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Your Style Which Condo Type to Select?

20 Feb 2022 buy sell rent tips

The popularity of living in a condominium has been rising, owing to the fact that townhouses, detached houses and land have increasingly become pricey and hard to find. Condos are also generally located at spots which offer convenient transportation, as well as being situated within a community.

Any rent or purchase decision should produce the best result for life, and the decision process should take into consideration several factors.

Some of us are undeniably baffled over the differences between each type of condominium unit, and over how to determine the type most appropriate for ourselves.

In this article, PLUS presents the types of condo units generally found at residential projects and elaborates on their strengths and weaknesses as well as their general features, so that you may have a better picture of each type and consider one that is most appropriate for yourself.

Things to consider when selecting the type of condo unit

Budget The bigger the room, the pricier it is. This statement applies not only to the room price upon purchase; there are other expenses to follow and these figures vary in proportion to the size of the room. Said expenses include the common fee, specific maintenance fee, etc.
Number of occupants Increasingly bigger room types become more appropriate as the number of expected occupants within the unit rises.
Lifestyle This is also a matter of paramount importance. Selecting a condo ill-matched to your lifestyle can give you misery. For example, an individual whose lifestyle involves very little time spent hanging out may discover that a small condo room gives him/her a sense of confinement. Fortunately, present-day condominiums generally possess common spaces where residents can go to relax and escape the confines of their room. Such spaces include the swimming pool, the fitness room, the common garden, the study and the movie room.
Cleaning If you have distaste for housework, bear in mind that more effort and time need to be spent on cleaning, in direct relation to the size of the condo room.
Parking Some condos provide dedicated parking space for residents of 2-bedroom units and larger units. But if you don’t use a car then there is no need to worry over this point.

Studio

Let’s first introduce the ‘studio’ type of room. This type of unit assembles the bedroom, the living area and the kitchen into a single room without hard partitioning. The bathroom is the only space that is walled off.

Pros:

Inexpensive. The common fee and maintenance expense are lightweight as this type of unit has the least area out of all the types.
Cleaning requires only minimal effort.
Room has an airy feel due to the lack of solid partitioning. However, the resident might define the spaces by using shelves, curtains and room dividers to increase privacy.

Cons:

Lack of walls means this type of unit offers little privacy and definition of spaces.
Little room for storage. People with many possessions will experience difficulty with this type of condo room due to the fact that they are usually small.

This room type is best for:

People who live alone, including students.
Individuals whose lifestyle involves frequent outings.
People who don't cook or those who favor eating outside, buying takeaways to eat at home, or those who only cook light meals.
People with limited belongings; a studio room is small in size.
Individuals who do not often host guests inside their room, or those who only host close acquaintances.

Studio Unit at Park 24

1 Bedroom

A one-bedroom condominium usually possesses a bedroom, a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom and a balcony. To help make it feel more airy inside, the unit developers frequently use glass panels and glass doors to separate the living room from the bedroom.

For added privacy, curtains could be installed as another layer of separator. At some condominiums, the kitchen inside a one-bedroom unit is partitioned off from the rest of the unit. This keeps fumes from the kitchen from contaminating the living room and the bedroom when the condo occupant engages in heavy cooking.

Pros

Rooms are clearly partitioned, providing for a higher degree of privacy.
A separated kitchen allows the unit occupant to cook to his or her heart's desire without needing to worry about fumes. If the unit does not come with partitioning for the kitchen, the owner could add glass partitions and doors later.

This room type is best for:

People who live alone and prefer clear partitioning of spaces. This unit type is also suitable for double occupancy.
People who cook heavily will benefit greatly from the partitioned kitchen.
Those looking to purchase a condo for investment and letting. The one-bedroom unit type is highly popular among tenants.

1 Bedroom unit at Whizdom Connect Sukhumvit

2 Bedrooms

As its name implies, a two-bedroom condo unit has two bedrooms. At some projects two bathrooms come standard with this type of unit, whereas certain development projects only provide one bathroom for this unit type. Check with the particular project for this specification.

This room type is best for:

Occupants who are members of the same family.
Those who frequently host guests overnight.
People who would like an extra room to work with. The extra bedroom inside a two-bedroom condo unit can be converted into an all-purpose room such as a personal office or a Home Cinema.

2 Bedroom Unit at THE LINE RATCHATHEWI

Duplex

A duplex condominium room has two storeys. It could be of the "double space" type where the upper and lower storeys meld into one another as a result of a large opening between the two. Or it could be fully separated by a floor between the upper and lower storeys, allowing for full utilisation of the space on both floors.

The height between the lower and upper ceilings must be no less than 2.6 metres. The areas of both storeys are counted towards the total area indicated in the property deed. The law mandates that each floor has to possess an entry/exit door that leads easily to the fire escape. Therefore, this type of property has unit entrances on both floors.

Pros

This type of condo unit is usually large and provides an abundance of usable space. They also give occupants the feeling of living at a house.
Safety. Each floor within the unit is required by law to possess an entry/exit door that leads easily to the fire escape – a duplex room therefore has an entrance on both storeys.
The stairs connecting each floor can be easily traversed, as the law stipulates that a room with greater than 3 metres of height requires a stairs landing to be inserted.

Cons

The stairway eats up space. However, adding a storage function to the stairway will give greater utility to this particular space.
At a duplex unit with the ‘double space’ arrangement, the air conditioners need to work harder. Therefore, the electricity bill is higher.
As the area on the second storey is counted towards the total area specified within the property deed, common expense will have to be paid for this additional area.

This room type is best for:
People looking to live at a condo that possess similar characteristics to a house.

Loft

A loft unit has a mezzanine level and a “double space” main floor type. The height of the room must be at least 2.60 metres. By law, the loft area is classified as furniture and is not included in the property deed. A major difference between a loft unit and a duplex unit is how the latter has entrance/exit doors on both floors whereas the former has an access door on the main floor only.

Pros:

Double space layout gives the unit a more spacious feel.
Common expense is lower in relation to usable space, because the loft is classified as furniture.

Penthouse

A penthouse used to refer to a small house on the rooftop of a building. Nowadays, it refers to a unit that is larger than the average, luxuriously decorated, and situated in a location that offers desirable views. Such a unit also comes with a very high price tag.

Pros:

This type of room usually has the most usable space out of all rooms within a residential project. And because penthouses sit on the topmost floors, they provide occupants with the best views available from the project.
This room type is best for:
Those who are looking for a large condo unit with ample usable space.

Penthhouse Unit at The River

A decision to purchase or rent a condominium has to be carefully considered. Aside from the type of room and its size, thought must also be given to the available budget, the location of the project, the surrounding ambience, the amenities within the project and the after-sale services on offer.

Find your right condo unit: condo for rent, condo near BTS/MRT

Plus Property is a real estate agency that provides first-class property services to those looking to sell or rent out property in Thailand. Our highly experienced team also offers professional consultation on request. For information on condominiums that address the needs of your lifestyle and cater to your personal rhythm, call 02 688 7555 or click here to browse units currently available for sale and rent.