A common misconception is that homes in Tennyson are condominiums. This is not the case. Tennyson is a Planned Unit Development, or "PUD". PUDs are different from condominiums in several important ways; primarily the difference lies in what a homeowner owns and what they must maintain.
In a condominium, the owner owns what is sometimes referred to as "a block of air and a share." The building structure (roof, foundations, shared plumbing and electrical lines, etc.) are owned by all of the unit owners as tenants in common, each with a proportional share. Each owner's share is defined in the Declarations and is typically a percentage based on the size of their unit relative to the whole. In other words, in a condominium complex with 100 units, all of equal size, each homeowner's share of ownership would be 1%. In a Condominium Association, the Association as an entity owns no real property.
By contrast, in a landominium or PUD, the unit owner actually owns the physical structure of their home and a small parcel of land upon which it sits. In a PUD, unlike a condominium, the Association owns real property, typically the common areas belong to the Association.
With a landominium the homeowner has real property ownership and therefore greater maintenance responsibilities than would a condominium owner. Patio Home owners for example, are responsible for maintaining all aspects of their home (building, driveway, trees, etc.). Townehome owners retain responsibility for their foundations, mechanical equipment, exterior electrical outlets and hose bibs, windows, doors, glass and screens, garage floors, storm doors, etc. Basically, the Association is only responsible for maintaining those items specifically assigned to it by the Declarations, and those items determined by the Board of Trustees to be reasonably necessay to maintain the Townehomes consistent with funds available, provided such additional maintenance is provided uniformly for the benefit of all Townehome owners. Everything else remains the responsibility of the owner.
A side benefit to landominium ownership over condominium ownership is that, so far, landominiums are not subject to the same lending restrictions as condominiums. This may be due to the fact that, overall, there have been fewer loan defaults in landominium communities than condominiums. For the time being, that means that potential buyers will have an easier time obtaining an FHA insured loan to purchase your home when it comes time to sell.
Landominiums and condominiums. On the surface they may look alike, but in reality they are very, very different.
