When looking for the perfect family home, it’s important to keep your options open before you buy. More specifically, think about the type of property you might want to buy. This piece will pit two properties against one another in a bid to see which is best. We’re looking at houses vs. apartments, and the battle begins right here:
Houses
We’ll start things off by looking at houses and how they can be great for your family. Houses are incredibly complex as the term is pretty much a blanket term for loads of different property types. There are so many variations of houses that you will see in the property market. There are detached houses, semi-detached, terraced, bungalows, townhouses, etc. Each one is different from the other, and then you can have different variations within each category. In the simplest terms possible, a house is a building that functions as a home for you and your family. It’s a building in its own right, and there aren’t multiple houses within the same property. This differs from apartments, as you’ll see later on.
Size + Space
One of the main benefits of a house is that you tend to get a lot of space with it. Even small houses can be considerably spacious, particularly when you consider all the extras that come with the property. Not only do you get the living space, but you also get things like a garden, garage, basement, and attic. Of course, not all houses come with this, but the potential is there for a house to have them, unlike an apartment. Houses can also be larger in the sense that they may have multiple stories. A two storey home is incredibly common, granting your family lots of space. Of course, the number of rooms depends on the house you’re looking at.
The key thing to note about houses is that the size doesn’t have to stay the same forever. When you buy a house, you take ownership of a property and can do whatever you like with it (as long as you get planning permission from your council). This means that you can potentially turn a one story house into a two story house. You can add an extension to your home and give it some extra rooms. You could even build a garage next to it or convert the attic into an extra bedroom. With a house, you have the potential to increase its size when you own it.
Location
Naturally, houses are located pretty much everywhere all over the country. But, when you analyze where most housing estates are, you’ll see that they’re normally in the same place with relation to the nearest city. Houses tend to be found in rural areas on the outskirts of towns/cities. You rarely see them bunched up together right in the city center. The closer you get to a town or city, the closer houses tend to get together too. What I mean by this is that if you ever see houses in a town or city, they will be terraced houses, and not detached/semi-detached ones. Detached houses are more likely to be found on the outskirts in little neighborhoods.
Price
It’s no secret that buying a house will be the largest purchase everyone makes in their life. They cost so much that you’ll probably need a mortgage to buy your first one. For many, this is a huge financial burden that they don’t like to bear. So, there’s the second option of renting a house. Does it cost much to rent a house? It depends on the type of house you’re looking at. If you want to rent a detached house, then you’re going to be paying a lot each month, which means your family will have some serious outgoings. If you want to rent something like a townhouse, then the costs will be much closer to those of an apartment.
Apartments
Now, we can shift our attention to apartments and see what they have to offer your family. First things first, what is an apartment? In a way, apartments are a property within a property – if that makes sense. They’re built in a building that’s owned by a property manager. Apartment buildings can be anything from a converted house to a specially designed building with loads of apartments on multiple floors.
Size + Space
Sizewise, apartments vary just like houses. However, they tend to only come with one floor. It’s rare that you will find an apartment for sale with two floors. There are some out there, but the majority of apartments are only one story. With that being said, you can get some spacious ones that include multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, as well as sizeable kitchens. So, don’t think that you’re restricted to a tiny place if your family lives in an apartment. Perhaps the main downside from a family perspective is that you don’t get a lot of the extras you can get with a house. The chances are you won’t have a garden, and even if you do, it will be shared with other residents. Some apartment buildings offer parking spaces or shared garages, but you don’t get a personal garage like you could with a house. Then, there’s the extra space you get at the top and tail of your house in the form of an attic/basement. Again, an apartment won’t have either of these, though most do come with storage closets to compensate for this. Regarding actual living space, you can get apartments that easily compete with homes. Regarding storage space, houses come out on top.
Location
If you compare the location of apartments and houses, there is a difference between the two. You will see far more apartments in cities than you will houses. If you’re lucky, you’ll see some terraced houses right close to the main center of a city. However, it’s common practice to see apartment buildings dotted around a busy city center. Likewise, you’re less likely to see apartments out on the outskirts of towns. Generally speaking, they tend to be located near busy areas, making them great if you and your partner both work in the city. It brings you closer to work and limits your transportation time to and from work. It should also bring you close to schools for your kids too.
Price
In general, an apartment can be way more affordable than a home. You will definitely find some for sale or to rent that are much cheaper than a house. Similarly, you may come across some that are more expensive. Price depends on a lot of things, mainly the location of each property and its size. With that being said, what if you looked at a house and apartment of similar sizes in the same location, which would be cheaper? More often than not, the apartment will work out as being much cheaper, particularly if you’re looking to buy a property rather than rent one.
Which Property Is Best For Your Family?
To round off this piece, it’s time for the million dollar question; which one is best for your family. There’s no conclusive answer here, it all depends on your family. If you have a small family and you need to live right by a city for work/school, then an apartment will suit you best. If you have a large family and want to raise your kids in a nice neighborhood, then there’s no question that a house is better. Figure out what you want from your family home, and you will be able to tell which option is the best for you.
Milo Senalle
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