"Jeff Bello" wrote

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?

$500 - $800 does seem high. In both areas I've looked at condos, about
half of that range was normal. I'm paying $250 now.

I've got similar priorities as you; as much as I do enjoy tinkering
with my new place, I also enjoy other things, and work a decent amount
these days.

Other things to think about - condos supposedly are the first to feel
the effects of a slowing in the RE market. I think that may be more
true for areas where SFHs are the norm - a condo development lost in
suburbia for example - but less true for higher-developed areas and
cities.

A simple test: look at the header lines here, and mentally separate
them into "indoor" and "outdoor" concerns. More than half seem to be
"outdoor" to me!

I split the difference, kind of: bought a condo in "cosmetic fixer"
condition. I've been having lots of fun tinkering, on the
immediate-reward kind of improvements. But, working alone sure does go
slow (the boyfriend is on an extended home visit).

Houses just have a lot more needs. Of course that all depends on what
you buy; and in either case you'll pay $$$ for turn-key beauty.

Just my $0.02, adjusted by Mr. Greenspan,
JSH