I am busy single professional who does not have time for home
maintenance. I was thinking about buying a condo, but homeowner's
dues are pretty substantial in the condos I am looking at, which would
seem to greatly decrease the advantage of buying over renting.

What I am thinking about doing is just buying a house and paying for
maintenance of the grounds (and exterior if needed). This would still
be substantially cheaper than the $500-800 homeowners dues monthly I
am looking at. Does this seem like a reasonable alternative for
someone like me who just does not have the time to do maintenance?