Could one of you splendid fellows please explain to me the difference between a Condo and an Apartment?

Which would you prefer to live in of the two?


1) Condo =




2) Apartment =



As usual, many thanks

BB

A condo you own, an apartment, you rent. A condo is just your own house, attached to other houses on all sides (except one. you need windows to the outside) Apartments are usually cheaper, and all apartments in the same building have the same landlord. In most condos, they are privately owned, but in the same building.

I'd rather live in an apartment, because aside from the fact that you own the condo, there really isn't much of a difference, and the apartment is cheaper. Although condos are usually nicer than apartments.

interesitn- do you mean rent or lease?

I mean for lease.

Also, last time I lived in an apartment (in UK) was at Uni and that was noisy. You heard through the walls, ceilings, the floor...

In general, is it quiet living in a Condo or Apartment? I mean, as I would be coming from a suburban house was garage etc from a sleepy hamlet in UK I want to live close to downtown area probably in an apartment block but not be able to here music and shouting noises from my neighbours left/right/above/below. Is this possible?

Most of the time, you can't hear stuff from the other floors, they'd probably have soundproofing and stuff. The apartment you were in was probably cheaply made. If you want to lease, apartments are cheaper than condos.

A good condo is usually sound proofed.

Generally though, if you have the money, renting or buying a small loft offers a much more interesting way to live. It is atleast my preference.

For individual bachelor living you can't beat a loft.

Lofts are cool too, especailly if you're single, or in university, or whatever. Cheaper, too, but probably not soundproofed. They are usually in renovated buildings, a growing trend is turning old grain elevators into lofts.

newer buildings (almost exclusively condos) have better soundproofing than older buildings ( usually apartment)

A condo is a type of ownership...an apartment is a type of dwelling.

Rental condo apartments are going to generally be newer and have more luxurious appointments. Older rental apartments can be of any vintage...from a victorian flat to a 70's highrise. The 60's and 70's vintage highrise apartments were built with poured concrete walls, floors and ceilings...sometimes they are actually more solidly constructed than new condo highrises.






KGB

It depends how much money you want to spend for the time when you are in Toronto,
Leasing a Condo (depending on location) is gonna cost madd cash, but renting an apt can be very cheap, even in a great neighbourhood

But this problem with sound from neighbours could be a problem if you live in an apartment, definatly better soundproofing in the new condo's

But the chances are that the neighbours wont make that much noise and also im sure that a lot of appartments have good soundproofing too

Buy. Its almost always better. Interest rates are low, prices are rising and its better to build equity than pay the landlord so he can build his own equity.

I'm negotiating that my company pay the rent so it shouldn't cost me a penny. Obviously there will be a limit on what they will fund though which I should find out tomorrow.

A loft sounds interesting but will be moving there with my partner and we will be expecting family to come out to visit/stay during our time there so will need a 2/3 bedroom place.

I like the sound of a modern luxurious condo though...

You could rent a condo! CHEAP!
Many condo owners buy the condo for an investment - the idea is that a tenant will rent the condo, and the rent will cover the carrying costs ( DOES NOT WORK- unless the mortgage is TINY).
Landlords are bending over backwards to rent out space. Low interest rates have reduced the cost of paying a mortgage to that of rent.
Home ownership still costs more than renting (utilities- condo maintenance fees, mortgage, life insurance, property insurance including liability, etc.)

Condos are much, much newer! The started getting built in Toronto inn the early 1970's -- just around the same time that rent control legislation put a halt to apartment construction.

RENT A CONDO!

"will be moving there with my partner and we will be expecting family to come out to visit/stay during our time there so will need a 2/3 bedroom place. "


hmmm....just how much overnight accomodation are you actually going to need? Three bedroom rentals are considerably more expensive than one bedroom units (especially condos). You may find it far cheaper to put up the occaisional visiting family member in a hotel-motel, than to have a 2 year lease on a 3 bedroom condo. You might also get by with a sleeper sofa in a one befroom.

Older townhouse developments might fit the bill much better if you really do need 2-3 bedrooms...they tend to be much cheaper than large highrise condo units....even a small house rental might be better.

Older rental buildings generally lack a few basic luxuries that condos have....such as in-suite laundry and dishwashers.

But I guess it all still depends on where you are going to be working...and where you want to live.






KGB

Sep. 29, 2004. 07:23 AM
DICK LOEK/TORONTO STAR
Rental and selling prices in new condos, such as these on Queen’s Quay west of York St., are holding up well, CMHC says.
Click to launch
Renters nest in new condos
Older buildings in disfavour
Vacancy rates expected to leap

TONY WONG
BUSINESS REPORTER

Given a choice between an older apartment or a new condominium, renters have flocked to the flood of new condos available in the Toronto market.

Vacancy rates in condo apartments have fallen to 0.9 per cent from 1.6 per cent last year, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said in a report released yesterday.

The resulting exodus from traditional apartments has meant rental-building owners have taken a big hit, with vacancy rates moving from 3.8 per cent last year to a forecast 4.8 per cent by the end of this year. Next year, CMHC estimates, vacancy rates for rental apartments could go as high as 6 per cent, the loftiest ever in the Toronto area.

With much more stock to choose from, both renters and buyers have typically gone for newer buildings that offer more amenities, CMHC said.

"Investors holding older stock faced fierce competition from newer product with better finishes, likely making older stock less desirable today for both tenants and owner-occupiers. Evidence of this is reflected in prices for newer units," which have held up better and should continue to do so, CMHC said.

Still, both CMHC and housing analysts such as Will Dunning warn that low vacancy rates in condominium apartments won't continue indefinitely as thousands of new completions come on stream this year and next.

"This is very much a short-term thing, because there just hasn't been that many completions," said Dunning.

In fact, condominium owners could be in for a bumpier ride over the next two years as thousands of units are completed.

CMHC said the Toronto area had 187,607 condominiums in June, up 6 per cent from the same time last year.

By the end of next year, the completed stock will increase 13,000 to 15,000, for a gain of another 8 per cent, the federal housing agency said.

The result will be "slower to negative price growth and flat to softer rents," CMHC said.

"The next year or two should be bumpy, but it should improve beyond 2006 for condominium owners and investors," Ted Tsiakopoulos, CMHC's senior market analyst, said in an interview.

"Existing investors of newly completed condos could face disappointment. This is particularly true if the flow of new completions stays strong, as is expected, resulting in higher vacancies and weaker cash flow."

As a record number of condos enter the market, sales continue to outpace those of last year, according to Dunning. At the end of August, 9,131 condos had been sold in the Toronto area, compared with 7,468 a year earlier, a 22 per cent increase. Because builders usually sell first and then build, completions will be strong well into 2006.

"There is still a lot of belief that real estate is a good place to park your money, and, if you're in this for 10 years, that might be the case," said Dunning. "But, certainly in the short term, there is more downside than upside for an investor with these kinds of numbers."

Dunning said rents for condominiums have come down about 10 per cent over the last two years. Condominium prices over the last year have flatlined or fallen 1 or 2 per cent, and more pressure is expected on prices in the short run.

Low current vacancy rates in rental condos are also attributed to fewer than normal completions. Last year, there were udner 10,000 units completed, and this year a total of around 11,000 is expected, compared with an average of about 13,000 in prior years. With the new units entering the market, vacancy rates in rental condos are expected to rise to 1.1 per cent by next year. CMHC also estimates that 19.6 per cent of all condominiums are owned by investors and rented out, compared with 19.2 per cent last year. Investor involvement in the market has been trending down over the last 10 years.

Additional articles by Tony Wong

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An important difference that should be pointed out is that the lease papers that you sign to rent an apartment states much things a landlord has control over than a condo. Because you dont own an apartment, it is not your private property, and you cannot harm or change the apartment at anytime during your lease. The minimun lease in Toronto is one year. If you break that, the landlord may take you to court. Also, the landlord can come into your apartment at anytime if he/she has a good reason to. It is also alot easier moving out of an apartment, after your lease is done, than moving out of a condo. So, basically if you want flexibility, and lower costs, get an apartment, but if you want full ownership and privacy, get a condo for a little bit more.

You can be a guest on this site? Cool!

You used to be able to do that. Obviously you can't now.

And wow, this thread is old. :eek: KGB and AreBe are both here! Good times.

A condo you own, an apartment, you rent. A condo is just your own house, attached to other houses on all sides (except one. you need windows to the outside) Apartments are usually cheaper, and all apartments in the same building have the same landlord. In most condos, they are privately owned, but in the same building.

I'd rather live in an apartment, because aside from the fact that you own the condo, there really isn't much of a difference, and the apartment is cheaper. Although condos are usually nicer than apartments.


You can own apartments too, and there're for rental only low rise condo buildings.

Buy. Its almost always better. Interest rates are low, prices are rising and its better to build equity than pay the landlord so he can build his own equity.

Normally I'd choose buy over rent in many areas too since condo rents are quite expensive and it's not really cheaper than a monthly mortgage payment (if you rent a 1 or 1+1 by yourself, say around UofT/downtown core), not to mention the price appreciation.

However the interest rate is likely to go up in half a year or a year depending on inflation. Plus the immigration bureau just announced their new policy which will significantly limit the number of investment type and skilled immigrants. It's likely that the real estate market will suffer a price adjustment or even a crash if the interest rate climbs up significantly and the government further restricts immigration and foreign investment in the next couple of years.

You could rent a condo! CHEAP!
Many condo owners buy the condo for an investment - the idea is that a tenant will rent the condo, and the rent will cover the carrying costs ( DOES NOT WORK- unless the mortgage is TINY).
Landlords are bending over backwards to rent out space. Low interest rates have reduced the cost of paying a mortgage to that of rent.
Home ownership still costs more than renting (utilities- condo maintenance fees, mortgage, life insurance, property insurance including liability, etc.)

Condos are much, much newer! The started getting built in Toronto inn the early 1970's -- just around the same time that rent control legislation put a halt to apartment construction.

RENT A CONDO!


If you count in how much a condo unit appreciates on average over the past years (even if you include the economic crisis), you'll see why it's better to own than rent.

This is location dependent though, investing a condo in STC or along Eglinton/Keele will probably cost you instead of making you money.
Downtown core/area around UofT is the best bet.

My friend bought a 3bdrm (or was it 2 bdrm...) apartment close to UofT 4 years ago for just over 300k I think. He only rented one bedroom out and the rent was enough to cover almost 1/3 of his overall monthly costs including mortgage payment. Now the apartment is worth over 400k (probably in the mid-400k to 500k range). The rental vacancy rate for condos in downtown is only 1% and the rents are going up by 50-100$ a year on average depending on the location and the condition of the place. At college park for example, a 100sq ft bedroom with no living room/dining room and a shared kitchen would cost around 850$ a month all inclusive.

However because of the potential bubble in the condo market and the discouraging economic and immigration trends and policies, it's probably safer to just observe the market for now instead of making a move.

If you don't mind a short walk to downtown core, waterfront condos are actually cheaper per sq ft and so are the rents too.