Saratoga, Condo or Single family? IC new trick?

T

Tribune

New member
I just talked to one of the sales people at Saratoga, she told me that: "Saratoga homes are Condo, but you own the land"."If Lot size goes under 3500 Sqf we have to call it Condo, for single family it should be more than 3500 Sqf"

Is this the new IC 's sale trick/tactic? As far as I know Condo/Single family are types of ownership.For Condo, you own the interior of the home and land is on lease for limited (under 100 years) time and insurance for exterior is on HOA, single family on the other hand, you own interior and exterior (including land).

Where did they find such a lame excuse to not pay for insurance and push to sell with this high price tag for a condo?

Is there anyone who had problem getting the insurance for their CONDOs at Saratoga?
 
Tribune said:
I just talked to one of the sales people at Saratoga, she told me that: "Saratoga homes are Condo, but you own the land"."If Lot size goes under 3500 Sqf we have to call it Condo, for single family it should be more than 3500 Sqf"

Is this the new IC 's sale trick/tactic? As far as I know Condo/Single family are types of ownership.For Condo, you own the interior of the home and land is on lease for limited (under 100 years) time and insurance for exterior is on HOA, single family on the other hand, you own interior and exterior (including land).

Where did they find such a lame excuse to not pay for insurance and push to sell with this high price tag for a condo?

Is there anyone who had problem getting the insurance for their CONDOs at Saratoga?
Click to expand...

It's technically a condo because of the lot size but you own it like a SFR (own the land and everything on it).  My insurance is for the entirety of the house.  There is also only one HOA fee. 
 
Why did not I find anything about "lot size of single family that make it condo" anywhere?

Can anyone show me such a explanation that is real not just specific to IC?
 
Tribune said:
Why did not I find anything about "lot size of single family that make it condo" anywhere?

Can anyone show me such a explanation that is real not just specific to IC?
Click to expand...

I believe the rule is that any lot under 4500 square feet is categorized as a condo.  Saratoga lots are usually around 4,000.
 
Meggie said:
I believe condominium means you have at least one wall that is shared with the neighbor.  The house that I live in is similar to Saratoga and it is called Single Family Detached Condominium.  No wall to wall direct contact with the neighbor but one of our walls directly connected with the neighbor's backyard (no separation fence). 

No issue with insurance at all.
Click to expand...

Actually...that's a zero-lot zoning.  I live in Saratoga and there are no shared walls or lots.  I have a fence between my house and my neighbor.   

 
Meggie said:
I believe condominium means you have at least one wall that is shared with the neighbor.  The house that I live in is similar to Saratoga and it is called Single Family Detached Condominium.  No wall to wall direct contact with the neighbor but one of our walls directly connected with the neighbor's backyard (no separation fence). 

No issue with insurance at all.
Click to expand...

A detached condo is a CONDO, an attached condo is a CONDO.. That wall that directly connect with the neighbor's backyard means it's a zero lot line.

amirite?
 
I think it has something to do with the motor courts, I believe you share ownership of the motor court with your neighbors, thus making it a detached condo. 
 
gaogi said:
I think it has something to do with the motor courts, I believe you share ownership of the motor court with your neighbors, thus making it a detached condo.
Click to expand...

I don't think you own the motorcourt.  It's a regular street to be maintained by SG HOA and Irvine.  That's why there is only one HOA fees and makes it different than a community with a courtyard/driving area.
 
Irvinecommuter said:
gaogi said:
I think it has something to do with the motor courts, I believe you share ownership of the motor court with your neighbors, thus making it a detached condo.
Click to expand...

I don't think you own the motorcourt.  It's a regular street to be maintained by SG HOA and Irvine.  That's why there is only one HOA fees and makes it different than a community with a courtyard/driving area.
Click to expand...

I don't know, I kind of see the motor court as a long driveway.  I guess it's set up differently at Saratoga so it's more like a street than a long driveway.
 
gaogi said:
Irvinecommuter said:
gaogi said:
I think it has something to do with the motor courts, I believe you share ownership of the motor court with your neighbors, thus making it a detached condo.
Click to expand...

I don't think you own the motorcourt.  It's a regular street to be maintained by SG HOA and Irvine.  That's why there is only one HOA fees and makes it different than a community with a courtyard/driving area.
Click to expand...

I don't know, I kind of see the motor court as a long driveway.  I guess it's set up differently at Saratoga so it's more like a street than a long driveway.
Click to expand...

Yeah...Saratoga is basically built with minimal driveway into a street.  It's not like the new constructions with the California courts where an HOA would have maintain the common area.    It gets maintained and paved by the regular HOA and Irvine. 

Also, you can search for parcels on the Irvine city website as to zoning
http://www.cityofirvine.org/cityhall/cd/buildingsafety/gis_mapping/locate.asp
 
This question always comes up and someone who knows real estate law or whatever governs this type of issue needs to join TI as a member.

As far as I know, condos are not really defined by:

1. Lot size: There are SFRs on smaller than 3500 sft lots in Irvine and they are not condos. Conversely, there are homes on lots larger than 3500 sft and can be classified as condos (I think Turtle Rock might have some).
2. Attached/Detached: There are condos in Woodbury East where not a single wall is shared but it's still a condo. There are homes in Woodbridge, Turtle Rock and University Park that share walls and/or are zero lot line but are SFRs, not condos.

In the end, it's what is shown in your legal documents, no matter what the salesperson says.
 
You own the land. If you sign your purchase agreement, sales office will give you a bunch of documents that describe your phase, community, common area and lot information etc...
One of the document defines your condominium ownership. Each condominium unit is defined by horizontal and vertical boundaries. Not only your home building but also you own everything within your boundary.
Your land is in those horizontal and vertical boundaries so you do own the land and airspace. You also own fractional common area of the lot you belong to.

I don't know what exact factors define SFR and detached condo but there are a couple of Saratoga homes that have bigger than 3,500 sqft lot size (with bigger yard and own driveway),
Those premium homes are also defined as detached condos in the official records of Orange County. To me, it's more like how the development plan is registered when builders reported the development plan of the tract.
 
The easy way to tell if it's a condo or sfr is if it has lot lines.

Saratoga is a detached condo - no lot lines

By comparison....

Montecito is sfr - has lot lines
Garden Hill is sfr - has lot lines
Magnolia is sfr - has lot lines

Marigold is detached condo - no lot lines
Sage is detached condo - no lot lines
 
test said:
The easy way to tell if it's a condo or sfr is if it has lot lines.

Saratoga is a detached condo - no lot lines

By comparison....

Montecito is sfr - has lot lines
Garden Hill is sfr - has lot lines
Magnolia is sfr - has lot lines

Marigold is detached condo - no lot lines
Sage is detached condo - no lot lines
Click to expand...

Does SFR normally have dedicated lot number? A lot number per house? Saratoga has a lot line and number but normally one lot is shared by 4 detached homes.
 

Attachments

  • lotline.jpg
    lotline.jpg
    217.1 KB · Views: 304
akirvine79 said:
test said:
The easy way to tell if it's a condo or sfr is if it has lot lines.

Saratoga is a detached condo - no lot lines

By comparison....

Montecito is sfr - has lot lines
Garden Hill is sfr - has lot lines
Magnolia is sfr - has lot lines

Marigold is detached condo - no lot lines
Sage is detached condo - no lot lines
Click to expand...

Does SFR normally have dedicated lot number? A lot number per house? Saratoga has a lot line and number but normally one lot is shared by 4 detached homes.
Click to expand...

Notice how the lot line encompasses multiple units.  Each individual unit does not have its own lot line.  Hence it's a condo.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top