I just sold my townhouse in the DC area. The difference between a townhouse and a condo is the type of ownership: with a townhouse, you own 100% of both the interior and the exterior; that is, you own the sky above, the ground below, and the entirety of the walls, roof, etc. With a condo, you own 100% of the interior, but only 1/x% of the exterior. For example, if the condo complex has 20 units, you own 1/20 of the exterior of your unit--and also of everyone else's unit. And your neighbors each own 1/20 of your unit. With my townhouse, I was fully responsible for my (tiny) front and back yards; homeowner's insurance; maintenance to the house; all utilities, etc. It was just the same as owning a detached home--except of course, that I was attached to my neighbors. The HOA fees paid for maintenance of the common grounds (that ended at my property line) and the community amenities (pools, boat access, etc). If you truly want to have no yard work, I would recommend that you check the HOA covenants very carefully and make sure what their fees cover--as I said, I had to do the yard work at my townhouse (which was okay, since I love gardening--and I liked the fact that everyone's yards were unique); whereas, the block of condos down the street had gardeners do the yardwork--but they couldn't plant any flowers, or anything else. Oh, and there are single-story townhouses, as well as detached townhouses and condos. Hope this information is of some use.

I downsized from my old house into a townhouse a year ago. I’m very happy with my move, but I’m single, so it’s just me, and my old house was in town and not on acres, so I’m used to living close to other people. My utility expenses are far lower than they were in my house, and so are my mortgage payment and taxes and I love that I reduced my possessions and have only my favorite things with me – no more junk in the attic! I have a small patio space outside which has a fence on each side, but it’s open to the common grass area, so it’s not completely private, but where my life is right now is more about being out and not at home as much. I used to love gardening but I don’t miss it at all – now I have time to go on garden tours on weekends instead of doing yardwork. My neighbors are all nice (so far, lol) and it’s much quieter than my old house because I’m not living on a street with traffic. When you’re looking for a townhouse, keep in mind that there are different types -- my place is two-story but it is still considered a condo, which means that I own it from the walls in, and not the outside. I have friends that own a townhouse that is not a condo and they are responsible for the exterior maintenance of the building so they have to work with their neighbors when it’s time to replace the roof or paint, etc. and it’s a nightmare! They also have to clear the snow on their own driveway and sidewalk, so be sure to look at those kinds of things. I have an HOA payment that includes a pool and tennis courts that I use, and of course this fee could go up, but that can happen no matter where you live if there’s storm clean-up or too much snow. Be sure to check the HOA’s reserve funds that they have enough cash to handle emergencies or big deferred maintenance jobs.

The front windows are crank currently - from 1962 and the wood is not in good shape. Current size isn't terrible but I would prefer rectangle over square-ish. The railing is already gone - it went in the very first dumpster I had. The shutters are also gone right now. I would love a wall of windows in the garage conversion but budget doesn't allow for all my wants. Can I do 3 large windows but keeping the top and bottom in line with the front of the house? Yeah, I better four is better. The opposite wall in the converted garage will mirror this one and face our patio/side yard. As well as provide a great cross breeze. The room will be used for working out and TV viewing. What approximate size do you suppose the windows are in the drawing above from GN Builders? I'm generally not so slow to pull the trigger on decisions but the windows really have me nervous to make a long term mistake. The windows on the front of the house are bedrooms. There actually is a step up into the house. The room on the end will be converted to mudroom/laundry room with a very large attached garage going up at that end of the house. And here I thought picking new windows would be so fun! Thank you all for your advice! It's greatly appreciated!

First, I am not so sure you can simply get out of the contract. A contract is considered executed when signed without contingency. An easy way to think of this is the contractor is owed his profit once he has set aside time for your job, which he does when you obligate him with the contract. Next, contractors make money from supervising construction. There is still work to do for the windows, that work and any resulting mistakes are his responsibilities and thus he should get his percentage on those items. Moreover, let's take the idea of no markup on windows to its logical conclusion. Were you to get bids for everything, doors, windows, bricks, plumbing, carpenters, masons, plumbers, etc. should the builder lose his percentage on those items too? If that is the case then we could completely eliminate all builder profit while getting the benefit of his services. Obviously, that can't happen.