Apt. or House

C

charlie MacZ

Registered User
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70
Hi,

I am nearly in a position to buy a place of my own. My ideal buy would be a 3 bed semi around the 300,000k mark in north county dublin. However there are not many new 3 bed semi's where i would like to buy and i'd prefer to buy new and not second hand. However there are alot of new 1 and 2 bed apts. in these areas.

My dilemma is that everyone keeps telling me not to buy an apt because apts. are impossible to sell again and you get screwed with management fees. Is this true about apts in general? are they hard to sell on? should i hold out for a 3 bed semi

Thanks.
 
Hold out for a house. I bought and sold an apartment in the past few years, and will never buy another one. Management fees, noisey floors, common areas and resale values all need to be thought about when buying an apartment
 
what is your objection to older houses? Of course its a personal choice but having owned both, older houses often come with a bigger garden and more solid (non paper) walls. Also unless you have kids or are renting out a room the amount of space devoted to bathroom/ensuite/downstairs wheelchair accessible big bathroom really compromises the size of the other rooms in a new build.
Also if you are a first time buyer you don't need to pay stamp duty on an older build.
 
argentina said:
what is your objection to older houses? Of course its a personal choice but having owned both, older houses often come with a bigger garden and more solid (non paper) walls. Also unless you have kids or are renting out a room the amount of space devoted to bathroom/ensuite/downstairs wheelchair accessible big bathroom really compromises the size of the other rooms in a new build.
Also if you are a first time buyer you don't need to pay stamp duty on an older build.
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+1 on that, you need only look at the whole pyrite saga in North Dublin to be nervous about buying any new build.
 
Buy a house- well worth it in the long run. Even if its a doer upper. You'll be sorry if you didnt, especially if you are a first time buyer.
 
argentina said:
what is your objection to older houses? Of course its a personal choice but having owned both, older houses often come with a bigger garden and more solid (non paper) walls
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+1 on this too. Unless it's for stamp duty reasons then don't understand the objection. Plenty of very nicely built older houses in north county Dublin. Better build quality and larger sites than some of the dodgy townhouses and duplexes built during the boom. By only limiting yourself to new houses in Dublin, you're severely reducing your choices. Most developers were only content to build apartments in Dublin for the last decade.
 
You are very likely to find yourself dealing with management companies/agents/fees on any new development of houses. These don't just apply to apartments.
 
Thanks for all reply's.

I am a first time buyer i dont have a family and i dont intend to rent a room. I guess i want my first place to be my own knowing that no one else lived there before me. Also the thought of renovating a 2nd hand home would do my head in i wouldn't know where to start! The feeling i get from you all is to hold off for a house rather than an apt. i must look into this pyrite saga to see what its all about back to do some more research any more thoughts welcome....
 
I would say house also. While I have never owned or lived in an apartment, I know people who have and would never go back to them.
Some brand new houses will need some work done on them too. Putting your own stamp on it so to speak and not all are turn key. There are I'm sure some lovely second hand houses that are going to be turn key and you will not need to do any renovating.
Keep saving and keep an eye on the market. Another thing to consider if you can wait is that Stamp duty could change in the budget.
 
i bought an apt earlier in the year. Apt living suits my lifestyle as im single and no family and no intention of having one. Also i bought in CC. You need to think a little bit ahead too. What you might want to do in the future. Houses are easier to sell on as there is a wider market while apt are for investors and single people. IMO in north county Dublin i would be going for a house.
 
I currently live in a 2 bed apt in Cork St. and have been living there for 3 years now, these apts are only 4 years old and have no complaints living there even tho it is known as a bad area i'm just sick of paying some other persons mortgage at this stage. As i said my budget would be about 300,000 and I nearly have the 8% deposit(24,000) saved so i'm itching to move out pretty soon... thanks
 
charlie MacZ said:
I currently live in a 2 bed apt in Cork St. and have been living there for 3 years now, these apts are only 4 years old and have no complaints living there even tho it is known as a bad area i'm just sick of paying some other persons mortgage at this stage. As i said my budget would be about 300,000 and I nearly have the 8% deposit(24,000) saved so i'm itching to move out pretty soon... thanks
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What about these http://www.daft.ie/searchnew_development.daft?id=10689

http://www.daft.ie/searchnew_development.daft?id=7015
 
I'll just give a few pros for an apartment
1) You are on a block insurance so this would be a fair part of the management fee.
2) You are not responsible for hall stairs and landing upkeep, electricity,
3) If the roof leaks in your house you bear the whole brunt of repair
4) In general, security may be better as a thief would have to be visible to more occupants on stairs as well as have to break through a few entrances.
 
one advantage of a second hand house over a new house (depending on how old) is the maturity of the area. There may be more facilities available locally and you can probably see before you move in who the neighbours are & what the neighbourhood is like!
 
Thanks. I'm keeping a close look at new developments on daft foxylady, I work in Ballsbridge so I would be hoping to live a little closer than Rush or Lusk just been checking train journeys it's 45min from Rush to Landsdowne station a little too long for my liking
 
You have to remember if you buy an apartment, anyone I know that lived in one had problems with noise from the neighbours. The problem was they could hear everything from the appartment above them and below them, never mind either side of them!!!
 
charlie MacZ said:
Thanks. I'm keeping a close look at new developments on daft foxylady, I work in Ballsbridge so I would be hoping to live a little closer than Rush or Lusk just been checking train journeys it's 45min from Rush to Landsdowne station a little too long for my liking
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This is where limiting yourself to new builds is going to be a problem. Most of the recent development closer to the city has been high-density apartments or prestige small developments of houses. There are large mixed developments like Belmayne and Coast. But peoples experiences seem mixed judging by posts here.

Finding a new build house within a comfortable commute of Ballsbridge for 300 could be difficult even in this market.
 
your 100% right there noel, there is little to nothing around at the moment within a comfortable commute to Ballsbridge, guess i'm gonna have to branch out or seriously start looking at 2nd hand homes
 
what about Clare Hall, houses are new enough, its near Howth Junction Dart and the houses are nice and modern;
but if you are dead set on a new build there are new Apartments in the Clare Hall too

[broken link removed]
 
You could try somehere like woodlawn or aulden grange in santry - houses are second hand but there are some lovely ones for sale up there with little or no work to be done
 
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