UNIT-OWNER vs CO-OWNER

Investing in condominium means not only acquiring individual-use space, but also a co-ownership share in common property. This co-owned portion — every part of the master lot that is not a unit — is the binding agent that makes a condominium arrangement possible and workable. Whether extensive, as in apartment complexes, or minimal, as in bare-land condominium projects, common property supports the private domains.

An area where provincial or state legislation differs is in how it refers to the condominium purchaser. For most of Canada, "unit owner" is the label. Focus of the identification is on the individual part of the two-sided investment. This is not surprising. For most if not all buyers, the primary object is acquiring private space. Common property is simply the ancillary, facilitating component.

In Quebec, the official term for condominium is copropriété divise, or divided co-ownership. For a simple two-word description of condominium realities, there's likely no better definition. It recognizes the important role of common property as the cement in the condominium arrangement, and at the same time highlights the exclusive, divided-use aspect.

Some might suggest that the co-owner focus is more a characteristic of la belle province’s Civil Code structure and philosophy than is the case in the rest of the continent. Yet, a great deal of authoritative analysis and several U.S. condominium statutes refer to the purchaser as a co-owner.

Most times, an owner is defined as possessing either a freehold or leasehold estate in the unit (first) and common interest (second). However, California reverses this normal priority by defining condominium as "an estate in real property consisting of an undivided interest in common in a portion of real property together with a separate interest in (private) space..."

Regardless of jurisdiction, condominium everywhere is a democratically-run shared property business. So, like any such investment, prospective purchasers can assess a community’s operational strengths by examining the annual financial statements.