Apartment living on the rise
"It's becoming a lifestyle choice, rather than a first step towards your dream home,'' said Karen Stiles http://www.hermebelt.com - hermes belt buckle , executive officer of the Owners Corporation Network, set up to help strata owners through the complexities of communal living.
"It's affordable, compared to your quarteracre block http://www.chanluwrapbracelet.com - chan luu beaded wrap bracelet ," Ms Stiles said http://www.vpj.co.jp/company/info.html - tiffany .
As many Sydney suburbs become mediumdensity http://www.2013sacsvanessabruno.com - vanessa bruno pas cher , apartments are attracting a new generation of owners: welloff retirees, young families and timepoor professionals keen to "lockup and leave" http://www.2013lvoutletjp.com - ルイビトン .
Historically, couples have upgraded to houses when they have their first child, but for Sue MacintoshDixon and her husband Gordon Dixon http://www.transxecute.com - tiffany uk , the arrival of son Jonathon wasn't going to end their love affair with apartment living.
The couple simply purchased a bigger apartment in the Wentworth Point development they had bought into months earlier.
"We love how low maintenance it is! Gordon and I are both busy with juggling work and family life http://www.office2007productkey.com - windows 7 professional product key , we don't have the time to clean a massive house,'' Ms MacintoshDixon said.
Sue Alexander surprised herself when she purchased into the new Setai at Narrabeen complex http://www.apexebookmanufacturing.com - true religion outlet online .
"I always said I'd never buy an apartment http://www.alexshand.com - lululemon . But we walked into this one, and it had everything we wanted. We decided to buy it.''
The former tennis great paid $2.3 million with her husband for a threebedroom unit opposite the beach
"We were going to build a new house, but it got so complex, we thought we'd left it a little late for our age.''
While the benefits of apartment living are obvious http://www.assorteddesignforman.com - beats by dre , there are plenty of pitfalls if you don't do your research http://www.chanluwraps.com - chan luu bracelets sale , Ms Stiles said.
"In other words http://www.vanessabrunosacfr.com - sac vanessa bruno , don't be distracted by beautiful brochures http://www.hermebelts.com. Communal living is not something that Australians are used to,'' she said. "It's not just a smaller house a bit higher up.''
When buying new http://www.massachipen.com - hermes scarf , it's better to pay a premium for a property by a reputable developer than be saddled with a defective building, she said.
In older buildings http://www.lvoutletjp2013.com - ビトン , a simple strata report can warn you of ongoing issues. For example, concrete cancer in older buildings by the beach can result in special levies for residents in the tens of thousands of dollars, she warned.Related：
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