5 Pros Of Living In A Flat | Propertylogy

5 Pros Of Living In A Flat

By on July 27, 2017

In the most recent couple of decades, there has been a small movement going on in the real estate industry.

People are slowly making flats a preferred choice of home.

While this movement is nothing to crow about and not significant enough to declare a shift in living habits, it is still a noteworthy macro trend that can have a huge impact on the industry in the long term.

One such reason of this happening is that on a per unit basis, developers find it cheaper to build them. Translating to high revenue and profits even with a lower price per square feet compared to houses.

For example, if a developer secures a waterfront piece of land, it makes total sense to maximize the the number units that can be sold on the development. This is why we always see multi-family buildings built on prime locations.

If you are considering moving into an apartment flat, here are some pros and cons to aid your decision.

Sometimes this is even not a choice. Maybe the only types of homes available in the area you want only have flats. But anyway, here are some pros that might not have crossed your mind.

1) Neighbors

I would be the first to agree that neighbors don’t all come in cheerful and happy packages. But for the most part, they are friendly and helpful in many ways.

With homes situated next to each other, very often with main doors just located within 12 feet away, neighbors can very often look out for each other.

This can be very useful when you are traveling or if there is no one home for an extended amount of time.

Even if you are not the best of friends with the neighbors, criminals would think twice before breaking into a flat when there are neighbors on both sides of the common corridor.

There are probably 101 ways that living in very close proximity with other households can be beneficial.

  • Helping to accept deliveries when no one’s home
  • Helping to watch your kid whose playing along the shared space
  • Warning you of hazards that they have encountered in the building
  • Watching your dog while you are traveling
  • You can even become best friends if you are lucky
  • and many more ways

It is really up to you to take advantage of having neighbors so close to home. Just remember to pay it forward.

2) Lower expenses than living in a landed house

Once in a while, you might get into a social situation where people living in houses give you that I’m-richer-than-you look when you disclose yourself living in a flat.

Don’t let that bother you.

There are various advantages of flats over houses.

One of which is common sense personal finance.

For example:

If you have never been a yard person, you no longer have to pay the freelancers to mow the lawn. You don’t even have to spend hundreds of dollars to buy your own mower. That is without mentioning the hours you might have to spend fixing it when it break down and the annoying storage space it takes up.

You also no longer have to hire the roofers to inspect, fix or replace a leaking roof. That is a household budget problem reserved exclusively for house owners.

Then you can throw that lingering fear of basement expenses altogether as there is no longer a basement to care for. No more mold removal expenses, no more fixing of cracks in case of foundation problems, and no more fears of moisture destroying the house from the basement up.

You can expect to be paying lesser utility bills as well. The power a flat uses is often peanuts compare to the energy a house eats up. Of course, this would also depend on the personal habits of the inhabitants.

As you can probably tell, there are many other expenses that do not apply to living in an apartment.

There’s no shame in refusing to pay for things you don’t want in the first place.

3) Security

Houses tend to be less secure than flats.

As mentioned previously, burglars would think twice before looting a place simply due to the proximity of observing neighbors.

But more than that, at 10 storeys high, the only opening a criminal can access a house is through the main door, windows, or the refuse chute.

And one mistake can mean death or a very painful and crippling fall.

This means to say that as long as you keep your windows and door closed, there is very little chance of forced entry without you or the neighbors noticing.

4) Better choices of location

Sure… there are flats built in remote areas for whatever odd reasons.

But for the most part, apartment buildings are built in locations with proximity to amenities.

Let’s put it this way.

Do you see residential houses or multi-family buildings in the heart of Manhattan?

I rest my case.

You don’t see house owners walking out of their houses and straight into shopping malls within a minute. But that is a common place for people living in flats in the city.

Because of the easy access to amenities and public transport, you might even find that there is no real need to keep a car. This goes back to lesser costs of living in apartment flat.

5) Availability of smaller spaces

If you live alone or only with your partner, there is really no need to live in a 2,000 square feet house with all the maintenance work to take on.

You could very well find that home sizes of of between 300 to 500 square feet are more than enough to live comfortably without feeling claustrophobic every time you wake up from bed.

And you are within walking distance to the subway station that takes you to work too.

You are not going to find these sizes for a house. There is a trend of the tiny house going about in recent years. But you won’t be able to find that in the city.

Space can be a luxury. But it can be an unwanted responsibility too.

Imagine all the extra housekeeping you would have to task yourself with when all you really need is a space to sleep in peace at night.



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