Is it a Condo? Or is it a Townhouse? BOTH YOU SAY???
October 30th, 2007 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Buying, Real Estate 101, Reston Dirt
It’s a condominium? It looks like a townhouse! Could it be both? What’s the difference? This is the #1 question I get asked about consistently -
Today I’d like to help de-mystify what exactly is a townhouse vs. a condominium. Often times buyers come to me and they are in a price range where they are struggling with whether to purchase a condo or a townhome. Well, guess what? It’s possible to find a townhome that’s a condo. Here’s what you have to know… condominium is an ownership definition; townhome is a building structure. So the answer is: it can be both!
What IS a condo?
Most of us, when we think of a condo, we think of a high-rise building 
with an elevator and a trash chute! Perhaps a nice lobby with mailboxes and a 24 hour concierge. Yes, these are some amenities that are offered in some high-rise style condos. There are also mid-rise buildings as well as garden-style condos – in which case you might have a direct access door (e.g., a door from the outside, right into your unit) – you might even have a little yard, if you’re on the ground level. BUT, here’s the kicker, you don’t own that land. Nor do you own the exterior of the structure – that’s what defines a condominium – your ownership is from the middle of the wall to the middle of the wall – same goes for the floor and ceiling.
You’re not responsible for exterior maintenance or the roof (or the underground garage or hallways) and sometimes even the doors and windows*. (*This depends on the Association) These maintenance costs are built into your condo fee – as is the maintenance of the common areas and insurance on the structure, management fees, etc… If you think about it, this “ownership” style could even apply to a single family home – and sometimes does – especially in the case of patio homes. All of the grounds are maintained by the association – as are the roofs and other exterior features like trim and gutters.
So What’s a Townhouse?
A townhouse is a style of building – generally multi-level, direct entry
door and 2 or 3 (sometimes even 4 or 5) levels and typically built in rows and attached in some way. Most of the time there are decks or yards outside either the front, back or both – but not always. I have seen townhouse communities that have rear alleys that lead to rear loading 2 car garages – no yards there. But I digress…
The point is, that *most* townhouses in the Northern Virginia area are what we would refer to as fee simple ownership – roughly defined that you own the air and ground and everything in between. There are lot lines that include the 2 sides of the townhome – assuming you’re not on an end in which case, your lot will most likely extend out quite a bit from the side and you therefore end up owning more land, and along the front and back, usually creating a rectangle. This also means that all exterior maintenance is the homeowner’s responsibility (roof, shutters, doors, trim, patios, decks, etc…) so keep that in mind when trying to decide which is best for you.
So Can it be both?
Sure — there are occasions where structures are townhouse style (e.g., multi-level, built in rows) but are condominium ownership. You could easily have 2 communities, side by side that appear the same – one is fee simple ownership, one is condominium ownership. You can’t tell the difference – but be sure you know what you’re looking at and what you’re considering purchasing. This information is easily obtained! There are obvious pros and cons to either ownership style, fee structures and layout options and it just needs to work for you.
I hope this helps to clear up this question a little bit! I’m always here if you have further questions about this or any other real estate related topic.
Happy Tuesday!
Jennifer
Copyright © 2007 Arlington Dirt Real Estate Blog 
Jennifer - what a great answer to a question we get often too. In northern Virginia do you have many townhomes that are condos? It’s rarer here - very interesting! - Cyndee Haydon
Yes, Cyndee. We actually have quite a few developments that are townhome style condos - sometimes piggybacked - sometimes just what you’d expect from fee simple. Interesting, and confusing!