The financial responsibility for a roof is not as straightforward for condo owners as it is for traditional detached home owners.
Townhouse roof responsibility.
I consider an original roof with a leak and only 2 years life left in it to be a bad roof.
This means the costs associated with the hoa are significantly lower than with a condominium.
If a townhouse is a rental property owned by a landlord who collects rent from a tenant the landlord is typically responsible for the roof repairs.
Responsibilities when owning a townhouse when owning a townhouse the owner is responsible for the exterior of the home and the land around it.
Therefore if an association becomes aware of a potential roof leak ice damming or other situation where it appears that some maintenance may be necessary to an area of a townhome exterior for which the association is responsible it is important for the association to act within a reasonable time frame in investigating the issue and if necessary take the appropriate steps to repair replace the item at issue.
For 4 or 5 years i ve been patching the leak in my unit and letting the other other owners know our 15 year old roof with an expired 15 year warranty will need to be replaced.
Occasionally a property owner is able to argue that a tenant caused the damage to the roof.
You share ownership of many building features including the roof.
If you are simply the tenant a townhouse roof problem is an inconvenience but thankfully it s not going to drain your finances this is your landlord s problem.
Typically the governing docs provide that the owner is responsible for all the structural components including the roof.
However if you don t report the problem right away whether it s a leak or mold growth you.
Unless you are getting an absolute steal on this property i would require the seller replace the roof.
The problem is the owner s roof joins other roofs.
The shared spaces in townhouse communities are often much smaller compared to that of a condo.
In a simple sense a community association is formed for the purpose of maintaining the common areas within the community while the owners are responsible for maintaining their own homes or units.
The roof is contiguous.
I own a townhouse that shares a roof with two other units.
I own a townhouse and roofs are owners not hoa responsibility.
They are merely built adjoining each other but each person owns their own unit.
Whether the roof is leaking a water line is busted or a window needs to be cleaned questions of who provides maintenance in a community governed by a homeowners association arise regularly.
For example perhaps the tenant stood on the roof to jump into the pool and damaged the shingles while he or she was up there.
