{"id":499,"date":"2013-11-06T14:25:32","date_gmt":"2013-11-06T14:25:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/?page_id=499"},"modified":"2015-03-26T15:19:25","modified_gmt":"2015-03-26T15:19:25","slug":"apartment-condos-for-sale-calgary","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/?page_id=499","title":{"rendered":"Apartment Condos For Sale Calgary"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here are all the Calgary Townhouses for Sale listed in Calgary priced less than $500,000.\u00a0Click if you are searching for Calgary Luxury Condos.<\/a>\u00a0This page shows all Quadrants of Calgary with condos < $500,000. If more than 500 Condos are displayed please refer to the individual quadrant pages to see the lesser priced Condos. Click to link down to – Living in a Condo: One persons perspective<\/a><\/p>\n

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Thanks For Viewing Apartment Condos For Sale Calgary<\/h4>\n

Real Estate Tips<\/h2>\n

Condos for Sale Calgary<\/h4>\n

Living in a Condo: One persons perspective, a great\u00a0Australian article, that makes sense in Calgary too !<\/h4>\n

Apartments are not just the domain of singles, young couples and downsizers they\u2019re also home to growing families, an increasing number of whom have no intention of \u201cupgrading\u201d to a house.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m raising my kids in a flat (or Apartment in Canada), as are many of my friends. But when our second child arrived the questions about when we were moving to a house came more often. The quarter acre block remains in the psyche of Australian families.<\/p>\n

Just this morning I bumped into one of my neighbour\u2019s visitors in the stairwell. When she saw my children she told me \u201cyou need a house!\u201d My neighbor immediately disagreed \u2013 she raised her now grown up son in her flat.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s always been more common to live in an apartment in Europe or Asia, the cultural \u201cnorm\u201d in Australia has been towards raising kids in houses.<\/p>\n

So what are the ups, downs and compromises of raising your family in an apartment? We spoke to four families about their experiences.<\/p>\n

Why live in a flat or Apartment?<\/h3>\n

Some families live in apartments to get a foot on the property ladder, some are shunning the suburban family home for an inner city lifestyle, some simply love apartments, and others are priced out of houses altogether.<\/p>\n

In my own case, we live in a flat because we couldn’t afford a house this close to the city. And a shorter work commute means more family time. Our spacious 1960s 3 bedder is bigger than many houses and the park opposite is our back yard.<\/p>\n

Kate Williams and her husband are in a similar situation. They both grew up in big houses with large backyards, but since leaving home have always lived in apartments, and are raising their three children aged 1, 3 and 4, in a 3 bedroom Sydney flat.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe bought our apartment when we were engaged to be married and had no children,\u201d Kate explains. \u201cThe main motivation was proximity to work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery time I have become pregnant people always say \u201cyou\u2019ll need to move into a house won\u2019t you?\u201d to which I have always replied \u2018Why?\u2019\u201d Kate says.<\/p>\n

Melissa Perry has a 20 year old daughter and they live together in a 2 bedroom flat. She also respite fosters a 7 year old girl who stays over once a month. Melissa is pragmatic about her reasons for living in an apartment, saying \u201cI live in a flat as I choose to live in the eastern suburbs of Sydney and that is all we can afford to rent\u201d.<\/p>\n

Cultural shift<\/h3>\n

Raising a family in a unit is certainly not new, but has been relatively uncommon in Australia because we simply don\u2019t have as many apartments.<\/p>\n

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics* the \u201caverage\u201d Australian lives in a freestanding house, and freestanding houses make up almost three quarters of private dwellings. The remaining homes include apartments, townhouses, terraces, semi detached houses, and other dwellings. But over the past 20 years high rise apartments (with more than 4 floors) have increased from 2% to 4% of the housing stock perhaps accounting for some of the increase in apartment living.<\/p>\n

While some immigrants are lured by Australia\u2019s larger spaces, perhaps the fact that many are accustomed to apartment living is also contributing to changing the Australian dream.<\/p>\n

Andrea Griffin grew up in an apartment in Germany, with her parents, brother and grandmother. \u201cMy brother and I used to share a bedroom (with bunk beds) for many years and loved it,\u201d Andrea says.<\/p>\n

Andrea now lives in a Sydney apartment with her partner and 11 month old son. \u201cPretty much everybody I know lives in a unit \u2013 and most of them have kids too\u201d.<\/p>\n

Like many Sydneysiders, Andrea has chosen location over space. \u201cI consider myself lucky that we are able to live in a 3 bedroom unit with a nice terrace at the back compared to some of my friends who are squeezing into a one bedroom unit!\u201d<\/p>\n

Annina Warner, another German ex-pat, grew up in a large five bedroom apartment in Berlin and now lives with her 3 year old daughter and husband in a Sydney apartment she loves.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are outside most of the time but we also love to have friends over for dinner and lots of playdates at our place,\u201d Annina says. \u201cRaising a child has nothing to do with where we live.\u201d<\/p>\n

The highs<\/h3>\n
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The View<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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The benefits of apartments are the same for everyone \u2013 low maintenance, easy, compact living \u2013 and they\u2019re often more affordable than houses.<\/p>\n

\u201cApartments are an affordable way to live in a nice suburb close to the city. Security is great too.\u201d Kate Williams says. Less cleaning, gardening and chores means Kate\u2019s weekends are freer for family time.<\/p>\n

\u201cGenerally people think we do very well in a small space,\u201d Kate says, \u201cBut often comments are along the lines of \u2018I don\u2019t know how you manage with no backyard\u2019 or \u2018how on earth do you manage your washing?\u2019 and people are surprised that all three children share a room\u201d.<\/p>\n

Melissa Perry says there are actually family benefits to living in a small space: \u201cIn an apartment there is a smaller living space so you have no choice but to be \u2018involved\u2019 in each other\u2019s lives. There is no bedroom for a kid to escape to for hours on end on a different level of the house,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

The lows<\/h3>\n

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Apartment living with a growing family is not without its small challenges. Heaving everyone and everything up the stairs, for instance, plus negotiating a shared laundry\/drying area with neighbours and protocols on who can use what, when. It is also harder to have pets in an apartment, and there\u2019s the all important issue of child safety with stairs, elevated windows and balconies, and the hazards of communal driveways.<\/p>\n

Depending on your space, everyday chores can become logistical feats. \u201cWe have a very small laundry (no balcony) and all washing needs to be dried inside the house. With a family of 5 there is always a lot of washing!\u201d Kate Williams says.<\/p>\n

Melissa Perry says she tends to entertain less than she\u2019d like due to the size of her apartment.<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing makes me happier than a house full of children, but it is often difficult when there is little room for them to all hang out and play without being on top of each other,\u201d Melissa says.<\/p>\n

Melissa says privacy is also difficult in a two bedroom flat, particularly with a teenager. Growing up, her daughter felt the squeeze on space as well: \u201cIn her teenage years she became more aware that she was the only one of her friends who lived in a flat, not a house. With that came peer pressure.\u201dnew apartment street scene<\/p>\n

The compromises<\/h3>\n

Do families love flat dwelling? Not always.<\/p>\n

An acquaintance of mine recently had her lease terminated because her three small kids disturbed the elderly neighbour in the flat downstairs. It\u2019s one extreme example, but apartment living means close proximity to neighbours and there is no doubt the kids will annoy the neighbours at some point \u2013 try keeping a boisterous 2 year old quiet when they wake up at 5am each morning. Controlled crying isn\u2019t an option when your neighbours are so close, neither are teenage parties.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a two-way street. The usual irritations of apartment living can be invasive on family life, like noise from neighbours, loud music and smoking on balconies.<\/p>\n

Do I worry about my kids growing up too much \u201cinside\u201d? Yes, of course, it\u2019s in stark contrast to everything I loved about my own childhood \u2013 running wild in the suburbs. We overcompensate by taking the kids outside rain, hail or shine to run around in local parks.<\/p>\n

Kate Williams agrees that is more difficult not having an outdoor space where kids can play unsupervised and do messy things. \u201cThe constant need to go on \u201coutings\u201d with small children and babies means a lot more effort than simply stepping outside in bare feet without needing to pack food and supervise constantly,\u201d Kate says.<\/p>\n

A changing Australian dream<\/h3>\n

What do the kids think? Well, home is where the heart is, according to Kate Williams. \u201cThe girls love their home and frequently say they hope we never move\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cOccasional house envy occurs but up until recently I have been very satisfied in our apartment. We are planning to move to Perth in a few years and we are certainly looking forward to having an extra room or two and a backyard. We may lament the extra cleaning and gardening though\u2026\u201d Kate says.<\/p>\n

Melissa Perry is more resigned. \u201cI often \u2013 or maybe even always \u2013 have house envy and would love to upgrade at some point, although this isn\u2019t a reality unless we want to move further afield\u201d.<\/p>\n

Regardless of whether the Australian dream is changing, town planners (as in Calgary) are pushing us towards higher density living. So as our housing stock in cities changes, and the cost of property continues to rise, raising a family in an apartment will only become more common with Apartment Condos for sale Calgary.<\/p>\n

If your looking for Luxury Condos for Sale Calgary Click here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here are all the Calgary Townhouses for Sale listed in Calgary priced less than $500,000.\u00a0Click if you are searching for Calgary Luxury Condos.\u00a0This page shows all Quadrants of Calgary with condos < $500,000. If more<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-499","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=499"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/499\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/auburnbaysetonhomes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}