Is a Condo the Right Choice for You?

Are you planning to move within the next year and asking yourself the big question: a house or a condo? This article will help shed light on the different advantages and disadvantages of buying a condo. Grab a bowl of popcorn, settle in, and let’s start with the advantages of condo living:

PRICE

Without a doubt, buying a property will likely be the most expensive purchase you make in your life, and one of the first criteria you will need to establish at the start of your search is your budget. It is a fact: the price per square foot of a condo is generally lower than that of a house with similar features. To give you an idea, the average price of a recently built home in Outaouais, with a living area between 1,000 and 1,200 square feet, is $267,000. For a condo? $192,000. So for similar features, the average condo is 28% less expensive.

MAINTENANCE

Shoveling snow, mowing the lawn, trimming trees, replacing the roof, exterior repairs and maintaining the property… do you have the time and energy for all of that? In a condominium, it’s peace of mind. Assuming your condo management is healthy and responsible, the worries of maintaining the building and grounds are gone. All of this maintenance will be taken care of, funded through your condo fees. Are you the type who likes buying peace of mind? It’s worth thinking about.

THE INVESTMENT

Who hasn’t dreamed of building wealth through real estate? But entering the world of real estate investing takes preparation and discipline. Buying a beautiful new triplex for $550,000 isn’t within everyone’s reach. So why not start smaller?

Here’s a common example: Ginette (fictional name — if your name is Ginette, I’m not targeting you personally) buys a beautiful, well-located condo for x amount. Ginette lives in the condo for a few years and is happy there. Then time passes and Ginette needs more space, so she moves into a house. What should she do with the condo? Rent it out!

Ginette now has her first income property, won’t have to worry about exterior maintenance or the grounds because the condo corporation handles it, and she has a tenant (choosing the right tenant… but that’s another story) paying down principal on her investment. If Ginette and her realtor made the right decisions from the beginning, she should technically not have to pay a cent monthly, since the rent should normally cover all expenses.

A few years later, she may have built enough equity in her mortgage to finance her fabulous $550,000 triplex, with the initial investment having been the down payment on her condo years earlier. Now we’re talking!

So there you have the three main advantages of buying a condo. I know after reading the beginning of this article you probably already have my cell number saved and are seconds away from calling me to schedule showings. WAIT! Even the best condo in the world has disadvantages. Keep reading to the end to see if condo living is truly for you… Here are 3 condo drawbacks you should not overlook.

DENSITY

Do you like having total peace and quiet? Then you may want to think twice before moving into a condo — or be extremely selective. Living in a condominium also means sharing your environment with others. Sharing parking, land, common areas, and being directly beside your neighbours.

Density won’t only be felt in your condo building, but perhaps in your entire neighbourhood. If you are located in an area made up entirely of condos, keep in mind that each lot that would normally house one family in a single-family home could have 3 or 4 families on the same lot in a condo development. Multiply that over an entire street, and you can see how a residential street that may have had, say, 30 families might now have 120!

Apply that same logic to an entire neighbourhood… and you’ll see there can be a lot of people per square foot! However, if you enjoy urban living, this point may quickly become an advantage for you.

CONDO MANAGEMENT

A poorly managed condo corporation can quickly turn into a nightmare for owners. No one wants to wake up one morning and receive a $500 special assessment for building maintenance simply because the contingency fund wasn’t adequately funded.

That is why doing your homework is so important — and why shopping for a condo with a competent realtor who understands the condo world matters. They can quickly identify whether a condominium is well managed and financially healthy.

Don’t panic — the vast majority of condo corporations are extremely well managed. But that doesn’t mean you should close your eyes and buy blindly because you fell in love with a kitchen featuring a cork backsplash because “it looks so Pinterest”… you know what I mean?

THE LITTLE IRRITANTS

Let’s finish with a miscellaneous category: the little irritants. Because yes, condo living can come with a few minor annoyances — not major, but enough to bother some people:

• Condos often come with only one parking space. You and your partner have two cars? You may have to draw straws to decide who parks on the street.
• Poor soundproofing in some condo buildings.
• Rules you may not like: no pets, non-smoking regulations, etc.

So, is condo living for you or not? If you’d like to discuss it, feel free to give me a call — I’d be happy to talk with you about your real estate plans.