Five Reasons For Choosing A Townhouse

If you're in the market for a new home and are considering a multi-family building, such as a condo, you'll soon realize that there are many different styles from which to choose. There are apartment-style units with a common lobby and an elevator; there are ranch-style condos with at least one common wall; there are even some free-standing condos. One less common choice of condo that you may not have considered is a townhouse. Luxury townhouses for sale offer a number of benefits, including their own private entrance.

What is a townhouse?

A townhouse is a type of single family residence that shares at least one wall with another unit, has multiple floors and has a private entrance. Most townhouses are tall and narrow with small yard areas.

Benefits of townhouses

1. Privacy. Unlike many other types of condos, townhouses offer private entrances, so you can come and go directly into your unit without having to take stairs or an elevator, get buzzed in by a doorman, or pass other units and residents. You can generally park right outside your unit, making it easy to carry in groceries and other purchases. Some townhouses even have private driveways.  

2. Convenience. Townhouses combine many of the benefits of a single family home with those of a condo. While townhouses lack the common areas found in an apartment-style building, these often still have amenities like swimming pools, tennis courts and community function rooms. In addition, most of the site maintenance is handled by the neighborhood association, so there is little outdoor maintenance required.

3. Room for your family to spread out. Unlike ranch-style or most apartment-style condos, townhouses have at least two floors, giving your family more privacy and room to spread out.

4. Sense of community. While you have your own entrance, you also have a nearby community of like-minded residences. Your kids will likely find neighbors with kids they can play with and most townhouse communities host a variety of social events so you can interact with your neighbors when you want to.

5. Lower HOA fees. In most cases, the monthly homeowners association fees for a townhouse are lower than those for a traditional condo. That's because condos generally have more amenities and common areas to maintain, such as a lobby, elevator and roof.

While a townhouse may not be the right choice for every home buyer, this type of property offers privacy while still giving residents a sense of community as well as enough room for your family to each have his or her own space.