Is living in a condo considered a failure?

[Anonymous]

We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

[Anonymous]

No it is not a failure, but don't expect it to holds its value. Land is what drives appreciation, not the building. I personally would never want to live in a condo now that so many places have legalized marijuana. The smell is terrible and it is bad for your health.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I used to be like the others in your post who thought it was weird for people to live in a condo.

Now that I have become older, I realize that condos are really great They're typically located in much better locations, and there's a lot of amenities associated with them.

I agree and I lived in apartment situations most of my life. Having a home especially with a large outdoor space is a huge burden unless you are loaded to the point of outsourcing everything including outdoor cleaning of your private spaces, pool maintenance, if you have one, etc, not just landscaping of your front area. I have a hard time keeping up being able to enjoy outdoor spaces. I would be happy just with a small deck that's easy to clean, a balcony if apartment building.

There are downsides to the apartment living too, one is not having any private outdoor space, which I would hate to live without, and another one is noise from neighbors

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No it is not a failure, but don't expect it to holds its value. Land is what drives appreciation, not the building. I personally would never want to live in a condo now that so many places have legalized marijuana. The smell is terrible and it is bad for your health.

OP here. Not sure why this point is getting brought up. I'm aware of this. Our decision to buy a condo had nothing to do with its value as an investment. We just can't comfortable afford a SFH at its current price making the point moot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

DP. There are many families with children in our building. I've never had any issues whatsoever. How do people think families raise children in densly populated cities where detached homes are off limits or virtually non-existent?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in a city (not in the DMV).

Why not say the city?

It’s an anonymous forum.

OP here. I'd rather post as little personal information as possible if it's not relevant to the conversation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

DP. There are many families with children in our building. I've never had any issues whatsoever. How do people think families raise children in densly populated cities where detached homes are off limits or virtually non-existent?

It really depends on the level of (or lack of) soundproofing, which varies highly from one condo building to the next.

I’ve been in one building where you could barely hear the family with little kids in the next unit, and another where you would be kept awake all night from crying babies next door.

The hard part is it can be difficult to tell how good or bad the noise insulation is during a 30-minute tour of a condo. Building materials give you some hints (steel and concrete vs wood) but even that isn’t foolproof.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

DP. There are many families with children in our building. I've never had any issues whatsoever. How do people think families raise children in densly populated cities where detached homes are off limits or virtually non-existent?

High density cities have much lower fertility rates, so clearly it’s not conducive to raising children. Especially if you want more than 1 or 2 kids. There is a very strong negative correlation between density and total fertility rates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I used to be like the others in your post who thought it was weird for people to live in a condo.

Now that I have become older, I realize that condos are really great They're typically located in much better locations, and there's a lot of amenities associated with them.

Same here. My kids have fledged and now I'm looking forward to selling my SFH and getting a condo in an area where I can walk to the grocery store, library, restaurants, and more. While leaving the lawn, roof, and such to the condo association (at a reasonable condo fee, of course).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

DP. There are many families with children in our building. I've never had any issues whatsoever. How do people think families raise children in densly populated cities where detached homes are off limits or virtually non-existent?

High density cities have much lower fertility rates, so clearly it’s not conducive to raising children. Especially if you want more than 1 or 2 kids. There is a very strong negative correlation between density and total fertility rates.

And? Most condos are not big enough to have 3+ children, but this doesn't make condos inherently bad to raise children as DP suggests. A couple can raise a child in one as long as the child has its own room. I've lived in houses and condos that were full of families with children. I don't remember hearing them running around. Condos also tend to be close to playgrounds and parks so the lack of space is not really a problem.

[Anonymous]

Most people in North America grew up in a detached house and can't imagine living in anything less than a two-story one basement house. They confuse their desires to keep that lifestyle with need. As long as a building has proper soundproofing and enough rooms for privacy then a condo is a perfectly suitable dwelling to live in and to raise children if you're interested in that. A house makes it easier to host parties and might have a backyard so there's less need to visit the park or a playground like people living in condos do. However, the advantage that a house might have is often far outweighed by its high price and long distance from work as you have noticed.

Houses are amazing when you have the money, but I'd be skeptical of someone's judgement if they took a mortgage of hundreds of thousands of dollars that they can't comfortably pay just to have a bit more space. I suspect that the people making comments about your situation are completely out of touch about housing prices, or overpaid for a house and as a result have a lower standard of living which they want to validate by making you feel you were the one to make the wrong choices.

[Anonymous]

Who cares what other people think? Are other people living in the condo with you? Why do they get any say?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

DP. There are many families with children in our building. I've never had any issues whatsoever. How do people think families raise children in densly populated cities where detached homes are off limits or virtually non-existent?

High density cities have much lower fertility rates, so clearly it’s not conducive to raising children. Especially if you want more than 1 or 2 kids. There is a very strong negative correlation between density and total fertility rates.

Yikes. You think condos negatively impact fertility rates?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

DP. There are many families with children in our building. I've never had any issues whatsoever. How do people think families raise children in densly populated cities where detached homes are off limits or virtually non-existent?

High density cities have much lower fertility rates, so clearly it’s not conducive to raising children. Especially if you want more than 1 or 2 kids. There is a very strong negative correlation between density and total fertility rates.

Yikes. You think condos negatively impact fertility rates?

Seriously, this is a legitimate issue. I'm not saying that no condos should be built, but it absolutely does reduce fertility rates when government policies prioritize high density housing. Have you ever tried to drive a large (with space for 7 plus people and room for a bunch of groceries) in DC before? I have and it is utterly unworkable in many circumstances. Large cars that are suitable for families with 3+ kids cannot even fit in most parking garages and it is challenging to maneuver around the streets. It's unrealistic to expect a parent with (especially 3+ young kids) to go by themselves (with all of their kids) on the metro. Many parents do not feel like they can ensure their kids safety doing this and it is downright exhausting. The US TFR is already 1.62, which is 23% below the population replacement level (2.1 kids). Fertility rates are trending below replacement level almost everywhere and immigration will no longer be a sustainable strategy to maintain US population levels well before the end of this century. The US TFR is also declining by around 2% per year, and at this rate, the TFR will only be around 50% of population replacement levels 20 years from now. We need a variety of housing types, including low-density residential with sufficient room for parking, large vehicles, and fenced yards for kids to play in. US society will collapse if birth rates go too low and the consequences will be disastrous. The US needs to ensure continued availability of lower-density housing for people who want to have large families to prevent societal collapse from extremely low fertiilty rates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We lived in a condo with a young child in the Bethesda area. A neighbor actually pulled me aside outside and said something along the lines of, “Look around, people with children do not live here. This is not an appropriate place for children.”

I was floored, it was an incredibly rude and inappropriate comment, but it was also rather true.

Having someone live directly below us who complained about every jump or ball bounce was incredibly stressful. We all felt an enormous relief when we moved into a SFH and my child could run around without fear.

DP. There are many families with children in our building. I've never had any issues whatsoever. How do people think families raise children in densly populated cities where detached homes are off limits or virtually non-existent?

High density cities have much lower fertility rates, so clearly it’s not conducive to raising children. Especially if you want more than 1 or 2 kids. There is a very strong negative correlation between density and total fertility rates.

Yikes. You think condos negatively impact fertility rates?

Seriously, this is a legitimate issue. I'm not saying that no condos should be built, but it absolutely does reduce fertility rates when government policies prioritize high density housing. Have you ever tried to drive a large (with space for 7 plus people and room for a bunch of groceries) in DC before? I have and it is utterly unworkable in many circumstances. Large cars that are suitable for families with 3+ kids cannot even fit in most parking garages and it is challenging to maneuver around the streets. It's unrealistic to expect a parent with (especially 3+ young kids) to go by themselves (with all of their kids) on the metro. Many parents do not feel like they can ensure their kids safety doing this and it is downright exhausting. The US TFR is already 1.62, which is 23% below the population replacement level (2.1 kids). Fertility rates are trending below replacement level almost everywhere and immigration will no longer be a sustainable strategy to maintain US population levels well before the end of this century. The US TFR is also declining by around 2% per year, and at this rate, the TFR will only be around 50% of population replacement levels 20 years from now. We need a variety of housing types, including low-density residential with sufficient room for parking, large vehicles, and fenced yards for kids to play in. US society will collapse if birth rates go too low and the consequences will be disastrous. The US needs to ensure continued availability of lower-density housing for people who want to have large families to prevent societal collapse from extremely low fertiilty rates.

So what's the alternative? Urban sprawl where transportation and other services become inefficient?