Starting the search for a new home is an exciting journey but it does mean getting to grips with the different terms used in the industry to describe all the many, many types of homes out there on the market. Getting to know what these terms mean will make your house hunting simpler, easier and more efficient – no more wasting time on homes that just won’t work for your needs!
Town Home or Row House?
If a property shares more than one wall with the neighboring property, then it’s known as a town home or row house. If they line up along a street in a uniform way, they’re called row houses, while town home can be arranged in many different ways that don’t run parallel to the street. While these options often offer more privacy than a condominium and the shared responsibilities for maintenance make monthly costs lower, they usually lack the additional shared amenities like gyms and pools that condos often have.
Duplex or Twin Home?
These home types may look the same on the outside and the way they function, but they do differ in one important way – ownership. While they are characterized as single structures that share a common wall, a twin home is sold as two separate properties while a duplex is legally regarded as one property.
For buyers, it’s important to know the difference because it affects your responsibility as a homeowner. In a twin home, you are allowed to maintain or change your property independently, while in a duplex you and the other homeowner have to make decisions about the property together.
Single-Family Home or Multi-Family Home?
A single family home is what most of us typically think of when buying a traditional house – it’s a standalone building built for one family to use. They offer great benefits and usually have the space, privacy and community that many people are looking for in a long-term property, even if the maintenance and running costs are usually higher than with other housing options. A multi-family home is slightly different, with multiple living spaces, separate entrances and even separate yard spaces. A multi-family home can be a single property with two homes on it or a big apartment building – anywhere that more than one family can live.
Condominium or Co-Op?
These are terms applied to types of apartment buildings and often have additional amenities like shared gyms, pools and so on. Although the buildings can vary in what they offer, the term really applies to how the building is run and managed. A condominium is usually run by a Homeowners Association (HOA) which will require a monthly or yearly payment from each owner that is used to maintain and service the building. If you own a condominium, you’ll own the space within your unit, while in a co-op you all own the building together. There’s also usually a HOA and your payments are often lower in a co-op, but you do have responsibility for the whole building – so if someone stops paying the mortgage it can put other owners at risk. Because the running and maintenance costs are shared, this can make your monthly costs lower than if you had a free-standing single-family home.
Manufactured, Modular or Prefab Home?
Manufactured houses are designed and created in a factory and then transported to the site where they’ll be placed to live in. Unlike the other two types, a manufactured home is fully-built when it leaves the factory. Prefab structures are created in pieces and then transported to the site where they’ll be assembled. Modular homes are also built in sections, including complete rooms, for assembly on-site. Both modular and prefab homes are often placed on a permanent concrete foundation.
What about Buying Land?
Land with no building on it is another option if you have the money and time to build your dream home. Just remember that you should look into how much it will cost you to build – from architecture and building fees to permits and the cost of bringing gas, water, electricity and plumbing to your structure. Land is usually zoned for a specific use, so check that out before you buy – getting it rezoned can be a huge amount of work and additional costs with no guarantee of success.
As you can see, knowing what your different housing types are and what they have to offer can help make your journey towards finding the right property much easier. It can also help you work out what your monthly expenses for living in different types of property will be, so you can find a solution that works best for your budget. So, we hope you’ve found this information helpful – and happy house hunting from our team!