While there are many different types of houses in the United States, next, several different types of houses will be described.

Single Family Home

Single family homes this is the most common type of house in the United States. In New York State, for example, outside of the bustling Isle of Man, this type of house makes up almost the vast majority of homes.

There are also different classifications of single family homes, attached single family homes and detached single family homes.

Attached single-family house

This type of house is what we call a duplex, where two houses have a common wall, but each house has its own door number.

Detached single-family house

This type of house is a detached house, usually with its own driveway, garage and yard. The owner of the house is responsible for maintaining his or her own yard and property while having full ownership of the land and house. For example, they have to shovel snow on their driveway on snowy days and water or trim the plants in their yard in a timely manner.

Multi-family housing

This is a type of house that is unique to the United States. From the appearance of the house, it is not much different from a single family home, but the building can accommodate 2-4 families, each with its own bathroom, kitchen, living room and bedroom.

This type of housing structure is very popular with investors and is a typical investment home. If you own a multi-family detached home, you can use one of the units for yourself and the other vacant units can be put on the market for rent.

The money collected from the rent can then be used to pay off the house loan and subsidize household expenses. However, this type of house is more common in suburban or commercial areas such as Staten Island, Long Island, Queens and Brooklyn in New York.

Townhouses

Literally, a townhouse is made up of one or more shared walls. Each house has 2-3 floors of room space, with water, electricity and gas completely isolated from the rest of the home.

This type of house is equivalent to a combination of a house and a condominium. The ownership of a townhouse belongs to the owner, and some townhouses will have their own yard and garage, but some do not.

Rental Apartments

If you are a young person who loves city life and if you don't want to live in the quiet countryside, an apartment is your best choice.

In the United States, apartments are well equipped with laundry, heating, air conditioning, gym, swimming pool, parking, doorman, and even a chapel. There are also convenient supermarkets around the neighborhood, so living in an apartment is convenient and hassle-free.

Apartments can be owned by either a company or an individual. Corporate condominiums are usually managed by a company and are not for sale, only for rent.

Individual condominiums are condominiums that are bought and sold by individuals, and they can be put on the market for rent or sale, or you can live in them yourself.

If you live in a condominium, you will have to pay a management fee to the management company every year or every month.



Condominium

A condominium is a type of property with property rights. The owner of a condominium owns the condominium and a percentage of the common areas of the building through a contract of sale.

Usually condominiums have relaxed subletting restrictions and also allow foreigners to purchase them. Therefore, investors and foreign buyers should pay more attention to condominiums.

Condominium owners are required to pay property taxes to the city and common management fees to the condominium board.

Buyers can purchase condominiums through loans. In most cases, U.S. residents only need a 20% down payment and foreign nationals only need a 50% down payment to obtain a bank loan.

Few restrictions, low down payments, and easy loans all enhance the liquidity of the condominium market. However, with shared apartments representing only 25% of New York's housing stock, combined with the huge demand and good market liquidity, shared apartments are typically more expensive than co-ops.

Co-Op Apartments

If you do not own a living unit, but only a share in a co-op apartment company, this share only gives you the right to exclusive use of the living space, not the right to own it.

Therefore, as a member of the cooperative, you do not have to pay property taxes, because the building as a whole will be taxed. Each household pays a monthly fee to the corporation, which includes land tax and management fees.

Co-op apartments will have a more rigorous screening process for potential buyers, and you can only move in if you pass an interview with the board of directors of the neighborhood association.

Generally, buyers of co-op apartments have to pass the interview with the 'management committee' before they can buy or sell, and it is difficult for foreigners to pass the approval if they have passed the personal financial background and other indicators.

Therefore, it is advisable to consider carefully. In addition, it is more difficult to get a loan to buy a co-op than to buy a shared apartment.