Deciphering Townhouse Ownership
Fee Simple vs. Condominium Structure
A townhouse refers to a type of property that resembles a single-family home, except that it usually shares one or more walls with other independently-owned units. If you are considering purchasing a townhouse in Florida, it’s important to find out what type of ownership is granted in your community of interest. You need to know if you will be granted fee simple or condominium ownership. This distinction will impact your financing options, insurance requirements, and maintenance responsibilities. Let’s examine common townhouse characteristics and compare the different types of ownership offered in townhouse communities.
Townhouse Characteristics
There are many different types of townhouses, but these are some of the most common features:
- Rows of uniform attached homes
- Two to three stories
- Living areas on the first floor with bedrooms upstairs
- Private exterior entrance
- Garage: Attached or Detached
Fee Simple vs Condominium Ownership
You can determine the type of ownership offered in your community of interest by searching for the property on the county tax appraiser’s website. Click HERE for Palm Beach County or HERE for Broward County. Once you locate the property, look for the legal description to see if it includes the words condo or condominium. If it does, you will be granted condominium ownership. Alternatively, you can look at the listing to see if the townhouse is governed by an HOA or a condominium association.
Fee Simple
Homeowners that are granted fee simple ownership take possession of the interior and exterior walls, roof, land, and mineral rights below ground. This is the highest form of ownership. With these rights comes more responsibilities. Homeowner’s insurance will be required to cover the structure, land, and your personal property. There may be a homeowners association that will maintain the common areas in the community and might cover utilities such as trash collection and water. If there is an HOA, be sure to find out what the maintenance fees are and what they cover. In most cases, you will be responsible for exterior maintenance and landscaping. The good news is you will have a wide variety of financing options.
