Downtown condo vs suburb house

[sputnik]

Originally posted by rage2

Some people train their dogs to piss and crap inside lol!


I thought only lake communities have fees? And 400-500 for Auburn? That's nuts. I pay $100 a year at Arbour Lake, and they're profiting. Where does all that money go in Auburn?

$400 is for the cheap houses in Auburn Bay.

$800 if you have a path to the lake

$1200 if you are on the lake

[rage2]

That's still pretty high for the cheap houses. And new Brighton at $300? WTF do they spend the money on?

Maybe that's the new racket, home owner fees haha.

[ercchry]

$300 for a duplex...

yeah its nuts. but i guess with these newer areas there are no city parks, its all owned by the developer. so up keep is a bit higher i guess?

[NickGT]

Originally posted by rage2

Some people train their dogs to piss and crap inside lol!


I thought only lake communities have fees? And 400-500 for Auburn? That's nuts. I pay $100 a year at Arbour Lake, and they're profiting. Where does all that money go in Auburn?

Well last I saw, they were expanding the community center (which is already huge). If there's one thing about that community - it was very well taken care of. The beach, lake and boulevards always looked nice.

Another thing that is great since I moved - not having to walk 3 blocks to get my mail anymore. Now it's delivered to my door. I feel like a king.

[88CRX]

New Brighton is running some sort of community fee scam for sure haha. Best option is move to Copperfield (no fee's) and make friends with someone that lives in New Brighton.

[bspot]

Originally posted by rage2
It seems like everybody's biggest suburb complaint is commute time,

For me its a combination, but I'd say lifestyle is probably the biggest pro. Being able to walk down the street for a pint or a coffee or some ingredients for dinner is something I hated not having at my previous place. I know you can live in the suburbs and have this too, but usually it's by walking through a bunch of ugly ass parking lots.

Also being able to stumble home from 17th/Saddledome/Stephen ave after getting plastered on a nice night is a plus.

I really wanted a yard because I'm one of those losers that actually likes house/yard work for the most part, so I was ok with a smaller house so I could get a big yard and an oversized garage.

Like you say, it does make you question your car purchases. The amount of days per week I get to have fun driving has gone wayyyyy down. Too many 5-10 minute drives one local roads, not too many trips on faster roads besides hockey a couple times a week.

[schurchill39]

Originally posted by R-Audi
Depending on your budget you should be able to find a townhouse inner city as opposed to downtown and basically have the best of both. Shorter commute DT via bus/bike etc, more room and a decent downtown type lifestyle. A trailer will be tough... but its tough to have it all.

I'll take a look at Inglewood and Lakeview, those seem to be the two that everyone is talking about.

Originally posted by msommers
As crazy as this might sound, why not rent 6 months in one and 6 months in another. By that I mean, find a condo downtown and try that, then find a house down south and try that.

Seems so much easier to me than committing to one without knowing what the other is like.

Yea thats a possibility. I'm not sure how much I feel like moving every 6 months though.

Originally posted by mo_money2supe
Surprised I haven't come upon this thread earlier...

**SNIP***

I'll be talking with you in the near future. There are some town houses in that community that we went and looked at that we both really liked.

Originally posted by rage2
...

I hated the upkeep of the house, and ended up hiring people to do absolutely everything. Clean, shovel snow, cut grass, even pick up dog shit in the backyard.
...

This is one of her biggest issues. I have been trying to go overseas for work so if I ever get that opportunity she'd be left for a month at time taking care of the place. I'm okay with that though



The two places we have found downtown so far that we like are the Keynote condos and the Calla condos. Both have a relatively good location, are well within our budget if we just go with a one bedroom and have a good potential of becoming a rental property down the line. The Keynote condos have floor to ceiling windows which is a big attraction for us.

My only gripe is parking though. I'd either have to get rid of my pick up or pony up the $300-$400 a month for an impark parking stall and sell off my enclosed trailer after we've moved.

Sound's like I am about ready to give Jordan a call.

[ExtraSlow]

You could always put your trailer at one of those RV stroage yards. I store my trailer for $65 a month, I've heard the price ranges from $50 to $150 depending on location, 24h access etc.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by schurchill39


I'll take a look at Inglewood and Lakeview, those seem to be the two that everyone is talking about.

its a real challenge to get anything innercity that is more than just land value for under $400k... but it does happen. you just have to be ready to jump on it. still pissed we missed out on that place in bridgeland that had crazy views and faced a field... sold in 2 days for over asking

[ercchry]

you should get Jordan to get you the 6 months solds for the area, there is some nice houses that have been good deals. but out of what is currently available... i would say:

this one seems like a decent hybrid of suburb/downtown condo

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetail...Key=-687854186

this place is pretty awesome. huge lot, room for massive garage... little bit more though. but worth a lowball offer since its been sitting for a while

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetail...dKey=164207649

[SkiBum5.0]

The age old conundrum!

My vote goes to a inner city satellite community such as Inglewood or Bridgeland.

My first place in Cgy was a 3 level townhouse in Bridgeland with it's own attached garage (first level). 2 Bed, 2 Bath, with a den plus my own garage to wrench.

Might be right up against your max budget but both Inglewood and Bridgeland are going to benefit from the East Village development. It will also give you flexibility when/if kids come along as you can rent it out and maybe have some extra income.

Now in Killarny and I miss the 5 minute commute Bridgeland offered.

[schurchill39]

I think we are leaning more towards the downtown condo route for a couple of reasons. 1 being my commute, she seems pretty easy going with her having to commute and her exact office location is still up in the air so she could end up downtown too. 2 in two to four years it would be easier to turn a condo in a good location into a rental property than a house in another location.

We are still going to look at Inglewood and Bridgeland and I have been talking to Jordan a lot. He's been an excellent help thus far, hopefully I wil have something by mid feb.

[ercchry]

just make sure you tell him my place is NOT for sale

guy keeps trying to get me to sell