The amount of space you need will change over time. Where you are in life, what are your goals, how much flexibility you need, where you’re located. These are all aspects that will determine whether apartment or house living better suits your needs.
I lived in an apartment until my early 40s. I grew up in an apartment. My marital home was an apartment. The first residence we lived in when relocating to Australia was an ‘apartment’ – it actually was a tiny first floor of a duplex building.
I was completely overwhelmed by the space of our first home. I couldn’t believe we survived so many years in apartment living! Although it was quick to acclimatise to the space, what was more challenging was dealing with the responsibility that came with owning a house. My wife and I were not experienced in home repairs, improvements, and gardening, and were “forcefully encouraged” to learn these skills in middle-age.
What’s funny is how quickly one can forget about the old ways of living. After being in a house for over 20 years, my wife and I cannot imagine living in an apartment. However, since my son has flown the coop, and my wife progresses towards retirement, it makes sense (on paper) to downsize and return to apartment living. However, the reality of this change is much harder to face after so many years of house living.
Which Dwelling Type Do Australians Prefer?
To me, the answer is a simple and unsurprising one. Detached, single-family homes. Almost three quarters of total approved residential construction is on detached homes. Apartments trail miserably at around 10-15% of total construction, which are then closely followed by semi-detached homes (i.e. townhouses).
This is emblematic of Australian living. This great nation has plenty of land. Hence, you can’t blame the majority of the population’s decision to spread out! This of course is not the case in parts of Asia, Europe and North America, whereby apartment living would command a much larger percentage of total residential dwellings. So the typical Australian’s living standards are very luxurious.
While the stats may overwhelmingly favour detached homes, your choice of where to live is a deeply personal one. Therefore, consider the following when choosing between apartment living and house living:
How Much Space Is Too Much?
It may seem obvious, but during my time selling homes, I don’t believe enough people addressed this question. The knee-jerk reaction is normally ‘expansion’. We feel compelled to move into larger homes, on bigger plots, without asking ourselves if we truly need that additional space.
My family and I have moved four times since arriving in Australia. The houses grew bigger with each move, however our family size didn’t increase in that time. Our basic needs and wants hadn’t really changed. We also weren’t anticipating many relatives or friends staying with us. So why did we keep moving into a larger home?
One explanation could be that we were subconsciously desperate to free ourselves from the shackles of small dwelling living, such that we overcompensated our space requirements. Failed poetic attempts aside, we never really stopped to assess our requirements and whether that aligns with our living space.
If you are currently feeling trapped or suffocated in your living space, reflect on what is making you feel that way, and more importantly, what you need to change so that you don’t feel that way. You may find that you need just one additional room to work or perhaps to relax. That might result in you upgrading from a studio to a one-bedroom with a study. This addresses your changing needs while avoiding a move to the extreme.
Having space can also be overrated. Remember that for every additional room you have in your home, that is one extra room that you will have to clean. Not to mention your maintenance and upkeep costs will exponentially increase in a house compared to an apartment. If you are like me and you abhor cleaning chores, seriously consider whether your living choices will cause more hassle than help.
How Much Privacy Do You Truly Need?
At first glance, this may be a silly question. Everyone values their privacy! However, what I’m suggesting is that privacy is not an absolute, but instead a spectrum. Privacy for a person can range from full seclusion to peaceful cohabitation. As you move from one end to the other, you certainly give up some aspects to privacy, but not so much that it makes your living conditions untenable.
For example, living in an apartment block requires you to live in close quarters to your neighbours. You might have neighbours on either side, to the front or back, or even above or below you. For some, this living arrangement may be a non-starter. However, millions of people agree to this social construct and live peaceful yet vibrant lifestyles.
Choosing to host large parties or play music to the early hours of the morning may create more problems in apartment living than house living. However, that doesn’t mean you are prohibited from hosting your friends over or loosening up once in a while. Further, if these activities are a much larger part of your daily life, then maybe a house might be a more appropriate option, for the benefit of yourself and your neighbours.
How Much Interest Do You Have In DIY/Maintenance Projects?
Owning a home is a lot of work, regardless of the dwelling type. Everything from your fixtures to your appliances will stop working or need repair at some point. The total cost to you will depend on your willingness to take the repairs into your own hands.
I was genuinely overwhelmed by the amount of work needed in our first house. In the absence of Youtube or other public information sources, I found the learning curve to be quite steep on some of the repair work needed. However with some perseverance (and no shortage of curse words), I slowly improved my household repair work.
If you don’t want to complete repairs yourself, but would like to keep your costs down, apartment living may make more sense. However, my friendly advice to you is to take the time to learn basic home repair skills, as call-out fees and other labour costs add up over time!
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Whether you decide on house living or apartment living, the main point is to fill that home with love, laughter and memories. I welcome you to leave a comment below on which dwelling type you prefer.
The content outlined above was written, edited and published by the Lost Realtor. The author has over 20 years or real estate sales and investing experience in the Australian property market. He has held senior positions in Australian building companies, including being the General Manager of the residential sales division of Collier Homes. His qualifications include a Bachelor of Commerce degree and a Graduate Diploma in Building and Construction Law.