[RaceHorse]

Main reason for me choosing an apartment even though I can afford a villa is having children at growing age. First, in a Gated Villa hardly 40 to 50 houses will be there, and most of them have grown up children at an age group of 15yrs or more.

So lack of company for children, for playing and studying is big deterrent in choosing Villa's. More over these Villa communities are situated at far off locations from the city. Travelling and commuting time is big headache.

In my opinion Villa's are best suited for people above 50yrs age, because most of them have children around age group of 20 and seek more relaxed atmosphere. Just my opinion.

[Lazy Driver]

Originally Posted by Gansan

An apartment is always a compromise. Nothing really belongs to you. Someone else's floor is your roof, your floor is someone else's roof. Not even one wall belongs to you, though the space inside your apartment is yours! Everything else is common. Okay, bit of an exaggeration, but you get the idea. !

Thank you sir for opening my eyes through your nostalgic post. I am out in the market (passively) house hunting & was always confused between an independent house/gated villa or an apartment. The mind said an apartment now while the heart was in the favour of giving it some time, saving more & going for a villa. It has always been a dream to own a house with a small garden, some trees & some shrubs, I think I will give it some time & save for it. Nothing beats an independent house!

[Entsurgeon]

Pound for pound, you get a better location of home for given budget in case of apartments. You get better appreciation at far flung villas.

A house in india is still more of an emotional purchase.
From a petrolhead's point of view, a villa offers safe parking for our rides. It also allows us to tinker with them and get some elbow grease. And the personal favorite- the right kind of planning of a villa allows this at a much cheaper price point than a flat which need to be high end to offer the facility to park our bikes in our living room.

Need I say more?

[Akhileshmdp]

Wow!! Loved to see the thread on a topic which has been shuttling in my mind for quite some time and great to see some perspectives. Things seem to be a bit tilted towards the independent houses....but I guess only a bit.
So, I currently am based out of Pune,32 years of age, working in manufacturing firm, have my roots in Uttar Pradesh and have been thinking of buying a house. Now lets look at why I want to buy a house
1. Save taxes
2. Have a place to fall back upon( and may be a retirement home for me), which has the easy access to basic amenities(call internet, health etc); not expecting a gym, community center etc.
3. Have a ancestral home in interiors of East UP, but then basic amenities at least today are tough there

Now the options I considered

Apartment in Pune
Pros
-I can use it from day 1( assuming I buy ready to move)
-Other associated general advantages security, gym, park etc.

Cons
-High initial cash outlay, low appreciation
-Rising maintenance
-Hindrance to movement, either stay in the same or always have a extra management of tenants

Independent House in Lucknow(The city I was brought up, know it like the palm of my hand, 2 hrs from my native, home to my in-laws)
Pros
-Good appreciation, relatively less cash outlay(not looking for a premium locality)
-Independence to mold it according to my needs
-Would be a back-up, posing no hindrance to my movement
-Comparatively low on maintenance( compared to the 3-5K monthly maintenance charges)
- In a city with all basic amenities accessible

Cons
- Don't know when I will actually live in it, overall utilization would be low(unless my parents decide to live , which is kind of difficult)
- Double outlay of Rent+ House loan(EMIs here but would be 50-60% of a apartment option)

Considering this , I am inclined towards the independent house option, now a lot of that also has to do with my personal location considerations. Request fellow BHPians to be very frank in providing feedback if any.

[dicor]

I am assuming, apartment meaning here is flat in a gated community and individual house means house built in a residential plot but no gated community.

I almost know the pros and cons of both types but I won't talk about it here again as fellow members have already covered it.

IMHO To biggest advantage of gated community is

• Security
• Services (garbage disposal, common areas, ease of finding plumbers and electricians etc)
• Children get company as lot of similar age groups kids are there.

The biggest advantage of individual house is

• Flexibility of interior and exterior design. Period .

Let me give you a different perceptive of owning each.
I live in a apartment in Pune and my in laws live in grand 3800 sq foot individual house in the same city.

When COVID-19 attacked us, all the household services came to halt. Their two full time household helps quit to move back to their home town. Our household helps also have been stopped by management committee and rest has changed our views forever.

It is still manageable to clean 1000 sq ft apartment on your own but maintaining individual house (even if it's 2000 sq ft) will give you nightmares.


Someone in the earlier post said that parking is not an issue in the individual house, I would say it depends. If planned for future, we can manage it well. With the raised umber of car owners, I can see that already narrow streets are full of cars parked outside of house on the side of the roads.

[pradeepkc]

Me and wife have opposite views of Apartments vs Independent homes. When we moved back to Bangalore, we initially thought we will buy an apartment. We moved into an apartment on rent. After having lived here, I hate living in Apartments. My wife prefers apartments over independent houses.

Cons from my perspective
- Neighbours are too close. I had some friends over during our initial days, one of our neighbours complained to the security that we were talking too loudly. And this was during the day. I can also hear neighbours through windows and walls!
- parking is a mess. Wife has already scratched her car against a pillar
- my apartment owner pays 1/3 of the rent to maintainance, that's crazy expensive
- can't alter the apartment as much and any alteration or interior work would be noisy for Neighbours
- RWA seems to have it's hands full with all the politics

Wife's pros
- security! she can walk inside the apartment complex anytime she feels like, not being afraid about robbery or theft as much
- finding house help is easier
- some delivery services cater only to Apartments communities

After a lot of discussion and checking out a few Apartments near by, we decided to renovate my parents home who also live close by, by adding another floor above the existing house and bought a plot in a gated community close to the airport when we decide to move out in future. We could squeeze both in almost the same budget of buying an apartment near to where we live right now.

[charanreddy]

Been on both sides of the fence for a considerable amount of time and hence feel qualified to comment .

Apartment: Good only for a simple , non social, home to office and office to home lifestyle. I stayed in an apt in BTM 2 for about 6 yrs. was not married so didn’t care much about the uncles and aunties fussing about apartment associations , rules and happy to pay a bit extra and not worry so much . However small issues always exist, more so if your neighbours are a pain in the ass. Small issues made big regarding parking, small leakages etc.

Staying in an independent house ( can’t call it a Villa is it not very big) in a gated society near Bangalore in Rural district. Commute to office is 45 mins on average one way and I get to exercise the legs of my Nexon .

Life is much better, some issues with problematic neighbors still exist but the moment some one comes close to my privacy I shut them up..as the unit is individual and these folks have no right to get themselves involved.

I am not in favor of fully individual house in a city like Bangalore as security , water maintenance and small issues can take a lot of your time.

[bkc]

Hi,
Since, I'm a builder myself, I can think of these points from my perspective.

Apartments:

Pros
1) Security for old people, staying away from children.
2) No need to worry about electricity or water.
3) Play area for kids and more friends too.
4) Collective parties and fun times.
5) Club House benefits for family functions or parties.
6) Good balcony view in high rise apartments.
7) No need of your time and energy in building a house.
8) No need of plot hunting and waiting in some cases.
9) High maintenance charges.

Cons
1) Ownership? Not an established thing like individual house. All decisions need to be collective after the building structure is old.
2) Quality of construction not maintained by many. Most of them suffer from bathroom seepage issues right from start of possession.
3) Terrace floor is usually crappy with no or bad waterproofing and slopes. This results in seepage issues.
4) Don't expect good tile laying or workmanship in all apartments.
5) For individual shops, one need to take lift for 15-20 floors, walk till gate and then shop.
6) Less privacy.
7) Limited parking space.
8) Some apartments charge water on sharing basis. Some of them waste a lot and you need to pay for it.
9) Association meetings, less options for external modifications.
10) Possession is sometimes too long, even RERA can't change things much. Buyers are at the mercy of builders.

Individual Houses

Pros
1) You decide plan and built to suit.
2) Get as much parking as you wish.
3) More space for car DIYS and security for parts dismantled until you assemble back.
4) Small Shops are usually nearby (Bangalore scenario).
5) Privacy.
6) Appreciation of value, proper inheritance.
7) You pay for what you use, electricty or water.
8) No restriction for pets.
9) No maintenance charges.
10) Several old buildings are available with just the plot cost.

Cons
1) Expensive to buy and build.
2) Need to be careful in buying builder buildings, again suffer from seepage if not done properly, usually built fast with less curing.
3) Dealing with largely unorganised sector for buying plot and building.
4) Lot of patience and time needed, if you build it yourself.
5) Several mistakes committed by first time house owners, if they build it themselves. Labour contractors usually don't reveal about waterproofing, soil compaction ( many stuffs) to save their labour costs.
6) Olden times where entire family sit, cure, plan full time is all lost these days. People do not have time for all those things.

[hydraulicsteer]

I stay in a 400 sq yards independent, ancestral property in Ghaziabad. Have rented apartments for around 1 to 2 years in Bangalore and Pune when I shifted there for work. Here are some of my observations :

—————Apartments—————

Advantages-
Safety in a well managed gated society is unmatchable.

You don’t need to worry about maintaining the compound(common shared areas). Just pay the maintainance bills and they will do it for you.

Some societies have a good maintainance team which is just a phone call away to take care of any electrical, plumbing or asthetic repair your apartment needs.

Disadvantages:

You share all the walls and yet don’t own a brick which results in disputes. Example-If a neighbour is careless about repairing a water leakage in his kitchen you might end up with a damp wall, repainting bill and a lot of frustration.

Lacking flexibility towards future needs of extra living and parking spaces.

Sometimes you pay non justifiable maintenance charges.

No parking space for guests. That can be embarrassing for you as a host.

Construction quality is generally average or below average. The outer structure starts looking rickety quiet quickly.

————— Independent Houses—————

Disadvantages:

Security is a big concern.You can’t just lock and get away for a week holiday. Private security is expensive.

Managing maintainance is cumbersome. Have to do it all yourself.

Advantages:
You have full control over the construction quality. A well built structure with good quality material used can withstand decades and decades without looking old albeit maintained reasonably well. *My house just turned 50*

High flexibility towards future needs of living and parking space. Modify as the need arises.

Per sq. ft maintenance cost is equal or lesser to a apartment in a big gated society.

Since you generally don’t share too many walls with your neighbour you dont need to worry about what he does to and how he keeps his property.

A safe parking place for your beloved vehicle without worrying about notorious onlookers.

You can manage parking spot for a guest much more easily.

Attaching a pic of how i park my car.

[1.2TSI7DSG]

Individual House - By this I mean built on a fully independent plot and not the pseudo individual house complex kind of stuff

Pros:
1. You build it as per your needs and requirements and specs.
2. You have love attached to it. Very rarely I have seen someone sell the individual house
3. Private open area- you can have an outdoor area to chill and for dogs to gambol around and host a multitude of functions in house
4. Balconies and windows
5. Big Kitchens & dining areas
6. Garden
7. Quality as per your taste
8. Flexi Garage for your rides

Cons:
1. Maintenance & upkeep is tremendous
2. If there is an intrinsic flaw, it's yours forever
3. Costly Upgrades- Adding washing machine space, dishwasher space, water purifier place is costly and sticks out like a sore thumb (even good toilets in some instances)
4. Public amenities: Security, Borewell, water pipeline, electricity are your own problems so is the upkeep of inverters, DGs etc
5. Pests for being closer to the ground add to it a potential garden which becomes a magnet for nature

[am1m]

Am seeing a lot of posts with concerns about security when it comes to living in an individual house. Obviously the security in an apartment complex will be comprehensive (to the point of being irritating to those living there when they have visitors or deliveries, rather than being safe, IMHO), but am wondering, in a crowded city like Bangalore are individual houses really that unsafe?

Like I already posted earlier, I live in an individual house in a crowded neighborhood, and there's absolutely no way a stranger or a strange sound, especially at night will go unnoticed. Someone will certainly come outside to see what is going on. We've come out at night a couple of times after hearing a door slam in the neighbor's house and verified that everything was ok, it was just a family member returning late. We've left our place unoccupied for literally months at a time, up to 3 months at a stretch on more than a couple of occasions without any hassles whatsoever. We do have grills on each window and across all 3 entry doors.

While I was growing up though, most neighborhoods in Bangalore were certainly less densely populated, houses had more space in between them, often with a few empty plots in each area and the city itself used to shut down a lot earlier. During that time, we did have 2 attempted break-ins at night- once the thieves tried entering through a window, once they tried to break in to the car which was parked inside. But this was in the 90s.

With the crowded conditions these days, I'm really not worried about security at all. Just privacy and silence!

[harish.raghavan]

Hello,

The charm of individual house is something those who have experienced would vouch for it, though not saying the convenience of the apartment where some of the good relationship for the kids gets made due to proximity of the apartments.

However, if some residents are not in sync with the community living it may lead to unpleasant experiences, There are some residents who do not pay maintenance on time or not pay at all perhaps they may be going through tough times but no communication too. The committee would be at their wits end to ensure the payments to suppliers are met.

Ultimately the place would be peaceful if the co habitants or neighbours are co operative and friendly.

[rajeev k]

In Metros, living in Apartments have security, access and other related facility at an affordable cost compared to a villa, considering the location.
In smaller cities, for the same or at at a lesser cost one can buy a villa within a gated environment.
In Kerala for example, a three BR villa in a 200 Sq m plotcan be bought for around Rs 60 Lakh, even on the outskirts of Kochi..
Moving away from Kochi, constructing an independent house is affordable & advisable, though the commuting comfort and expenses are dearer.

[Sebring]

Hi, my mother-in-laws house got burgled in Bengaluru - a phone and laptop was taken. And my father's friend, who was stuck in Mysuru due to lockdown, returned home to a ransacked place. Everything worth of any value was gone. They've taken the CCTV cameras and recorder, even. This is my first hand report, others could have more stories to share. Crime has gone up greatly in these three months. In fact there is a circular (shared widely on Whatsapp, purportedly by the police) to be careful of your house and belongings this time around

Originally Posted by am1m

Am seeing a lot of posts with concerns about security when it comes to living in an individual house. Obviously the security in an apartment complex will be comprehensive (to the point of being irritating to those living there when they have visitors or deliveries, rather than being safe, IMHO), but am wondering, in a crowded city like Bangalore are individual houses really that unsafe?

[rohan_iitr]

Most of the points have already been covered. I just want to add one point to the discussion.

Most members have stated the pros and cons (in isolation) of living in apartment / independent house. But I feel it is not a fair comparison, because these apartments / houses would have been acquired at different point of time, in different cities/localities and at different price points.

If one compares an apartment and an independent house purchased in the same time frame, in the same city and purchased at similar prices, then it would be a totally different discussion.

For example, as on today, one can buy a 3BHK apartment from a reputed developer at around 1Cr in a good developed locality in Bangalore, probably very close to your workplace. What kind of an independent house can one purchase with the same money ?

Finally it depends on what one is looking at - quality of life or return on investment. For the same money, I feel an apartment will give better quality of life, whereas an independent house will probably give better return.

Although, with the stagnation in real estate industry after GST, demonetization and Covid crisis, I doubt whether buying real estate as an investment would be a wise decision.

Rohan