Condominiums

• Author: Tina Kamakaris/Jane Kamakaris/Louis Kamakaris
• Pages: 681-686

681

Chapter 37 Condominiums

CHAPTER 37

is chapter covers condominiums, including the unit, common elements, condominium

corporations, occupancy agreements, and an overview of condominium resale transactions.

CONDOMINIUMS

Condominiums oer individual as well as collective real estate ownership. Generally, if you

owned, instead of rented, the apartment you live in, you would own a condominium unit.

Condominiums are multi-unit residential or commercial complexes, e.g. apartment buildings,

condo townhouses, plazas, and malls. Condominiums tend to make real estate more aordable

since they require less land than traditional buildings. ere are various types of condominiums,

including the following:

Standard condominium e standard condominium is the traditional one where the

condominium corporation owns the land and builds on it.

Vacant land condominiums is type of condominium allows people to buy their vacant

lots and share in the common elements and later decide on the type of home they wish to build

on their vacant unit.

Leasehold condominium is type of condominium leases the land on which the condo-

minium corporation builds for a xed number of years. Purchasers of a leasehold condominium

unit have the right to sell, lease, and mortgage their unit without the consent of the landlord. e

leasehold condominium corporation pays rent to the landlord, and the rent forms part of each

unit owner’s contribution to common expenses. When the term of the lease runs out, the land

and buildings revert to the landlord, and the reserve fund is distributed to the landlord to repair

any damage; the balance, if any, is distributed to the unit owners whose right to occupy the unit

is automatically terminated.

THE UNIT

e unit is the apartment you live in or the place in which you carry on business. e owner

owns his or her unit in fee simple, much like a single-house owner. Each unit owner pays two sets

of costs: one for personally maintaining the inside of his or her unit; and the other, for having

the condominium corporation maintain those areas outside the unit that are used by all unit

owners. Some of the major expenses that each unit owner pays for his or her own unit include

the following:

Property tax e unit owner pays property tax on his or her unit. e amount of the prop-

erty tax is based on unit size, and the unit owner pays it directly to the municipal tax department.

CONDOMINIUMS

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