I used to live in an apartment then decided to buy a house for reasons such as wanting to have a yard / outdoor space (wanted to buy a big dog among others), leave city life for suburban life for peace & quiet, family-proof (place where I’d want hypothetical kids to grow up in), etc. After experiencing both I prefer house over apartment.
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I prefer an apartment because it’s less maintenance
…you guys have a choice?
I can’t share my walls with people. I lived in a townhouse once. It was awful. Train tracks 10’ out the back door, constantly smelling what my neighbors are cooking or smoking, and got my car broken into at least twice and the pile who did it bragged in my face about it.
Fucking people. What a bunch of bastards.
In descending order:
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House in the city
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Apartment in the city
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Cabin in the mountains
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Homeless in the city
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Homeless in the mountains
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Japanese-style coffin capsule
♾️. Anything in suburbia
Even countyside europe is better than suburbia, atleast there you have nature around you constantly!
And better public transit than suburbia, maybe even better than the city it’s near
Wow wow wow. Slow down. Country side is still shit
Nah I live in the countryside in England and public transport is shit. One bus every hour and a half if you’re lucky and it only goes to one place, you’re looking at 2 hours minimum to go to the next village over that’s about 2 miles away assuming all the busses you need show up on time.
It’s faster to walk most of the time but sometimes the fields that the footpaths go through have bulls in them so you can’t get past.
I mean I lived in the suburbs in the US and there was just zero.
So a terrible bus experience is better than literally no option.
Couldn’t walk anywhere, my road connected only to a 55 mph 4 land road with no sidewalk.
Couldn’t walk anywhere, my road connected only to a 55 mph 4 land road with no sidewalk.
As a Finn this is beyond perverse to me.
Like I want to ask questions like “can’t you just walk in the woods next to the road then” but then I realised what a brainfart that is as the continental US isn’t covered in >75% woods, unlike Finland, and the road might go along private property or something, and unline Finland, the US doesn’t have the freedom to roam laws we do.
I genuinely have a hard time understanding how one can’t walk somewhere, but I do believe you.
Yup, you highlighted exactly why.
I chose a random spot in a middle-of-nowhere state, Missouri
https://maps.app.goo.gl/GM2Pd1UFWZd5aMpU7?g_st=ac
I’d bet that’s a 55 mph Rd that people do 65 mph on 105kmh), no real shoulder, and private property touches the road. It’s Missouri so you’d actually maybe even get threatened or shot if you walk across the wrong person’s yard
No crossings, so you just have to run across the road
It’s like that. A lot of places.
My Nordic sensibilities are offended
In the land of the free you’re not free to move unless you’ve got a car. Like I’ve known that a long time but that’s a rather visceral example, thank you for increasing my understanding.
And better public transit than suburbia, maybe even better than the city it’s near
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House. I’ve accepted the fact that neighbors exist. But the further away they are, the better.
Agree. I moved from a post WWII suburb to a town with 112 people to 40 acres and only 1 neighbor. I can’t stand people and this is much better.
House.
I want to play music at a reasonable volume and not worry that I’m bothering someone. I also never want to hear my neighbors’ music.
It’s a sad fact that much of the problems people have with apartments is simply due to their low quality construction. It’s perfectly possible to build a sound-proof apartment.
I lived in a condo with thick concrete walls and floors but there’s only so much you can do about the doors and windows.
It wasn’t unbearably loud but I was gifted a piano and was mortified to learn my neighbors could hear me learning to play thanks to the vibrations
I wish I could learn to play the paint.
I swear this keyboard is getting worse and worse with its autocorrect
Piano*
Same is true for most houses though.
Not really when the windows in my house are nowhere near my neighbor’s. My condo had a central staircase and a rear walk-up that were both well-uses
I live in more modern suburban neighborhood where homes are close together and can hear the dude who lives four houses down on the same side of the street as me play his shitty rock music all night. Mainly, it’s the bass that carries since it’s a long wavelength but occasionally mids and highs as well.
We need to bring back the Jeffrey Dahmer era of apartment construction.
That…is quite the sentence!
I don’t think I have much of a preference on apartment or house per se, but I want to live somewhere I own. I’ve spent too much of my life pissing a portion of each paycheck into the wind just to subsidize a landlord, and there’s no value retention once my lease is up.
The only apartments that are for sale in my area are all astronomically expensive, catering to mainly wealthy foreign investors and their rich shithead kids who come here for college. Condos are a bit cheaper, but many of them are ancient, falling apart, tiny, and still going for $800,000+, so I’ve been looking at houses outside of the city because that’s all I can really afford.
Even if it’s nothing fancy, it’d be mine. I’d be taking care of it and get whatever nice things I want for me, and not for the leech who owns the property and invests only the bare minimum.
The pros and cons between either is entirely up to preference.
Apartment
Pros:
- Not having to worry too much about maintenance, as there are teams of maintenance people to call to have them handle problems.
- If you live small and do not see the point of a home, apartments are for you.
- Designated parking lots or areas
- Some places can be affordable
- Some cool things can be offered like pools, some community related things .etc
- You may have some leniency for when you’re billed for rent/utilities
The Depends:
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Bad or Good landowners determine how well you’re going to live in an apartment. There’s really no strong pro or con because it can vary. You could live in an apartment atmosphere and the landowner doesn’t give two shits about you or anyone else except themselves. But you could also live in an apartment atmosphere where the landowner does care about everyone.
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Bad or Good Tenants can also be a dealbreaker. Good tenants are the ones who leave you the hell alone and actually do not try breaking the lease agreements, they’re nice and can be approached without conflict. Bad tenants, everyone knows these types. Blasting music for all to hear, having barking/needy dogs that whine and whimper so you can hear them. Vandalizing the building or in general. Having maintenance tied up because they can’t stop being a problem. Having to have police called multiple times.
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Lease agreements can vary, some may make you feel like you’re more restricted than usual, like I know my apartment management don’t really like the idea of holes in walls, including ones made by pushpins. They sometimes will do random check arounds of the apartment. It really depends on the agreement.
Cons:
- Finding affordable apartments
- Finding apartments that have accessibility, like places to go, jobs to work at .etc
- Not enough tenant protections
- Sometimes you don’t really feel like you’re at home
- Options like finding different ISPs may be limited
House
Pros
- You are entitled to do with as you wish, no neighbors except neighborhoods, you have your own rules
- Your property applies to above
- You build equity
- Family expansion is far safer
Cons
- Good luck finding an affordable home
- You are subjected to higher rates/bills for utilities
- You are paying for EVERYTHING that happens either on the property or with the home
A lot of this is actually renting v buying.
- Not having to worry too much about maintenance, as there are teams of maintenance people to call to have them handle problems.
Landlords are useless. Every small repair is a year long fight to get them to do anything. .
- Designated parking lots or areas
Not a guarantee, and usually cost extra
- Some places can be affordable
Location dependent*
- Some cool things can be offered like pools, some community related things .etc
Also not a guarantee
- You may have some leniency for when you’re billed for rent/utilities
I’m confused by this one. You deal directly with the utility company either way, so what difference is there between apartment and house?
Location is the most iportant, meaning that the realistic option is appartment
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Can get fresh breakfast on the week-end with a 5 minutes walk, and do not need to plan a weekly grocery trip when I have everything down the stairs
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Do not need to drive home if I get a drink
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Have access to tons of activities within a reasonable distance, no matter whether I want to learn Korean, watch stand-up comedy or listen to underground heavy metal
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Kids can quickly get some autonomy compared to suburb where road are full of cars and parents need a car to go every where.
I think I lucked out because I live in the suburbs, but it’s a very walkable suburb. There are sidewalks, there is public transportation, and I can walk to the grocery store and back in under a mile.
There are parks nearby within walking distance, with sidewalks between my house and the park for kids to play in, and all of the main streets have bike lanes.
I live in America, this is not like European normal standard.
Oregon and Washington and most of California have a lot going for it as far as human amenities in suburban spaces.
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Depends on the location. House in a European-style suburb (grid streets, mixed-use zoning, good public transit) over apartment, but anything in an American-style suburb (long, winding streets, car-centric, Euclidean zoning) is an instant deal breaker.
I actually love apartments, but nice big ones. I love having a gym and pool that I don’t have to personally maintain, I love being up high and having a good view and a nice breeze on the balcony, and being walking distance to the metro. A detached house obviously beats the pants off a small, dark, poorly ventilated apartment with no amenities, which is probably why they cost 10X as much.
House because landlords are shittier than contractors on average. I want to own where I live and if someone is being a piece of shit I am free to fire them on the spot.
Also, I want space for my family and a garden.
Definitely house, preferably owned. I rented my previous apartment and had to run a lot of jobs through the landlord. Now, if something goes wrong or if I want to hang something with screws, I can just go ahead. And I love having a back yard. Front yard meh, just work, no joy.
Downside is that my house is not exactly well maintained and it was built in the sixties. So I’ll need to invest in some stuff in the next 5 to 10 years.
For me the downside is that it feels a bit empty at times. In hindsight I went a bit overboard, given it’s just girlfriend & me + pets. For that reason I like having my family & friends stay over often. Apartment felt more compact.
Ah well my house is not that big. It’s my wife and me and three cats but we have rather large furniture so it kinda feels cramped.
When in China I love a nice big apartment because that’s what most families have access to especially if you want to live downtown. Countryside houses are nice but I prefer being able to just go out and do what I want. That said, I recently was walking around the countryside with my child and it is quite nice. Only 5 drive to small city and 20 to big city.
In America I 100% prefer a big house. I’ve lived in all of the above and since most American cities suck imo I would prefer to have my own land and space. Really makes me miss living in eastern piedmont with beautiful mountain views every time you get up.
In Japan I would also want a house! Best of both worlds were you can have your own big house and live downtown. You might not have much of a yard though. My dream would be this would a backyard big enough to play with the family, grill, and hang laundry.
Is this about rent vs buy or freestanding house with yard vs unit in a high rise? Because you could rent a house and buy a condo but I know outside the us bought hirise things are often called apartments.
Second option. My apartment is in an apartment complex - so I guess what you’d call a high rise unit (one of those places with pool, gym, etc. for the residents). I was renting it while living there permanently but when I bought the house I was made an offer to buy it out (they calculated the price based on the amount of rent paid, property value, etc.) and I chose to take the offer so I also still have that apartment and use it quite often when I have work until late at night in the city and stuff.
well. you are living my dream. downtown condo with like a nice weekend getaway on a nice wooded rural area would be my dream. I degress though. Im a city boy. I like walking, and biking, and transit, and hate cars. I like having many options close to where I am at. I also like the little close community you get. Like my neighbor and I bring up each others packages when we are returning from some place so its right at the door. I also like the security like that. Everyone moves packages inside when they come even if they don’t move them further (unless to heavy :) Then also like if I go on vacation I worry less with my condo. Someone would have to break into the complex to then break into my place and would likely draw my neighbors attention if they take to much time or are using something that makes a lot of noise. When I was in a house leaving it for a week could guarantee a break in as it was easy as busting a window. That being said I do totally miss having a nice garden. I can grow things on the balcony but its more work for less. Could literally throw seeds down in spring and get stuff to harvest in fall. I mean theoretically. I put in some work and did prep the space more and water and stuff but im sure I could have been that lazy and get more than I can from a balcony. The reason the balcony is more work is largely watering. With containers you have to water more often and can’t over water. With a garden you put in a sprinkler and turn the tap after the sun goes down in the evening and you don’t want to do to little but if you over do it, as long as its not to much, its fine.
