7 Reasons Why Living in a Townhouse Works in the City

Good Day! Today we’re gonna talk about the 7 reasons why living in a townhouse works in the city.

Given the rise of property prices in the city could be quite difficult or maybe challenging to own a property which is around 500-1,000 sqm nowadays if you’re looking for that home with a huge garden or probably something with a pool and a large terrace it could be really really quite challenging or quite simply expensive nowadays because the property price have been going up, and there’s more developments in the city most especially in this day and age in the Philippines.

Now, if you dream of owning of property in the heart of the city where there’s also work and it’s also quite near life’s conveniences it could be quite challenging because the property price has been going fast and high in the past 5-8 years. If you’re looking to buy house here in the city, if you’re looking for a gated village it could be quite difficult because it’s very very expensive nowadays so most of the people options to live in the city will needs to be near to work, is a condominium. However, some of the space concerns of condominiums make it also unlikable for some people most especially when you have a large family. Say for example you have 3-5 kids it could be difficult to fit them in a small 80 square meter condo, simply might not even work, it’s gonna be like a horrible way to live life, right?

So, we don’t wanna do that as well. So, in same scenario if you are a prospective buyer and you wanna buy a property which has ample space, near the city and then you also wanna have a nice area to live in. Where would you position yourself in this kind of market? Enter the townhouse. Choosing a townhouse could be advantageous for you. If you wanna have more space and you wanna live relatively in the same area where you really prefer to be in. Today we’re gonna discuss the 7 advantages of owning a townhouse.

The first advantage is, it gives you the best of both worlds.

Owning a townhouse is like a midway choice between owning a full pledge home and having a small space like condominium, as far as owning a condominium is concern, we have all of the advantages when you also go to a townhouse. It’s relatively easier to maintain because versus a house, say for example, in a full pledge house with a garden and a pool you have to worry about pool maintenance, all of the the dirty windows of it’s raining, and you have to worry about so many lightbulbs, it could be in the hundreds for some of the homes that we’ve seen and also maintenance of the roof, the windows, and everything that involves in a huge house.

Whereas if it’s a townhouse, it’s relatively smaller so it’s should easier to maintain. It’s also relatively a semi lock-and-leave concept so you have the advantages of a condominium in that light. In the townhouse you have relatively smaller space which could be enough for you and the same time you can also have a roof garden which you can enjoy inside the townhouse. But definitely the townhouse can provide you some of the advantages of a normal condo, because of the space limitations because you were paying for a per square meter basis and versus a full pledge home which is quite also tedious to maintain.

The second advantage of owning a townhouse is, it provides you more space.

Relatively if you’re going to look at the same price range in a particular city or area not exactly the same development that would definitely be different. Normally if you have more space in the development it becomes more expensive. But relatively if you’re looking for options around the same vicinity which is acceptable for you, you’ll almost always usually find the townhouse which offers you more space with the same price range as a condominium relatively around the same area.

So, say for example, you find yourself buying in a particular budget, for this budget you may usually find 80-90sqm 2-bedroom apartment in that city. If you wanna purchase a condominium, you usually purchase it on a per square meter basis, so you usually have to do is to pay for each square meter’s space and usually the cuts depending on the developer are kind of small cause they are in the city and you are actually buying a prime piece of property.

Now, if you usually look around, you look further, you’ll usually find a townhouse around the same area which will offer you so much more space. If you are looking at the same price you will usually always find a townhouse around the similar area which offers you a much bigger floor area. Now, say for example, this particular townhouse for the same price versus the condominium that 80sqm, for this particular townhouse you can actually find almost double the space sometimes, around 180 or 200sqm and it will also usually almost come with a parking slot. Now that’s another advantage in buying townhomes, you don’t have to buy an additional parking slot.

So basically, it provides you more for your space needs not only that, when you own a townhouse you have an opportunity to actually create a roof deck or a roof garden so you also have that open space that you can enjoy in the heart of the city. In the condo, this can almost not happen or if it will happen this will usually be in the large terrace, which you just usually only commonly found penthouse or over a large three- or four-bedroom units which are really really, really expensive. But in the townhouse, you can have that opportunity and you can actually enjoy more space for your needs.

The third advantage of owning a townhouse in the Philippines is, they’re not as strict as a condominium.

Condominiums usually have rules so that everybody will live in a peaceful and orderly manner, but sometimes there are things that some condominiums were strict that a townhouse, doesn’t. For examples some condominiums will not allow pets and it’s important for some families to have pets and it’s a very nice thing to have in the family. Your children will learn how to be more responsible and they’re lovable and it’s an opportunity for you to show your love to them.

However, there are some condominiums which has restrictions as far as size of the pets is concerned. there are common areas that has to used for example, when they have to use the elevator, going to the lobby, in the hallways. Some condominium has this restriction on these things but in a townhouse normally this does not exist. So, it gives you a little bit more freedom for this kind of things.

Another example is when you have bigger items. Say for example you live in upper floor condominium and you usually love biking on the weekends. If you wanna bring down your bike you have to go to the service elevator so that you’ll have a bigger elevator or you have to go the elevator, the main one you have to bring your bike upward, cause otherwise it’s not gonna fit. So, it could be quite tedious for you and the people living around you, however if you are living in a townhouse you have that garage where you can put the bike and when you need to go, you just go.

Also, for example in the condominium they only have a specific provider as far as your cable is concern, your internet. If you actually own a townhome if you wanna hire some specific provider, for example you wanna have a satellite dish in your property, in some condos this is not allowed. But in the townhouse that should be okay, generally.

Repairs also, when it comes to repairs it could be quite difficult to secure all of these permits for a single repair inside the property. Whereas for a townhouse, all you have to do is go to the admin, sign the form, you go back, and you’re good. But when you’re actually living in condominium since you have to use the common areas, then you have to use the service elevators, and you have to be considered for the noise, and the drillings or the repairs that’s gonna happen throughout the day. You have to indicate the date and time and what materials will be bringing in.

So, whereas this is actually for the good of the community naturally and this are okay. But what we’re simply discussing is it could be quite tedious because we have to comply with all of these things, and of course we do have to comply. However, with a townhouse, all you have to do if fill out the forms, tell them the date that the workers are coming in and the equipment that they’re bringing in, and then that’s it. So, it’s relatively easier to facilitate compared to adhering with strict rules as far as owning a condominium is concerned.

So, there’s some sort of flexibility and sort of a freedom as far as your choices and your lifestyle is concerned. But all in all, this presents some advantages and disadvantages, pros and cons of some of these things.

The fourth advantage of living in the townhouse is, it gives you a sense of community.

In condominium you usually of course it depends on where you are sometimes, but they say is it’s a lock-and-leave concept, so people don’t really know each other so there’s no sense of community. Of course, this is entirely relative to who you are living with and sometimes there are also a community activity versus when you are living in a townhouse you actually also may have a sense of community in an area.

Did you know that there are townhouse community is, like the whole subdivision made of townhomes, they’re modern, they’re updated, they’re nice and they are also cutting edge, there are some developments like this in the Philippines right now? So, what I’m saying is you can actually have that opportunity where you actually own a townhouse and there’s a central amenity area and there are community activities that will happen there or in the simple daily chores of everyday life such as taking the garbage out for example, since the homes are actually you know side by side you get to see them, you get to say “Hi!” or you get to see somebody walking their dogs or you get to see somebody biking inside the village, and you their kids running around so you see that there’s also quite a community that could be form from this kinds of developments. Versus some types of real estate wherein mostly if it’s a lock-and-leave concept most of them are not there so rarely is community bonding formed in that sense.

Another advantage of a townhouse is, it’s not as expensive as owning a single detached house.

Single detached home means that a single home seated on a single property, a single lot.  A townhouse definitely is a row house that several homes seated on one lot. So, when you’re buy a single detached home, you’re also buying more materials for the property so definitely it will also occupy a bigger floor area and therefore more materials and also more expensive building cost.

Also, the furniture will have to be bigger and they will occupy more space definitely for you. You only need enough for your family, for your guest, right? So, what I’m simply saying here for this point is generally it’s not as expensive to buy, to design and to maintain more than a single detached home which could be advantageous for you if that’s only thing that you need in the city.

The sixth advantage of owning a townhouse is, generally lower maintenance dues.

If you’re owning a full pledge home or a property usually in a gated subdivision, we’re considering 500-1,000sqm sizes, your monthly dues or in some cases annual dues for the maintenance of the development will usually be multiplied based on the size. For example, if you are paying 75php per sqm and you own a property that is 1,000sqm as far as a single detached property is concerned that simply will cost you more cause it’s already 75,000php right? Whereas if you’re owning a townhome which is only a 100sqm that’s only 7,500php versus 75,000php right? So, that’s a huge huge world of difference.

So, we were able to compare a single detached home so if you are comparing if with a condominium say for example your condominium is a 150sqm and just for discussion sake, if your association due is 50php per sqm then your association dues for that month is 7,500php. As with the case of a townhouse your association due is normally only based on the lot area so the lot area is 75sqm for example for your townhouse and the floor area is roughly around 150sqm basically you have the same space as the condominium. So, it’s going to be multiplied only by 75 times 50 so that’s only 3,750php that a world of difference. It’s a 100% more if you’re paying for a condominium on a monthly basis versus half the price if you’re maintaining the same amount of living space if you are living in a townhouse. And this would be a world of difference if you are paying this on a monthly basis because this is going to accumulate, and you have to worry about this year and year and after year.

And you also even factored in a real estate property taxes on an annual basis. This is also based on the value of the property but that is a discussion for another time. Now, the main point here is generally the maintenance dues for a townhouse is also quite less compared to a condominium and a full pledge single detached home. But you get the space that you need.

The seventh and final advantage of owning a townhouse in the city is, you have an opportunity to own a prime land in the city.

As you know, land is a finite resource and as the population grows there usually is more demand for property that is built on land. Whether it is a condominium, a townhouse, or a single detached home usually whether or you’re renting or you’re buying, since the population is there, and the work is there, and the schools are there, there will usually always be a demand for these kinds of property and very rare most especially nowadays, you have an opportunity to buy prime land seated in a good area, so in this day and age it’s also becoming quite more difficult to own a property in the city.

And when you find a townhouse that’s available and as you know there’s so many condominiums in the city but very rare do you find the opportunity to own land. So, owning a townhouse provides you with this rare opportunity to actually own a landed property in the city. Which you can actually use and improve and there’s a flexibility to it and you can use it there’s so much floor area space for your living needs.

So, what did we learned today? Today we learned that there’s actually a good midway option versus owning a single detached home and owning a smaller condominium, you do have a townhouse as a midway option. It actually provides a very good midway ground for you to be able to have your space needs and still get the middle of it all! So, with that in mind I hope today’s topic was able to give you a better idea as far as the advantages of owning a townhouse is concerned and we look forward to seeing you again here.