The choice is between independent living and shared ownership in Hawaii. Each has advantages and detracting features. In terms of price, often some form of shared ownership, such as a condo, will have a lower price than detached homes in the same neighborhood, allowing you to get in easier. Just remember, however, that what's cheaper when you buy is also going to bring less when you sell.

 

In a detached house you are lord of your castle. You have maximum privacy. When you live in a building that is shared by others (a condo or co-op for example), you often have common walls so noise from neighbors may sometimes come through. There may be shared drive­ways, and certainly if there are facilities such as tennis courts, pools, or a clubhouse, these are shared.

 

However, this is also a plus because you have access to these amenities (as well as all other common areas) with­out having to worry about their upkeep directly. The same holds true typically for front yards and sometimes back and even side yards, which are kept up by the home owners' association. However, a detracting feature is that there is usually a monthly dues assessment which pays for all that upkeep. This monthly fee typically ranges from $150 to $300, not small sum.

 

Townhouses, which are generally defined as allowing you the ownership of the ground beneath and the air above, can be a happy compromise for some. They gener­ally offer lower density (compared to Hawaii condo and co-ops where you may have other owners above and below as well as around you). They may also offer private patios and larger garages.

 

Some more recent single-family detached homes are also a bit of a compromise. While you own the home out­right, you may also belong to a home owners' association that takes care of all front yards and offers some of the amenities. When you throw in a security gate to prevent all but owners from getting in, you add even more privacy. Generally speaking, gated communi­ties command higher prices, perhaps 5 to 7 percent higher if they are condos or townhouses, and sometimes much higher amounts if they are detached homes.

 

Some of the problems of shared communities include bad homeowners' associations (for example, those with insufficient reserves, which result in sudden, high dues increases, or which get entangled in lawsuits and require you to spend time helping straighten things out). Shared communities may have too many tenants in the develop­ment (tenants tend to not take as good care of property as owners).