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Comment by icebraining | Hacker News Reader

You do know that you can own an apartment, right? Conflating the two issues is a bit parochial; at most, the complaint should be that you don't happen to have a decent choice of apartments for sale in the specific place you want to live.

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At least in the US, this ownership can come with caveats. Namely, you can be kicked out if a majority of condo association owners want you out. Such as if a big company comes along and wants the building. It takes a lot more to forcefully move someone out of a house.

Another reply already stated apartment vs condominium distinction at least in the US. But even if you own your apartment/condominium it still doesn’t address the concern of noisy neighbors and now you have to deal with a condo association.

At least in the UK this isn't really a thing.

In London you have share of freehold apartments in the outer boroughs, but in Central London it's almost all leasehold. You have a long lease, but ultimately you have a superior landlord, pay a service charge which can vary, the exterior of the building isn't yours, etc.

A huge benefit of buying a house over an apartment here is that you can actually meaningfully own it. Repairs are up to you, the postbox is up to you, if you want a thing done you just do it (no negotiation or cost sharing), the land is yours forever and the superior landlord can't change to one who's less amenable, etc.

I suppose this could fall under your: > happen to have a decent choice of apartments for sale

comment, but it's really more that the legal structures in the UK hugely favour owning a house. (I'm not really sure it could ever be different, an apartment is always going to be "closer to renting" because it's communal to a degree).

At least in the US, apartments are typically owned on a per-building basis, and generally by a company or investor. Buildings where each unit has an individual owner are typically referred to as condominiums. Buying a condo unit also entails buying an ownership share in the condo association that maintains common areas and such. In an apartment, you just pay your rent and utilities and the landlord is responsible for everything else.

Also not to be confused with town houses, which are just houses shoved right next to each other, often with an association to cover expenses in the shared areas, but you own the house itself and the property it sits on.

We moved into a townhouse a year ago, and the number of people (including our neighbors) that think we live in a condo association is startling. I'm pretty sure part of it is that the realtors here don't understand the difference.

“Condominium” is the economic relationship; “apartment” is the physical space. There are, for example, condominium detached houses.

I didn’t think about that. I understand a condo as individually owned apartments. But what makes a separate house a “condo”? Honest question, not trying to be argumentative.

The condo association owns the land and building exterior, is responsible for landscaping, etc. Usually in a development with a lot of similar-looking houses close together.

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