There are a lot of people who buy condos and townhouses for exactly the reasons you state. My parents have done so most of their adult lives, and so have I. You are not alone. I don’t think it’s a good idea to rent forever, but if apartment living suits you, then buying a condo can be a great idea.
It’s hot in Georgia, but I’ve heard that we have it easy compared to you.
kayaker, we drink around the pool.
That sucks. It only seems right that you would own the piece of the sky where your condo used to be.
It’s a little harder than that when you have more than a small city lot. I don’t have time (or stamina) to build a 2-acre rock garden, and I don’t have money to pay somebody to mow my 2-acre lawn. Even letting nature take it back isn’t as simple as it sounds, since nature requires a completely different set of plants than those that currently exist in the space, and nobody’s giving those plants away free.
You take the insurance proceeds and get another one. There are plenty of them around.
A house also affords you the ability to have your own private scaled down versions of whatever amenities you’d have to otherwise pay for and/or share in an apartment. Your apartment complex might afford a projection room, billiards tables, and a pool and your house has an entertainment center, bumper pool, and whatever pool you can afford to set up in your back yard. In the city (though to be fair in the suburbs too) you can join a gym that has basketball courts, handball courts, and a sauna. At home you can have a hoop in the driveway, set up badminton in the back yard, and a jacuzzi put in to the master bath.
Rhymer, you mentioned the park, but a homeowner (ideally a cul de sac) can frolick and play right outside. It’s only really the difference in what extent your gilded cage encompasses. Apartment-dwellers outsource things and homeowners insulate activities.
I don’t think you’re different at all. I know a lot of people who live in cities proper and love their carless, urban lifestyle and would not give it up for all the privacy in the world.
At this point in our lives, my SO and I are going the stand alone homeownership route. It’s letting put in an inlaw apartment for my parents, host 8 overnight guests for Christmas, or have drop of the hat backyard bar-b-ques for 15.
But in 15 years, when my parents most likely will no longer need the apartment, when the nieces and nephews are having Christmas with their own kids, and when stairs and yardwork are harder to do, I could see us moving into a condo again. In addition to the lower maintenence, there is the joy of being able to clean out the fridge, turn out the lights, lock the door, and walk away for a 3 week vacation, without worrying about the house.
So we started in apartment/condos, and I can see us ending up back in one.
Extra, extra wide papers.
Well, just so there’s drinking, all is well.
I am a renter and intend to stay that way. For a long time I thought owning a single family home with a yard was the goal, but then I realized that I like renting.
Sometimes I am wistful over the fact that my son has never lived in a place where he could have a dog.
I like that whether there’s a plumbing issue or the garage door isn’t working or (insert your favorite type of house trouble) I have one number to call. The management company makes all the arrangements and meets workers so I don’t have to reschedule anything.
If my financial situation changes significantly I’d consider buying a condo or townhouse with a maintenance staff, because I do think it would be nice to pick out paint colors or choose the appliances I want, rather than just having whatever was cheapest for the landlord.
Does the fact that I’m a single mom of an only child factor into it? Perhaps, if we were a bigger group I’d feel differently. Our previous apartment did have two bathrooms, and that was nice, but it was in the wrong school zone.
I live in and own my current idea of a dream home - inner city, near but not on a busy, vibrant main street with quirky shops, fantastic restaurants, small specialty grocery stores and a farmers market on the weekends.
We have a two story terraced house on a shady street, with a dog park in walking distance and a huge city park with wetlands and wildlife nearby (also walking distance.) My house has a back garden, but it’s tiny and paved over - enough to have flowering vines, takes 10 minutes to sweep, big enough to hang out laundry.
The downstairs was built in the 20s, so even though I share walls with neighbours I have never once heard them, even with all the sound off of any device.
Love my house, love my neighbourhood! When we get too old to manage the stairs, we’re buying a flat in the city.
My favorite place ever was a 6th floor condo in the Chesapeake House, ocean side. We were in one of the 2 bedroom versions, but I would sort of like to b up on the 9th[?] floor, underneath the luxury versions that make a 5 foot overhang over the balcony of the level below. [It would screen direct summer sunlight and decrease the overall summer heating in the unit.] I like the assigned parking, the concierge, the location was comfortable - I liked the ocean view and being on the beach, though I can’t do much beach walking.
The units are all electrical [I would love gas burners on my range, but I can deal with electrical], each one has its own laundry, climate control, water heater [tanked, which I would change to tankless], cable/high speed internet and a garbage chute on each floor next to the elevators. If it were my preference, I would go for the 2 bedroom version - it is nice having a guest room or computer room.
My ideal living situation is driven by probabilities and biology.
Point 1: We have 5 senses, 4 of which can be controlled/limited by distance or choice. But we cannot “avert our ears” due to past evolutionary necessity. And sounds carry great distances.
Point 2: About 30-40% of people are inconsiderate assholes (my reckoning, yours may vary).
Apartment/condo life in my youth taught me one thing well. If I live in a dense housing arrangement, I ***will ***be subjected to some asshole’s music, stomping, honking, yelling or other need to make noise. As near as I can tell, this is a mathematical certainty. And as I see it, the American male seems to have a continually growing need to assert himself with excessive sound. Pipes on cars, insane bass units in vehicles or dwelling, motorcycles (don’t get me started), and a variety of other disturbances presumably (my wag) to fend off a growing feeling of emasculation.
My ideal living situation is pretty isolated, with a decent amount or acreage to act as a moat, to fend off the assholes and their noise. Have I achieved it? Not quite. I’ve got a good-sized 4 BR in the affluent* 'burbs, and bought a double lot to give myself as much peace as possible, but it’s not ideal. I have room for RV and boat and other toys, but still have to contend with the HOA. The upside is we’re about to send in the final payment on it, so at least it’s all mine.
*ime, income level inversely correlates with noise level.
I’m in my ideal now. Renting a small bungalow. I don’t live on top of or right next to anyone, and my cats and I have a yard and a porch to enjoy. But I don’t have to fix anything. I also live in a great spot where the housing is expensive. There aren’t a lot of properties in my price range and size preference that are also within less than a half a mile away from four grocery stores, a movie theater, tons of restaurants, and everything I else I enjoy by foot. If I bought property, I would have to give up on all of this. It just isn’t worth it to me.
Me. I’ve planted several trees in my yard. I could never life in a flat/unit/condo again. Did it for 18 months and hated every second of it.
I like having lawn, trees, shrubs etc. I like having a space where the dogs can roam around. I like sitting out on the back deck, looking up at the gum trees in the park next door. I like hanging a bird feeder full of sunflower seeds in a tree in the yard and watching the Rainbow Lorikeets come down for a feed. I like mowing the lawn and wandering round the yard in spring and summer with a hose in one hand and a beer in the other watering the garden and chillaxing.
I don’t get people who prefer to live in an elevated box with no yard.
I would say if you have to rent, renting a house is the best deal (in my opinion). You get the most space. One of the things I like the most about where I live is that it is in a big house, which is great for parties/events. If I still lived in my tiny in-law apartment there would be no way I would be able to host a graduation party for my wife and include all 90 guests. Having the backyard and square footage allows you to have a lot of people over, something that’s not really practical in an apartment. Our neighbors have parties as well from time to time, but we have a good relationship with them and nothing gets too rowdy or loud.
In the past, I had considered getting an apartment in a Transit Hub (since through my job public transit is FREE) but the problem, at least where I live is that you really pay a premium to live in an apartment near a light rail/train station. The difference in rent would mitigate money I’d save on gas, so there’d really be no benefit if I’m paying an extra $300 just to live somewhere I don’t need a car.
What we have now - a small ranch house with a pool, garage, a bit of a yard, and some flowers around.
Right now I’m working in the kitchen looking at the bird bath which is Grand Central Station this morning - it’s like the birds are lined up, taking turns getting drinks, taking a bath, etc. I have to refill the thing every morning and soon expect to have to do so twice a day.
Nope. I have friends who prefer that sort of arrangement. Not the majority, but some. Helps if you don’t have big dogs, and if you have enough green space nearby.
Houseboats of one sort or another, as exemplified by MacGyver and Duncan MacLeod.
My ideal would be a spacious house with high ceilings, on enough land that I can’t easily see my neighbors. I need a 3 car garage and a workshop/shed. Preferably somewhere in the mountains or high desert. Oh, and a really good internet connection.
Hmm… I wonder if I might be a bit claustrophobic.
We just bought a house which is fairly ideal for us, but it’s on a smaller yard than I like and we don’t have much of a view at all.
I would love to live in an apartment with a reasonably sized balcony. (For the cats enjoyment.)
The bigger the space, the more stuff you accumulate. Also, the more cleaning you have to do.
I would love to have no yard to maintain.
(As it is, I live in a condo townhome and don’t have to mow the lawn but there’s still raking and planting stuff and dealing with weeds, etc.)
I have a house. In fact, I moved in 10 years ago today. I never thought I’d want the responsibility (and it surprised the hell out of my friends when I told them) but I got fed up with rude neighbors and maintenance people coming in when I wasn’t there in my last apartment. And it turned out that my mortgage was cheaper than rent. That being the case, I don’t mind paying people to do repairs and yard work. Fortunately, the old man I bought the house from kept it well-maintained for 50 years so I haven’t had any major issues yet. It’s not my ideal house. I would love to have a screened-in porch and there is just no way spacewise to add one on. But I am very comfortable with it, it’s bright and airy with tall ceilings, hardwood floors and a huge picture window I love to look out. I can’t imagine living any other way now.