What is the difference between a condo an a TIC (tenancy in common)?

from what I could find, a tenancy in common is an: "Estate created by deed to persons described as husband and wife but not legally married" (9 A.L.R.4th 1189)

and you, orli, know what a condo is... right?

I would hope so.

i think the distinction is that condos are seperate pieces of property within a building. TIC means seperate dwellings within a building that remain one piece of property, but can have seperate mortgages and be "owned" as such...(while remaining one piece of property)

so is a TIC in san fran the same concept as a co-op apt building in nyc?

yes to your last entry, orli...a friend of mine here bought-in to a tic building and the main thing she noted is that all are collectively responsible for the mortgage -- if one unit does not want to pay the others have to make-up the funds...unless they have another legal document to cover themselves. but, general costs and the like -- ie facade work or roof work, are split based-upon the legal docs -- ie per unit or % of tenants. one of the affordable ways to get a pad in these parts

A condo is just an ownership unit. A TIC is where you co-own the mortgage.

TICs have less stringent governing structures than co-ops, which have boards that can throw you out and such.

Coops are shares owned in a corporation. You have no ownership right over any specific geographical location, just a share in the entire building. That’s why everything must be approved—if you alter something in your unit, you’re altering a piece of the corporation’s holding, not a piece of your property.

Condos are just individual units in a development subject to specific ownership agreements between the condo/development complex and the homeowner.

A tenancy in common is any property owned by two or more people. The property is not divisible, but each owner has a right to their equal share in the property. There are certain specific provisions and rights under law allowed to each owner of a TIC. One of those is the right of survivorship: if one of the tenants dies or sells their piece, the other continues to have the right to own and occupy their piece of the property. This can make it difficult for people who inherit or buy a TIC, as they can do nothing to eliminate the senior owner. The important point is that a TIC represents shared ownership in an indivisible piece of property.

You should also know that the various laws that govern each of these things is governed by state and sometimes municipal laws. I gave you the basic common law definitions, but some states may have slight alterations to these terms or their meanings.

A mortgage and a deed are 2 different things.

TIC is a form of ownership (deeded) everyone on the deed is a partial owner of the whole property.

Condominium owners own a specific air space (room or a group of rooms) within a building. The condo association owns the buildings and maintains the common areas. Interestingly, the condo form of ownership could be applied to a neighborhood of homes or a building full of individual apartments.

Source: Fayetteville NC real estate agent, http://activerain.com/ronshomebiz

The main difference with a TIC, and it’s biggest danger, is that you share ownership. This means that if someone in any of the unit defaults on the mortgage, you ALL default on the mortgage.