Condominiums, also referred to as a condos are housing units, which form part of a larger community that is jointly owned. As such, condos like those offered by oak and co condos have shared amenities like lifts, hallways, heating systems and playing grounds. A group of individuals entrusted with managing the community regulates the use of those facilities. This could be a few members of the community of or a homeowners association (HOA). Simply put, a condo, is an apartment that is owned by the residents resident and not a sole owner.
Rules and Regulations
Considering that condos are owned by individuals, letting everyone run the show can create havoc. As such, each condo has its unique regulations that govern the actions of the owners, maintenance practices and use of shared facilities. All these rules are contained in a document known as the master deed that explicitly provides laws used in managing the neighborhood.
Shared Amenities
In a condo, besides buying the house, you also buy some common facilities. These include all parts of the building other that the individual units, service installations, parking spaces and community facilities like swimming pools.
Monthly Dues
In this community, each unit owner is expected to pay some dues to the association. This could be monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or even annually. These collections are used to cover for management, maintenance and in rare occasions dealing with emergencies. Money for emergencies and for conducting improvements is kept in a reserve fund. In the absence of such funds, individual owners might be forced to contribute individually towards these special projects.
Rentals
Though different individuals own condominiums, some communities have provisions that allow the owners to rent them to tenants. This is similar to any other lease agreement only that the condominium might have some restrictions absent in estates and apartments. Besides renting, there are cases where a condo is used for commercial purposes, which is rare anyway.
Condos vs. Apartments
The difference between a condo and apartments is the legality. There is no way one can directly pinpoint the physical differences between these two. As previously highlighted, the main difference between these two properties lies in the ownership. In an apartment, the houses are rented while in condos, the ownership is transferred to different owners. Besides, most condos appear to be typically of a higher quality than flats.