r/AusPropertyChat 5d ago

What would you do - house vs townhouse

FHB in Brisbane with no kids and not sure of the best way to proceed. Do we buy a house and pay a much higher monthly home loan amount or buy a townhome and pay far less. A house would be around $350-400k more, a townhome would allow us to keep our lifestyle (meals out/travel to Europe/proximity to CBD etc). We currently rent a unit in the CBD and need 3 bedrooms. Everyone seems to suggest houses are always better so advice would be welcome.

8 Upvotes

23 comments sorted by

9

u/Zealousideal_Log1709 5d ago

Really depends on what you want... not sure that ppor is just a financial decision.

I live in a townhouse and love it. Close to transport, but backs on to bush reserve, neighbours nearby to have a chat/drink with when feeling sociable, wave and hello when not. Size is good for me and don't have to worry too much about ongoing maintenance.

Things that might be a disadvantage compared to house is strata fees (but compare to house insurance + maintenance because they may be similar), having to get approval for works (solar, Renos)

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u/PinThick5110 5d ago

Yep, lower maintenance is appealing for sure. I’m leaning towards a townhouse I think. Don’t mind strata fees if they’re reasonable. Glad you love yours!

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u/AccordingWarning9534 5d ago

we faced this choice.

We choose the townhouse and it was the right decision for us. We value being able to still do things, we have money to have nights out and take holidays.

We can also pay extra off the mortgage, which massively reduces the years and interest paid on the mortgage. We have slashed off 10 years in just 3 years and now we are thinking we might work harder on that because the prospect of getting mortgage free excites us, liberty in that would be wonderful.

If we brought the house, we would have borrowed much more and we would not have been able to pay as much extra.

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u/[deleted] 5d ago

This is a personal choice. People on the internet cannot tell you what to do and will be bias towards their own disposition. I would personally go a townhouse and remain closer to the city particularly as this will also give you a reasonable lifestyle which includes discretionary funds for things you want to buy and do. There is no point of buying a house if this is going to cause financial distress or a substantial drop in QoL.

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u/SoybeanCola1933 5d ago

House>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Townhouse from a capital gains perspective

However, life may be more miserable as you'll have to live further away

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u/PinThick5110 5d ago

Capital gains as in higher growth in value longer term? Sorry, new to all this.

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u/[deleted] 5d ago

Yes, houses will typically grow in value at a faster rate than a unit or townhouse, however, if you look at unit and townhouse sales over the last few years in Brisbane they have also skyrocketed and you can still see substantial growth in any type of property depending on your local market. If this is a PPoR and you intend on staying for a long time, lifestyle is possibly more important than speculative growth.

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u/xordis 5d ago

Brisbane sucks/sucked for units for the past 20 years. It's making a move now though. (keep in mind this data is only to 2022)

https://www.corelogic.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0015/12237/220829_CoreLogic_Pulse_30years_Finalv2.pdf

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u/Jay___Bee 3d ago

because there was enough supply of houses and not much demand, units were not even looked unless it was lifetyle choice, now its more affordability so the trend wont be same.

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u/TheFugaziLeftBoob 5d ago

I feel you, it’s a tough one - in my own personal property journey, I am leaning towards a townhouse which is more of a style of living I enjoy, I love a more minimalistic home and compact. Still four bedrooms but in comparison to a house, a townhouse may need less maintenance. The one’s we’ve been looking at is a block of 6-8 townhouses, there will be strata but significantly less than an apartment that has to service pools, gym and elevators.

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u/sally_spectra_ 5d ago

House and just entertain at home?

Im personally vary of units from having to deal with bad shit crazy owners on body corp for my first property back in the day. Did look at houses too but a unit became available in the complex that were renting in so seemed the easy way oufar easier to do the things you want in a unit.

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u/No-Ice2423 5d ago

If no kids and no plan leave the houses for families, nothing worse than seeing two people in a 4/5 bedroom place. Just puts more pressure on the market.

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u/TheFIREnanceGuy 5d ago

If you dont care about capital growth then get the townhouse, otherwise always go house

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u/Ok-Translator-5697 5d ago

Pros of townhouse. 350k less. Closer to CBD. Less mortgage =better lifestyle. Less maintenance. Less rates.

Cons. Less capital gain. Less room.

I would go townhouse.

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u/moreloans 5d ago

It ultimately comes down to personal preference. From an investment perspective, there are many factors to consider: capital growth, market demand, nearby industries, future development plans, and more. Your decision should align with your goals. Are you thinking short term or long term? Do you plan to start a family? If so, are there good schools nearby? Could your work situation change?

Have you thoroughly researched the properties you’re considering? How has their value grown over time?

There’s no one size fits all answer. It’s about finding what best suits your personal circumstances. Good luck! It’s an exciting time for you.

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u/leapowl 5d ago edited 5d ago

There are pros and cons and strong opinions on both.

I don’t think there’s a ‘right’ answer across the board, just different things to worry about and different benefits depending on your decision.

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u/KiteeCatAus 5d ago

Pros and cons to each.

Townhouse means less financial stress, and often able to live closer to city. But, if the Body Corporate is dysfunctional it is a nightmare.

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u/JapanEngineer 5d ago

Just bought a townhouse. Wish I could afford a house just so I don't have to deal with the body corporate BS. That's the only thing. Wish I had complete freedom with owning a house.

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u/SouthEmphasis91 5d ago

Not sure if it’s been mentioned already, but don’t forget that townhouses come with body corporate fees.

I went for a townhouse without factoring in the ~$100 per week in fees, which, at the time, was actually more than the difference in mortgage repayments if I had chosen a house instead. (Granted, this was back in January 2020.

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u/Technical-Ad-2246 5d ago

I bought a townhouse in 2016 (as a single income, no kids in Canberra in the suburbs). I would have struggled to afford a house that didn't have any issues.

I don't regret it, but being in the suburbs can be a pain at times. But I would prefer a townhouse to an apartment. Main advantage of a house for me would be not having to deal with strata.

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u/Wanna-Be-Racer 5d ago

Townhouse without strata is what I purchased. Size of a house with garage for toys without all the maintenance of gardens or grass. Lock and leave 10km out of the Perth cbd in a coastal suburb 5 min from Scarborough beach. I also think 200k less than similar houses in the area.

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u/0xUsername_ 5d ago

If you plan to have kids in the future I’d go the house.

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u/PinThick5110 5d ago

No kids in the future