Difference Between Condominium and Freehold
The practical difference between freehold and condominium apartments is in the process of being wiped out. There are however some differences that might be nice to know, although developments in recent years shows that buyers are more interested in the property content than the choice of ownership.
Traditionally, many considered freehold apartments to be a better buy than apartments in the condominium. Much is due to stricter rules for use of their own homes in housing cooperatives. Today, they experience very few major differences between condominium and freehold.
Cooper frees capital
When purchasing a condominium apartment, you pay a deposit, and acquire an obligation to serve the apartment’s share of public debt. Public debt is part of the buyer’s total liabilities, but operated through the rent and is not a private loan. Since a condominium has a large joint loan, they can achieve far better terms than private individuals often get in the bank.
– Some adults and older people want to free up more of its equity to travel, cabins and an advance on his children and grandchildren, and some see that they can achieve this by purchasing a condominium apartment.
Small price differences
Many wonder if there are price differences between the two ownership forms, but according to Norway’s Estate Agents, NEF, it is difficult to detect differences.
– We do not distinguish between freehold and condominium apartments in our statistics, but the impression is that the differences have leveled off in recent years.
The purchase of freehold apartments, one must in addition to the purchase price with 2.5 per cent in stamp duty to the state. For an initially expensive housing may soon be some months wages, but there is still no evidence that this affects the price difference between freehold and condominium apartments.
Stable tenants in housing associations
As it is traditionally more attractive to buy freehold apartments for rent, the resident’s profile in a condominium can be more stable. Buyers are buying to stay even, and not to rent to other.
Some feel that the maintenance is easier to manage in a condominium than a co-ownership, because the board of a housing generally have greater powers to initiate maintenance work.