Downsize from SFH to townhome

[Librarian]

100% happy

If you have downsized from a single family home into a townhome in retirement, how did it go? Are you happy with that decision? Do you have any recommendations?
Thanks,. JP

We downsized 4 years ago.
3500 5 BR SFH to 1800 3 BR TH, about a mile away.
Our youngest was in his senior year of HS but he was only there for about 6 mos. before college started. (He was back a couple months when everything went remote in spring 2020).

We LOVE IT.
Fully paid for.
Less home to care for; no yard or snow removal.
Our patio is covered which means we use far more than we ever used out deck.

We SEVERELY downsized...and honestly, 4 years later, I'm ready to clean out AGAIN. You find out what you REALLY use. (and, of course, we accumulate more as time goes by...my NY resolution is to try not to do that!)

There is no basement so we had to get creative with storage--luckily garage is nice size, so lined one wall w/ shelves & put tubs there.
It was only an issue one Xmas when 2 children were living out of state & the youngest wanted to stay over on Xmas eve also. He slept on the sofa for a night...truly not an issue.

 

[Sunset]

Koolau,
I've noticed that the condo fees tend to be higher than townhomes.

...

Yes, condo apt fees are generally higher than townhome condo fees.
Often the apts are centrally heated and maybe central a/c, and central electricity, plus the elevators and underground parking garage, and the superintendent, also insurance for the building, and taxes for the building common grounds

When I was in a condo apt, I had no heating or electric cost, and cheap insurance (like rental insurance) as the building is already covered.

Some condo apts get fancy with a doorman and other weird stuff but I never lived in one of those.

 

[Mansderm]

I downsized and moved to a single family ranch home with lots of amenities, pool, golf, pickle ball, tennis, landscaping, etc. It was not a "retirement community" but with all the amenities, the location, the price range, etc, it has become one.
I enjoyed it at first...pretty area, my own home but no mowing, the amenities. But as it became more retirees with "time on their hands," it became too intrusive for me.

If I left, "where did you go?", had my kitchen lights on, "what are you working on over there?", if I left or returned around meal time, " did you go out for lunch or dinner,what restaurant, who with?", if the lights were off, "I thought you must have gone out of town", if I did go out of town, "I knew you were out of town, so I checked your mailbox for you or walked around your house to check it for you." While this may sound like just being friendly neighbors, it was too much for me to experience on a daily basis.

Then there's the HOA which was very strict with very specific by-laws. Some neighbors take great pride in protecting the neighborhood by reporting a "chipped paint" on the mailbox post, a flower planted that isn't listed in the by-laws, a perceived "discoloration" of the driveway, the front porch, the side of the house, the roof or anything else, your car parked in your driveway, children or anyone else they don't like at the pool. Neighbors potentially violating the HOA was always part of the topics of conversation. If I said something like "live and let live" I got a lecture about protecting the neighborhood and its valuations.

Medical care was also really bad in the area and the COVID situation made it worse so I had to get out.

So I did a drastic turnaround when my first grandchild was on the way. Moved back closer to my kids, bought a bigger ranch home on 2 acres, allowed my younger son and his girlfriend to move out of an expensive apartment and into the home. They pay me rent-to-own that covers the mortgage (I financed it) and half utilities. My son will mow, and his girlfriend keeps main areas cleaned. I also have a camper so it allows me to travel while I can without worrying about the property. No HOA and no nosy neighbors. I'm 1 and 1/2 hours from my married son and my first grandchild, so I'm available if they need me. It's very quiet and yet I have easy access to shopping and good medical care. Not sure what I will do if and when my younger son marries and has a family. With 2 acres, I could build myself a smaller home on the property. For now it's working and we are all happy.

 

[mabuhay]

Several good summaries of the pros and cons already. The main thing that gives me pause moving to a condo/townhome is fire in another unit spreading to our unit. I know that's not at all common, but having a fire risk due to a random neighbor bothers me. I also know some firewall is required, but those slow but don't prevent spread of fire. YMMV

I had a townhome in a nice community here that I sold last year, and that happened in one of the homes in another wing. All single story but the smoke damage to adjacent units was significant. Came through the top of the firewall somehow and as I recall there were insurance issues (one reason I sold).

 

[mabuhay]

I came from a larger custom 4 bedroom house in PDX which was beautiful, but high maintenance. And I was really tired of the rain and gloomy winters once I retired. Since then, I have owned two townhomes in the Catalina Foothills of Tucson, a fairly upscale area close to natural recreation and hiking trails. The smaller one, which I sold last year was an end unit with one shared wall. No upper units, and small patios. The HOA covered everything except inside the unit - roof, exterior paint, landscaping - all covered. It would have been ideal for lock and go travel, which I do a lot of, but ultimately I didn't like the cramped feeling, lack of privacy and not having a yard.I used it as a good rental, however.

I sold it last year and currently live in another, older townhome community nearby. It is very hilly so many of the units, like mine, are detached, the others have only one shared wall, so two units together. All all are single level. I have 1500sf, amazing terrain and mountain views, complete privacy, have a nice yard and back up to open terrain. The HOA here is extremely well run, with high reserves, but only covers the roads, pool and tennis/pickleball courts. The cost is 1/3 of the other smaller unit I had. Taxes are low. It feels much more private, and half the neighbors spend summers in other places like the Pacific Northwest or Upper Midwest. It is close to our amazing bike trail system (over 150 miles) and excellent hiking. Summers are hot but not as bad as Phoenix (10 deg cooler). Probably stay here for awhile..

 

[simple girl]

We live in a ~1670' townhouse and love it. I love being able to lock and leave it, not having to do outdoor maintenance, nor having to maintain my own pool. I also love our efficient use of space. It's perfect for us and I have less to clean!

This is our third townhome. Things to consider:

*corner units provide so much more light and thus a sense of more space
*look for a unit with a lanai for extra outdoor living space, as well as a patio. We have a huge paver patio that is about 12'x25' and we love it - I use it for container gardening.
*consider the view - adds much to your daily joy - we have a view of a small pond and it brings in so much wonderful wildlife (birds primarily).
*research how strong the HOA is - you want rules enforced. One community we lived in went downhill quick because too many renters were brought in and rules about leaving garbage out, maintaining the property exterior, and parking appropriately were NOT enforced.
*Also look to determine how many of the units are owner occupied and what the rules are for renting (i.e. only year leases, no month-to-month encourage more stability)
*assess the number of parking spaces/unit vs number of bedrooms and how good the overflow parking is - again, this becomes an issue especially if there is limited parking and lots of renters in the development.
*a garage is REALLY nice to have, not only for your car, but also for additional storage space. Storage space is an important factor to consider, don't underestimate your needs.
*you can't predict your neighbors so you must be comfortable with rolling the dice on that one. We've gotten really lucky...so far.

 

[pacergal]

I appreciate all of the response here. this is something DH and I go back and forth on.

We currently have an approx. 1700sf SFH, all single level, built 1960.
But looking 10-15 years or more down the line, not sure we want the upkeep.
Nice to have all of the info/good/bad/things to look for in a condo/townhome, rather rental or owned.

Good conversation.

 

[Sojourner]

Can depending upon construction and neighbors, hear the neighbors, especially if they have kids running up/down stairs or bang the cupboards shut. Maybe even smell odours like cigarette smoke.

I rented a Townhouse once and had incredible common wall noise.

I could hear the neighbor in her bathroom (while I was in my bathroom) actually pee, and the rolling of the toilet paper when she pulled on it, and her conversation on the phone, all clear as if there was no wall.

I could tell what TV program my neighbor was watching. [...] Could hear conversations, music and TV.

I have only ever rented townhomes (Airbnb, etc.), but this has been my experience as well: NOISE!

DW and I recently stayed at a townhome near a ski resort in Colorado, and one night as I was lying in bed, I could actually hear the person in the next unit over snoring! Could also hear their TV blaring in the evenings, along with heavy footsteps intermittently throughout the day (usually evenings and mornings). For this one reason alone, I would never live in a condo or townhome.

 

[JP.mpls]

Condo HOA fees tend to be higher because maintenance of the building (roof, painting, etc) is a community responsibility. For the townhome we lived in 30 years ago and the carriage home we are building, we were/are responsible for maintenance of our unit while the HOA fee covers road and yard maintenance.

Every HOA community is different.

I agree Philly. It is one of the reasons I'm leaning towards a townhome instead of a condo. I mostly want the mowing and shoveling dealt with.

 

[JP.mpls]

Love our townhouse.

Most residents here are older couples who sold their big house after the kids left.

We skipped the above entirely & saved beaucoup bucks over the last couple of decades.

We were fortunate to have a major city recreation facility literally across the street when the kids were growing up, and with woods behind our place no need for a private yard for play.

Currently watching the challenges facing my in-laws trying to keep up their smaller house but large yard & garden now that they're in their 80s.

Thanks Bill. I'm struggling with the idea of giving up my home, but if a townhome is a decent place, I think I will be fine with the transition.

 

[Koolau]

Koolau,
I've noticed that the condo fees tend to be higher than townhomes.

In Minneapolis there is a big corporation that seems to have a monopoly on HOA management, and all of the communities that have them managing their HOA have especially high fees.

I'm surprised all of these communities are choosing to use them.

Yes, I'm cheap, and the high fees turn me off.

JP

My experience is limited. Our HOA dues at the town home were only slightly smaller than our condo HOA dues. I suspect a lot of the dues are related to expected repairs. For instance, our condo had to replace the elevators. Half a mil without breaking a sweat. The town houses had no elevators. Of course, the town homes were spread out and had acres of roads and parking areas while the condo has a parking structure. Not sure which requires more maintenance. In short, it all depends... So YMMV.

 

[Getyoung]

The townhouse style condo I owned many years ago was great. Everything was done, grass, snow, outside maintenance, etc. It was built with 2x6 wood construction with good insulation and I never heard my neighbour's, it was very quiet. It was very easy to lock and vacation!

If I ever buy another one in the future I would most likely buy one that is new. Then you will have quite a few years that you won't have to worry about large ticket repairs or replacement items like a new roof or windows. In this area the developer must fund the start of the reserve fund as well these homes typically have a 5 year "new home warranty".

You will normally have a few years of modest condo fees with modest annual increases. It also reduces the likelihood of owners and delinquent fees, which can be a huge issue for the condo board and reserve fund.

 

[Koolau]

Our townhouse complex had the most problems with termites and carpenter ants as it was all wood. Of course, the association did use intense measures to head off termites which was mostly effective. We DID get carpenter ants but the damage was slight before we discovered the issue which was remedied - at HOA expense.

Leaks are the big issue in the concrete condo we currently occupy. Residents are responsible for water damage "their" pipes cause. No way to prevent it short of tearing out walls and "looking" so no one does that. We fix/replace as needed.

 

[boont]

Not Doing It

I have a house near San Francisco that looks directly at the Golden Gate Bridge. Also a country house North of here in the wine country.

Like my neighbor said, "I'm only leaving feet first".

Just got some great pizza near me, can't do that after about 6pm at the country house, so I want both.

Building a barn on acreage this summer for all my cars, tractors and hobbies.

I'm up sizing till the end.

 

[Koolau]

I have a house near San Francisco that looks directly at the Golden Gate Bridge. Also a country house North of here in the wine country.

Like my neighbor said, "I'm only leaving feet first".

Just got some great pizza near me, can't do that after about 6pm at the country house, so I want both.

Building a barn on acreage this summer for all my cars, tractors and hobbies.

I'm up sizing till the end.

Any relation to RobbieB?