Condo Facts - What is a Condominium anyway? — Sarah Booth: Real Estate Refined

What IS a condominium and how do you choose the one that is right for you?

Beautiful red brick condo building with black stairwell and arched stone entryway.

THE BASICS - WHAT IS A CONDOMINIUM?

A “condominium” refers to a form of legal ownership, as opposed to a style of building. When you purchase a condominium, you own a private dwelling called a “unit.” Your unit is registered in your name. Often times people associate condos as only being high rise apartment style building, but they can be so much more:

Low rise residential buildings
Townhouses or row houses
Duplexes or triplexes
Single family homes

COMMON ELEMENTS

Ownership of the common elements and assets of the building are shared with the rest of the unit owners. Common elements may include: lobbies, hallways, elevators, fitness centres, pools, walkways, gardens, etc. They may also include mechanical and electrical services as well as structural elements such as balconies, parking spaces, storage lockers, driveways and lawns.

CONDO FEES

You share the financial load of these common elements with the other unit owners by paying a “maintenance fee” which goes toward the upkeep of the common elements. The fees and finances are held within the condominium corporation. Maintenance fees may also cover the condo corporation’s insurance policies, utilities and services such as snow removal but this varies from building to building.

Monthly maintenance fees are calculated per square foot; therefore, the amount of square feet that your unit occupies will determine the condo fee amount. As a result, larger square footage means higher condo fees.

Think of condo fees as the amount you pay monthly so that the corporation can take care of the overall maintenance and upkeep of the building community for you. Often people grumble about condo fees but in reality you could be on the hook for much more for the upkeep when owning a freehold home. Having all this taken care of allows more time for you!

STATUS CERTIFICATE

It is important to ensure that the fees are managed responsibly by the corporation prior to purchasing a condo unit. This is done by obtaining and viewing a document provided by the condo corporation called the “status certificate”. Typically, your lawyer will review this document to ensure that the corporation is in good financial standing (no debt and sufficient funds in the emergency fund for repairs).