discussing Condominiums.  Also, if this is your first visit make sure you look back through my blog for lessons 1 through 5.