old house vs new townhouse

[nageov3t]

House in this case. I haven't seen more than a handful of town homes (that weren't pre-war) worth a shit.

there's a pre-war row house that I'm in love with (and cheap enough that I could put 20% down today), but sadly, no parking... and as cheap as it is, it needs a lot of work. the bones look to be in good condition, but I don't think I'd even be able to cook a hot pocket in that kitchen.

no parking is a killer. not something I ever want to have to deal with again after moving out of this city. (I *would* sacrifice on a place without parking, but only if it was a quiet neighborhood where most houses had driveways and street parking wouldn't be an issue)

This is highly dependent on the particular town. Maplewood, NJ, for example, has mostly houses near the train station. Montclair, Bloomfield and Glen Ridge are similar with the added benefit of buses into NYC.

I'm looking more central Jersey than north, which tends to see more condos/townhouses near downtown and houses on the outside (think, any of the towns along the Northeast Corridor train route)

 

[Thebobo]

I live in a newer townhouse and dont like it. Neighbors too close, they can hear you, you can hear them.
You need permission from everyone before you can do any kind of work.
HOA always nitpicking bullshit but they never deal with assholes on the street.

Small house with decent land is SO much better for a variety of reasons.

Also, 3 levels really suck when moving furniture, or when you get home late and are dead tired. Also really bad when you are stuck in bed for some reason and you've gotta go up and down stairs all the time just to eat or answer the door.

And it gets real hot upstairs. ~

 

[DrPizza]

I find remodeling projects to be very enjoyable. For the walls of a 12x16 room, it costs less than $250 for all the drywall, tape, mud, and paint.

Replacement windows are under $300, and a very easy diy project.

Now, excuse me while I head outside to remove all the shingles from the back half of my house. I'll buy the new shingles, felt paper, nails, etc. tomorrow morning. Total cost: about 75 cents per square foot.

 

[K1052]

there's a pre-war row house that I'm in love with (and cheap enough that I could put 20% down today), but sadly, no parking... and as cheap as it is, it needs a lot of work. the bones look to be in good condition, but I don't think I'd even be able to cook a hot pocket in that kitchen.

no parking is a killer. not something I ever want to have to deal with again after moving out of this city. (I *would* sacrifice on a place without parking, but only if it was a quiet neighborhood where most houses had driveways and street parking wouldn't be an issue)

Yes, that is often a trade off about parking for pre-war row homes. Though I'd probably scout out rental parking options within a few blocks. My old 1920s vintage high rise condo didn't have parking and I had to rent it out from a block away. If I didn't have to move to SF part time I would never have sold it.

The newer town homes I've been in are replete with cheap/shoddy work with a few exceptions of high end stuff that I could never afford. Basically all the corner cutting of new builds plus the problems of apartment living.

 

[blackdogdeek]

I'm looking more central Jersey than north, which tends to see more condos/townhouses near downtown and houses on the outside (think, any of the towns along the Northeast Corridor train route)

Ah ok, I saw Hudson County and assumed you'd be looking in Northern Jersey. I used to work in the Princeton, NJ area and would agree with your assessment.

 

[sdifox]

no way I am going for a townhouse. Wtf, all the disadvantage of a condo, none of the advantage of a house.

 

[BoberFett]

Right now I rent a townhome and wouldn't have it any other way. I don't want to deal with the hassles of ownership, I'd rather remain flexible and easily mobile, and don't want to deal with repairs or yard work. Where I live is a service right now, an operating expense, not a capital investment.

 

[MongGrel]

after living in a condo for 6 years and having my subwoofer in the closet the whole time, then putting a home theater in the basement of my first single family home, there is not a chance i would ever go back to shared-wall living unless i had to.

this, for me.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

And it gets real hot upstairs. ~

If it's hot, it means you either don't have adequate air returns, good enough insulation, you're losing volume due to leaks/lack of tape around duct junctions, unbalanced system or, too small a system. In most cases, I see 4 out of 5 problems.

 

[KeithTalent]

Right now I rent a townhome and wouldn't have it any other way. I don't want to deal with the hassles of ownership, I'd rather remain flexible and easily mobile, and don't want to deal with repairs or yard work. Where I live is a service right now, an operating expense, not a capital investment.

100% with you right now. Just focused on work and I am essentially living in a hotel. I pretty much don't have to think about anything which is exactly what I need at the moment.

KT

 

[fralexandr]

I prefer older houses to newer townhomes. There are some annoying things about old houses though.

in my opinion ~1970-1980 is about the sweet spot of properties.
1990+ properties have a lot more cheapo materials used.
1960- has a lot of older electrical & poor/nonexistent insulation. Homes pre 1960 are a lot more likely to be in poor shape
Even older homes have functional obsolescence such as fewer/no parking, 1 bathroom (pretty weird when in a 3-4 bedroom house, hah), steep staircases, weird layouts, small doorways, etc.

There are some townhomes/condos that have 0 shared walls/ceilings/floors. Still have HOAs to deal with, but YMMV on those. A good portion of HOAs cover some insurances, water, and/or trash, so not all of the fees go to "waste".

In the OPs characterizations between a 1920-1930 home and a new townhome, I might pick the townhome. If the 1920-1930 home was reasonably well taken care of, not too far away from work/grocerys (I don't like driving >1 hr one way for work), and had some form of off street parking (on street parking is ok if there are no restrictions, but some places need permits, some places have weird parking restrictions, some places are ALWAYS PACKED, etc), I'd likely take that. Pricing is usually related to condition of the property, though.

I'm guessing the likelihood of considering condos/townhomes is related to proximity to Los Angeles/New York/<insert expensive place here> . Since in lots of places you can get nice houses in nice areas for ~$100k.

 

[Mixolydian]

I would never buy a townhouse. Never.

This.

 

[nageov3t]

Ah ok, I saw Hudson County and assumed you'd be looking in Northern Jersey. I used to work in the Princeton, NJ area and would agree with your assessment.

nah... unless something radical changes (eg: I win the lottery and can afford a luxury condo along the waterfront) I'd just as soon GTFO of North Jersey (barring, say, finding the perfect house in a nice area like downtown Montclair)

I really miss living in Somerset, but that would be a bit of a bitch of a commute when I need to commute into Manhattan (and especially bad for my boyfriend, who commutes into Newark)

 

[Carson Dyle]

Buy the old 1920s house, scrape it, put up a brand new, modern house.

 

[notposting]

House we bought in the spring, while a solid little ranch, was built in '68.

Those mofo's were stoned as fuck.

(previous homeowner doing all sorts of dumbassery in regard to electrical and everything doesn't help either)

But I would take the older house -- then again, we have 2 young boys. We were quite happy in a townhouse for 5 years previously (in an apartment complex, mostly pre-kids).

 

[Grooveriding]

Old house has so much character vs new homes that are carbon copies of one another. Townhomes especially have the mass produced look to them. Townhouse also comes with all the annoyances of a condo; maintenance fees that always go up, having to get clearance to do any work etc.

Our home is about 80 years old. We moved into ours four years ago and the people we bought it from had all the plumbing and wiring completely redone from top to bottom. Since moving in we've had to have the insulation redone, which was done by previous owners, as well as a very expensive job on the foundation.

Find a good inspector to have a full and thorough going over of the old home if you go that way.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Old house has so much character vs new homes that are carbon copies of one another. Townhomes especially have the mass produced look to them. Townhouse also comes with all the annoyances of a condo; maintenance fees that always go up, having to get clearance to do any work etc.

Our home is about 80 years old. We moved into ours four years ago and the people we bought it from had all the plumbing and wiring completely redone from top to bottom. Since moving in we've had to have the insulation redone, which was done by previous owners, as well as a very expensive job on the foundation.

Find a good inspector to have a full and thorough going over of the old home if you go that way.

I also recommend finding a good inspector for a new home if you go that way. Never use the inspector recommended by the realtor. Worse, many seem to include it in the price these days.

 

[Imp]

Old house has so much character vs new homes that are carbon copies of one another. Townhomes especially have the mass produced look to them. Townhouse also comes with all the annoyances of a condo; maintenance fees that always go up, having to get clearance to do any work etc.

That and the garage isn't the centerpiece of the frontage.

 

[Greenman]

If you're not a DIY fellow, old homes can be very expensive. You either live with one ungrounded outlet per room, drafty windows and high utility bills, or you gut it and start over again. If you do gut it, you'll have to deal with lead based paint and asbestos.

No one can rehab an old house better, faster, or cheaper than me, and I wouldn't buy one if I couldn't turn a substantial profit on it the day I finished it.

 

[Greenman]

I will answer by stating that my house is 100 years old and I love it.

But you gutted yours. It's a new house in an old shell.

 

[Ns1]

But you gutted yours. It's a new house in an old shell.

aka the best kind

 

[olds]

Old house
I'd rather live in a cardboard box on the street than an apartment.

 

[Leyawiin]

Older house within a budget that would allow me the funds to totally renovate it. I hate sharing walls with neighbors.

Had some friends who lived in a nicer late 1800s rowhouse in a good neighborhood in Baltimore (yes, there are some). The thing was really solid and between the brick main wall and the plaster walls on either side you really couldn't hear the neighbors. That's the only way I'd share walls.

 

[alkemyst]

Depends if living attached to your neighbors is OK.

 

[Red Squirrel]

House hands down, at least it's your own property and you can do mostly what you want with it. You don't necessarily have to fix it right away, you can save up the money while living there.

A townhouse is like an apartment at the price of a house but with all the negatives of an apartment.