You can see free standing Columbus condos in every suburb from Hilliard to Blacklick, and Galloway to Westerville. They are in master planned subdivisions of small, individual houses in a village style setting, with playgrounds, pools, a clubhouse and many other amenities you typically find in condo developments.
Most of these “villages” consist of hundreds of individual, free-standing, detached condominiums.
If you own a free-standing condo you live in a house, however, the land around it belongs to the condominium community. This means you do not own an individual lot, but a proportional share of the condo development.
Many free-standing condos where built in the past 10 years. They are very spacious (up to 2,000 sqft) and offer a layout that’s equivalent or better than that of single family homes. They typically come with a 2 car garage and a patio in the back of the house.
Free standing Columbus condos can be sometimes purchased as bank owned or HUD homes. We just featured a beautiful, 4 year old Westerville condo this week.
So, how do you know, if one of these detached Columbus condos is right for you?
Here are the benefits of free-standing condos:
- You have your own 4 walls. Your house does not attach to your neighbor like a townhouse.
- You get all the benefits of living in a condo development, i.e. the association will take care of the neighborhood, cut the grass, plow the snow, provide a clubhouse, playground and maybe a gym and swimming pool.
- Free standing condos are usually less expensive than individual homes.
- You are living in a well cared for community.
There are also some potential pitfalls you need to be aware of, before you sign a contract:
- The condo association has to approve any modification to your house and you will be very limited in what you are allowed to modify on the building or your yard.
- Many free standing condo developments are located in the suburbs, however, they are served by Columbus City Schools. Make sure you check the school district before you buy, not only the mailing address.
- You will be responsible for repairs and maintenance to your house. The association’s insurance will most likely not cover damage to roofs or sidings, unlike with traditional condo buildings.
- Many free standing condos were built on a slab. They don’t have a basement for storage.
In the current market free standing condos may be an outstanding value. You can probably get one at a nice discount, as the Columbus metro area has been saturated during the real estate boom.
Give me a call! I would love to help you find an excellent deal for you and your family!
Thanks for reading the susannenovak.com Blog!
Posted by: Susanne Novak, ABR, FIS, GRI
Columbus Real Estate Agent helping First Time Buyers.
(614) 975-9650
