Unit vs. Townhouse - dumb question alert!

wobbycarly

wobbycarly

This is one that's confused me for a while.

How is it determined whether a property is a townhouse or a unit?

My own criteria that defines both unit AND townhouse:
  • Almost no backyard; probably just a courtyard
  • Part of a "complex" with similar design (even if it's only 2 in the complex)

To differentiate...
Unit:
  • Typically 1 or 2 BR
  • Single story

Townhouse:
  • 2 or 3 BR
  • Double (or rarely, triple) story

The defining factor for me is the number of levels. Units are single-story; townhouses, double. So how can this (http://www.allpointsrealestate.com.au/detail.aspx?PID=584) be a "townhouse"?

Can anyone enlighten me? I actually think that it's just REA marketing; townhouse "sounds" better than unit! But surely there is a formal definition.
 
A town house compared to a villa unit compared to an apartment are all usually defined in legal terms in both the definitions in each Council's planning controls and also in the Building Code of Australia.

RE agents also call differnt housing types different things but at the end of the day , its the legal definitions that are important.
 
I always thought that:

Unit = one of at least two small houses on a block, detached or not, and are single storey only.

Townhouse = one of at least two small houses on a block, detached or not, and are at least 2 storeys tall.

Apartment = when a building is at least 2 storeys, has at least one separate unit per level, and has at least one elevator. Often has secure entrance & secure parking.

Flat = old apartment, with no elevator, just stairs. Can have secure entrance & secure parking, but the elevator is the main distinction I think.

Savanna100 said:
A town house compared to a villa unit compared to an apartment are all usually defined in legal terms in both the definitions in each Council's planning controls and also in the Building Code of Australia.

RE agents also call differnt housing types different things but at the end of the day , its the legal definitions that are important.
Click to expand...

Can you post or link to these legal definitions Savanna?
 
vincenzo said:
I always thought that:

Unit = one of at least two small houses on a block, detached or not, and are single storey only.

Townhouse = one of at least two small houses on a block, detached or not, and are at least 2 storeys tall.

Apartment = when a building is at least 2 storeys, has at least one separate unit per level, and has at least one elevator. Often has secure entrance & secure parking.

Flat = old apartment, with no elevator, just stairs. Can have secure entrance & secure parking, but the elevator is the main distinction I think.



Can you post or link to these legal definitions Savanna?
Click to expand...

the defiinitioare lkely to be different for each Council and there are about 86 Councils in NSW alone. The BCA definitions will be the same though as it covers Australia.
Your definitions above are very good and close to most of the definitions I've come across but your version of "flat" is not a legal definition as such....
In NSW all apartment buildings having the legal definition "Residential Flat Building"

My last consultant Council called town houses "Multi-unit development" and didnt really have a seperate definition for Villa Unit (a Victorian term I use for single storey units in a group.

If you want a specific definition for a specific local govt area in NSW I'll look it up for you if you like.

woops, I just noticed u r in Vic. Check the main website for the definitions...Victoria is awesome in that every planning control in the state is on a single site !!!
 
I think it varies in different places.

In Sydney a unit is a multi story complex with units that have no yard.

A villa is single story attached (or not) with a small yard, a townhouse is 2 story attached (or not) with a small yard.

When I went to Albury I was confused as they kept referring to villas (as in small single story houses on a block) as units.
 
Rob,

From my perspective, and what i generally refer to (in Qld), townhouses are terraced (in groups of 2 to 10) 2 storey (or 3) dwellings. Townhouses generally have an allocated area of backyard / courtyard.

Units on the other hands, are generally single or multilevel.

That is how I define it. I could be completely wrong though.

Cheers,

F
 
vincenzo said:
Is that french or something :confused:


I had a little look, but I didn't find them :(


Yeah, we're pretty awesome down here :cool:
Click to expand...

haha, I'm from Melbourne, spent my first 33 years there :)
Sorry about my spelling, i type and the machine makes it up as I go along (hehe, thats my excuse anyway)

the awesome site for all Vic Planning Controls is
http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/planningschemes/index.htm

just choose your area from the drop down menu and you are away !!!!!
 
And just to make it more confusing, REAs will call a property whatever they like to try and make it sound more appealing! I went to look at a 'villa' a couple of weeks ago, and found myself in a first floor unit (or is that apartment...or flat?). I asked the REA why it was advertised as a villa and he said something vague about the balcony being larger than average. Go figure!
 
Mine is technically a unit because it has a number before the street number (X/X)
Mine is technically a townhouse because it is 4 stories high
Mine is technically a townhouse because there's no body corporate
Mine is technically a unit because I wouldn't paint the outside without consulting the others
Mine is technically a townhouse because I CAN paint it purple on the outside if I really wanted to
Mine is technically a villa because it has a huge terrace on the top floor

Who really knows for sure!
 
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