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My older son (31) is buying a townhouse because he figures if he has to pay $1600 for rent, he may as well have his own home where he doesn't have to walk down 3 flights of stairs to let the dogs go potty. Between the mortgage, taxes, insurance and HOA he will be spending about the same but he is getting a two car garage, better insulation between units and no upstairs neighbors.
I bought a small SFH last year and according to Zillow it has gone up in price about $25K in the last 15 months. I would like to go to a townhouse situation myself but there is hardly anything in Fort Myers that doesn't have HOA fees these days and I just can't afford that right now. And if you have a pet you can't just open the back door to your fenced yard and let it go out.
When prices go down it gives some people the option of buying a more expensive home. If they have been wanting a nicer condo or one in a better location they feel they can now afford it. Or they can buy a detached home taking into account the maintenance costs, taxes, and fees. It all depends on priorities and how much their current home can sell for.
Where we live, it seems to be all about kids and pets. And sometimes about mom or dad needing to move in. The family grows, and you realize you need more space and a yard.
I would like to go to a townhouse situation myself but there is hardly anything in Fort Myers that doesn't have HOA fees these days
That's another factor in my area, too. The attached homes seem to have lots of extra fees, so it really isn't that much more to just go ahead and get the sfh.
Location: Danbury CT covering all of Fairfield County
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Generally speaking in my market, single family home are more expensive than townhomes, so if the market goes down, they might not get as much for their old price, but their new single family home if the market for those drops as much as a townhome, they will come out ahead on their purchase. I know a lot of people that start in a townhome and opt for a single family home when they are in a better financial position and might have a growing family. We also have a lot of professionals that don't want the responsbilty of a traditional single family home, so there are some larger newer townhomes throughout the area.
Well, what I see is a progression. Young single buys a condo. Meets another young single and marries. They live in condo till baby comes, then they buy a house. Then they buy a larger house. Then the kids go off and start the cycle again, and the couple start downsizing and move back into a condo.
The Real Estate Circle of Life.
They say condos are for the newly wed and the nearly dead...........
I went from a condo to a townhouse to 1/2 of a paired house which is pretty equivalent to a single family as there is no HOA and I am responsible for all the outside maintenance for my half. When my son is grown and out of his own, I expect to downsize to a condo or maybe a patio home where an HOA takes care of everyone on the outside of the house.
This was not about market value, it was about climbing the property ladder by building equity in a lower priced home that I could then use to afford a larger, more expensive home, which was appropriate for my needs at any given time, just like downsizing will be.
When one says condo they generally mean a multi story building with other units above, below, and beside you. Shared halls, lobby, elevator, garage, etc.
When one say townhouse they generally mean multi-level, with other units only beside you. Private entrance, garage, and no shared halls, etc.
My HOA is single family, one and two story, standalone patio homes. Homes run from 1100sq ft to 1500sqft. About 15ft between adjoining homes. Some have garages, some do not. Fenced in backyards about 20ft x 30ft. The HOA does all outside maintenance including landscaping, house shell maintenance, sprinkler system, etc. We have no amenities (pools, tennis, etc.) so we keep dues costs very low. About $900 per year. Homes run from $120K to $150K. Best of both worlds. Privacy and carefree living.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallysmom
Well, what I see is a progression. Young single buys a condo. Meets another young single and marries. They live in condo till baby comes, then they buy a house. Then they buy a larger house. Then the kids go off and start the cycle again, and the couple start downsizing and move back into a condo.
The Real Estate Circle of Life.
This is what I have seen, in fact in my neighborhood several of the original owners have recently retired and downsized to condos, and the buyers have been young couples with toddlers moving for more space and good schools. Here the median home price is $910,000, and we don't have many condos but they are still available at half that, $450,000.
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