Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

[cabanalane]

Most of us started out in an apartment. Then move up to a house. Then a bigger house, etc, etc. The reason has always been money.

If money was not an issue at all.

I'm just wondering if any of you prefer NOT to live in a single family type of house, and prefer something like an apartment or condo?

Tell me your reasons....

[Leo Lakio]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

I'm in a condo because it was affordable, I like the security features, and I don't want to maintain a lawn. I wish I had more room - but I'd just fill it up with more stuff.

[helen]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

If money wasn't an issue then a bigger apartment with laundry facilities inside the unit. As to why, don't want to maintain a lawn.

[1stwahine]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

I went from apartment to house.

Mahalo

Auntie Lynn

[Ron Whitfield]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

As long as it provides the basics of good security and peace and quiet, I wouldn't care. And if I can crank my amps and stereo without someone freaking then it's a chinken dinner winner!
Most people don't have the luxury of extra time to utilize and really enjoy thier home, using it basically to hole up in and recharge for the next day's craziness.

[Sharilyn]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

My husband is still able to maintain the lawn and do basic house repairs, but when we get older, we'll be considering condo living or maybe a townhouse. I don't mind condo living at all, except for one thing. We'll have to park the car in a parking garage/lot. I really don't like having to walk far to get to/from my car. Oh, and my husband will get separation anxiety, knowing he is so far away from his baby.

[LikaNui]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

Condo living may have a certain appeal, but the biggest drawback is that you're at the mercy of a Board Of Directors and whatever crazy House Rules they may decide to impose.
Example: one local condo has a rule limiting the size of the tenants front doormats. And they go around and measure them to make sure you're obeying the rule!
People who sit on condo boards quite often do so as an ego boost, to attempt to control other people's lives or to push their own personal agenda for whatever reasons. (For the past couple of years, TutuSue has written posts here about a nightmare of a condo Board.)
If you want privacy and you want to control your own environment, forget about a condo or townhouse.

[Leo Lakio]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

...or live in a smaller building, where you get to know your neighbors and you meet and talk with each other regularly, and make decisions as a "cooperative" group.

There are 13 units in our building, and we rented our condo for five years before buying it seven years ago. We have an official annual meeting - but we discuss and resolve issues informally throughout the year, as needed. We all know each other, we like each other - some of the folks here don't even lock their doors (can't say that I would go that far, however). As some of the residents have aged, we've all watched out for them and helped them get along with the challenges of their lives. (And when they had to move to care homes, we've gone to visit with them regularly.)

The only people not involved in the decision-making are the two or three renters we usually have (and we are limited in how many units can be rented out, rather than having owners as residents).

In our case - condo living works. Crazy house rules wouldn't fly around here. But boy, the stories Tutusue has told, and (I suspect) the stuff LikaNui has experienced before ... yeah, that madness exists far too often.

[matapule]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

Ahhhhh, matapule could write a book about this. For us the housing experience has been a "bell curve", from small to big, and back to small.

Matapule and uaifi started out in a 10' x 20' tongan fale, and we were happy. Upon return to the USA we moved into a succession of larger rental apartments while our family grew, and we were happy. The first single family residence that we owned was a house that matapule and his father-in-law built themselves, and we were happy. Then a larger house, and we were happy. And then another larger house as family grew larger, and we were happy. And then a grandiose house that was on the national register of historic houses that matapule remodeled, and we were happy. Then the family grew up and started moving out on their own (Blessed Be).........and we were VERY happy. And then a smaller condo as we downsized, and we were very, very happy. And now we live in a condo that is about the same size as out first apartment upon return to the USA, and we are ecstatic!

Each mode of residential living - rental apartment, single family residence, condominium - has its pros and cons, upsides and downsides, plusses and minuses. Matapule and uaifi have every confidence that wherever they live, they can make a happy home, even if it is a tent in the wilderness or on the good ship, ALOHA. If we could just get a slip at Ala Wai marina, ALOHA would be our Hawaiian home.

Happiness comes from attitude, not living environment.

[tutusue]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

[...](For the past couple of years, TutuSue has written posts here about a nightmare of a condo Board.)[...]

[...]But boy, the stories Tutusue has told, and (I suspect) the stuff LikaNui has experienced before ... yeah, that madness exists far too often.

I told very, very little on HT. While it may have seemed like more I was extremely careful because of potential lawsuits. I was much more verbal about a condo building in which I had no interest; the one with 2 broken elevators where my friends live. BTW, both elevators are working now...after 2 years! Hallelujah!

Anyway, the situation I was involved with extended beyond the board of directors and was, imo, fairly unique when it comes to condo buildings in general. Suffice it to say it was a mess from the top down. It took one helluva lot of work by many owners and close to a year to turn the situation around.

As far as preferring to live in a house or a condo/TH/apt.? At this stage of my life I much prefer community living. I feel safer than being alone in a home with lotsa doors and windows on a lot where I may or may not have neighbors within shouting distance. And, yes, the crazy lady who lived across the hall from me has moved! YAY!!! I like being able to close and lock one door and walk away from it for a few days or weeks. I like no exterior upkeep. I LOVE the trash chute! Of course there are downsides. I own in 2 large complexes...454 units and 666 units. Those are micro cities, fercrissake! And they're required by law to have their own 'governments' in place. And, like any other government, things can go awry...from corrupt 'politicians' to disrupted services to mentally disturbed 'citizens'. And everything in between. Resident parking can be a short walk to a multi-floor elevator ride away. Guest parking can be non-existent to inconvenient to plentiful.

I preferred single family home living when I had kids at home. With kids comes the requisite animals! It was great to have a yard and the convenience of a garage accessible from the house can't be overlooked.

[surlygirly]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

I've lived in:

1 dorm
1 trailor (yes, in Arkansas, and no- it wasn't mine!)
1 hotel room
2 townhouses
6 houses
9 apartments (1 efficiency, 4 1 bd's, 4 2bd's)

I started moving at 17 and I'm now 28, so I was old enough to pick all but two of my places of residence.

My favorite place was the 2nd townhouse. It was the perfect size (3 bed/2.5 bath), and we just fit into it comfortably. No yard work! I liked our house in Ewa a lot, but that may have just been more b/c of neighbors and location (beach, etc). And we didn't have to do yardwork there either. I like being able to call maintenance to fix things for free. And it's easier to clean a smaller space.

But I like our house now. It's just hard to keep up with. I have to go outside in the yard everytime I let the dogs out, so that's annoying. The HOA keeps fining us for stupid crap. We don't use 2 of the 4 bedrooms. I do LOVE our kitchen, though. And we could, theoretically, stay in this house forever. It's big enough to raise a kid in and have left over room, but not so big that we'd have to downsize after kid moved out. And I like not sharing a wall with anyone. So it's a toss-up.

[SusieMisajon]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

I prefer an isolated hovel at the top of a hill in a forest...but just close enough to town so that I can see humans when I feel like it.

[Honoruru]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

I prefer living in an apartment/condo in the city, primarily because I enjoy city life. I like being able to step out onto the sidewalk at any hour of the day and walk anywhere--to the corner store, the shopping mall, the bank, a movie theater, the beach or park, or to work. Or I could drive, if I want to.

If I were living in a house, I’d feel like a prisoner in that house. The only way to go anywhere would be to get in my car and drive. If I decide to go for a walk or a jog (say at 8 or 9 at night), I’d wake up the dogs and a chain reaction of barking would ensue. People would peek out from behind barred windows and wonder: Who is that crazy guy walking around the neighborhood? Should I call the cops? And then, of course, there’s yardwork, which I hate. If I lived in a house in the suburbs, I’d feel like a prisoner.

Of course, the fact that I’m single has a lot to do with my preference.

[LikaNui]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

I was much more verbal about a condo building in which I had no interest; the one with 2 broken elevators where my friends live. BTW, both elevators are working now...after 2 years! Hallelujah!

Hallelujah!!!


*The bulldog can rest in peace.*

[leashlaws]

Re: Does anyone prefer not to live in a house

Condo living may have a certain appeal, but the biggest drawback is that you're at the mercy of a Board Of Directors and whatever crazy House Rules they may decide to impose.
Example: one local condo has a rule limiting the size of the tenants front doormats. And they go around and measure them to make sure you're obeying the rule!
People who sit on condo boards quite often do so as an ego boost, to attempt to control other people's lives or to push their own personal agenda for whatever reasons. (For the past couple of years, TutuSue has written posts here about a nightmare of a condo Board.)
If you want privacy and you want to control your own environment, forget about a condo or townhouse.

Agree about HOA's.....Ours actually drives around at night and looks for light poles that are out and garbage cans left out after a certain time and then sends out postcards. They have this piddly piss ass rules they enforce but in the big picture there are many blatant violations of appearance rules and some rather dumpy looking places, non-conforming roofs and such and they do nothing about it. When I lived in Haiku Woods townhouses I was on the board mainly because I cared about the termite issues and wanted to be part of the decision making as it really affected my unit which had lots of
damage and swarming and repair work done.Ego had nothing to do with it!
It's certainly a thankless job!

I wouldn't give up living in my house for anything. I can really crank up the tunes and no one even notices, I've got great friends across the street and my view of the mountains is amazing. While it's a fairly large house for the 2 of us and M&K I clean by theme. One day I do all the bathrooms, then another day I do all the framed pictures and art, another day I vacuum the
whole place etc. etc. Somehow though it never looks completely.
clean!

What I really like about our area is there are no streetlights and it is really nice and dark in the evenings!