AC Replacement for Sanford Townhomes and Condominiums
Six of Sanford's twenty largest subdivisions are 100% post-2000 townhomes or condominiums, together holding 810 parcels — a different housing market from the historic core, with smaller footprints, original or first-replacement equipment, and an HOA that cannot legally block a like-for-like changeout it cannot see.
Sanford's other housing market
COHORT| Subdivision | Parcels | Median year | Median sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arbor Lakes A Condominium | 282 | 2002 | 1,117 |
| Amberlee Townhomes | 200 | 2012 | 1,560 |
| Riverview Townhomes Phase II | 170 | 2012 | 1,642 |
| Windsor Lake Townhomes | 158 | 2007 | 1,420 |
Seminole County Property Appraiser CAMA extract (Parcels.csv, files dated 2026-09-05), residential improved parcels in tax district S1 = City of Sanford. Smallest: Arbor Lakes Condominium at 1,117 sq ft. Largest of this group: Riverview Townhomes Phase II at 1,642 sq ft.
Smaller footprint changes the sizing math
SIZINGA Manual J on a 1,117–1,642 sq ft attached home returns less tonnage than the 3-ton figure most cost guides lead with — often 1.5 to 2.5 tons — and shared walls change the load calculation further. Copying a detached-house rule of thumb onto a townhome is a common oversizing mistake. How sizing is actually decided.
What an HOA can and cannot require
HOAUnder s. 720.3035(1)(b)2., Fla. Stat., a homeowners’ association may not require approval for a like-for-like HVAC change that is not visible from the parcel exterior or a community area — which covers most condenser placements already established when these subdivisions were built. An HOA can still set reasonable rules on screening or paint colour for anything that is visible; it cannot use that authority to block or delay a non-visible changeout.
What's actually on the pad
AGEEvery subdivision in the table above is 100% post-2000, so the honest read is original or first-replacement equipment, not the multiple-replacement cycles common in the pre-1970 core. That also means most of this stock is already on a heat pump rather than straight-cool-plus-strip-heat, and increasingly on R-410A equipment old enough to be affected by the refrigerant transition. What that means for a repair here.