Townhomes are buildings of similar styles with several units that are occupied by different homeowners. The homeowners share one or two walls with other neighbors.
The units are always owned by the residents except in cases where the occupant wants to rent it out because he/she couldn’t sell the house which is why we asked, Are townhomes hard to sell?
Townhomes have become very popular. Even home builders are coming up with newer and better designs. The popularity of these townhomes has made them difficult to sell.
Do Townhomes Have Good Resale Value?
Townhomes don’t have good resale value; they are better rented out because they will rake in more money. But selling townhomes is difficult because it doesn’t appreciate in value.
One main reason why townhome does not have good resale value is because of the limited interior and exterior improvements you can make to the townhomes.
Houses with home improvements will appreciate in value and this will bring good resale value.
Although houses appreciate over time, the appreciation rate of townhomes is low. And only the stacked townhomes are gaining popularity thereby causing a little increase in resale value.
First-time home buyers mostly go for condos or townhomes because of the purchasing price, utilities, and amenities attached to them.
Also, many of these amenities and utilities are managed by the Homeowners Association in the neighborhood. Townhomes are also more spacious than condos. These things make townhomes attractive to buyers.
But over time, when you upgrade and you have saved up money to buy a single-family home, you’ll want to move out of the townhomes and resell them so as to get more money.
Are Townhomes Hard to Sell?
This is dependent mainly on the location of the townhomes and the structure of the building. Newer designs of townhomes are attractive, so also the amenities provided by the HOA.
Townhomes are quick to sell in locations where there are many small families that are buying homes for the first time. Once the neighborhood is habitable and attractive, why shouldn’t the townhomes sell faster?
As much as these houses sell fast in some locations, they are hard to sell in other places where there are few small families.
Also, many families want to upgrade to buy houses, they can’t settle in townhomes forever. If these are the families that are residents in your areas, then your townhome would be hard to sell.
Like I also mentioned earlier, many families won’t go for houses they can’t improve. This is because home improvements are one way to gain profit from your house sales.
Reasons Why Townhomes Are Hard to Sell
There are many reasons why townhomes are hard to sell. Below are a few of these reasons.
1. HOA Fees
Homeowners of townhomes mostly pay HOA fees monthly except in a few places where HOA participation is optional. These fees are paid to manage the amenities and utilities in the neighborhood.
Many home buyers wouldn’t want to buy townhomes because they would be paying fees for amenities they might not be using.
Also, the fees increase as the amenities increase. This alone puts many people off as there are still utility bills to worry about. You can read this article to know more about what HOA covers for townhouses.
2. Limited Home Improvement
Every townhome in the neighborhood has the same floor plans and designs. The houses are the same. So buyers won’t be motivated to go for a townhouse because of its interior and exterior designs.
Many buyers know that home improvement, repairs are the strategies to use to make a profit during the house resale, and because townhomes don’t allow the changes, many buyers won’t buy them.
3. Noise
Not every family can withstand noise. Many families want their privacy, limited noise (and none if possible). This can’t be gotten in townhomes especially if your unit is in the middle.
You’ll have two houses (on the left and on the right). Many middle townhomes are hard to sell due to the disturbances or distractions from neighbors.
4. Competition
Since every house in the neighborhood looks the same, there’s nothing more attractive about another house in the neighborhood, why won’t there be a competition?
Townhomes are hard to sell because of the competition from other neighbors. Because of this competition, some neighbors might cut their sales price thereby affecting you because the buyer would go for the cheap houses.
Is it Easier to Sell a Townhouse or a House?
Getting your house sold depends on so many reasons: the resale value, home improvements, the buyer, location of the house, and so on.
In some cases, townhouses are easier to sell than a house while in other cases a house is easier to sell than a townhouse.
The buyers of a house have their specifications in mind. They know what they want, so if you are offering them something lower than their expectations, they won’t take it.
If the family is buying a house for the first time, they’ll probably go for a townhouse because they’ve not saved up money to buy a detached house.
For buyers with a low budget, they’ll definitely go for a townhouse because its price is lower than that of a house.
A townhouse can be easier to sell to buyers that are after the amenities the neighborhood provides: resorts, entertainment centers, gyms, tennis courts, parks, etc.
They wouldn’t mind the HOA fees once they are enjoying the benefits and they won’t be thinking of maintaining those amenities personally.
It is easier to sell a house to buyers that want to upgrade. They’ve lived in condos and townhouses, they wouldn’t want to rent another townhouse because it won’t be spacious to contain the growing family. They’ll go for a detached house especially when they have the money.
It is easier to sell a house because there are no restrictions when it comes to home improvements and repairs.
This is more like the main reason why a house is easier to sell than a townhouse. Home improvements will bring you profit when you sell the house years later.
Your house would have appreciated in value more than the townhouse that can’t be modified because of the similarity of the floor plans of the houses
It is easier to sell a house because some buyers worry about the HOA fees. They worry about times they might not be able to pay and the penalty for that.
They also have utility bills to worry about. So they’ll go for a house where they can have the amenities and utilities they need; not just paying for what they don’t use.
Final Thoughts
Before you buy a house, always research well for the appreciation value of that type of house or neighborhood (if it’s a townhouse). A townhouse is good as a starter for families that have a low budget and want to own a house.
A townhouse still has privacy even though you are sharing it with neighbors; every unit has its entrance and some townhouses allow you to buy the land the house is on together with it. A townhouse is good but be sure it will appreciate in the future before buying one.
