Detached Condos and Owning the Land

I get asked this nearly every day by clients looking for a home and we come across detached condos. Figured Id make a quick post on it.

'Its a condo, does that mean I don't own the land?' or some variation there of. The short answer is.. it depends. Same as what an HOA covers, it depends on the specific collection and builder you are inquiring about. Sometimes you own it outright, fee simple. Sometimes you own an interest in the land, and sometimes its a land lease.

Some popular areas like Portola Springs, with Cal Pacific you own an interest in the land with their detached condos. Over at cadence park those are ally own the land fee simple. Lennar always has it set so you own the land fee simple. Over at novel park you own an interest in the land for all the collections.

Basically always ask.

It's good to ask the builder, but it's best to verify by reading the property description section on the preliminary title report to get confirmation what kind of interest in the land that will be owned by the buyer (this goes for both new and resale properties).