Today, everyone is talking about fashionable and not so fashionable thingsa clear word "townhouse". This is a new term for the domestic real estate market. And not everyone knows what it is. Let's figure out what townhouses are. What kind of housing is it, how convenient and accessible is it, who is it intended for, and does it have its own advantages and disadvantages?
Historical background and overview
If you have watched the Harry Potter movies, thenYou can already imagine what these townhouses look like. Yew Alley, where Harry lived, was built up with just such houses. And Harry himself and his adopted family lived in a typical British townhouse. It was in Great Britain that they first appeared in the 19th century, and from there they migrated to other European countries and the United States. Active demand for this type of housing began in the middle of the 20th century. By the way, something similar was built in the USSR. The so-called Finnish houses: a private house for several owners. In many cities of the former Soviet Union, such Finnish houses still make up a decent part of the private residential sector. There is no exact data on the history of the emergence of townhouses. But according to one version, they appeared as "family houses". Instead of buying a new house for grown children and their families, parents simply made extensions to their house. It was both convenient and cheap. This is how townhouses appeared, which became a salvation for European cities with their shortage of land and its high cost. Today in the West these houses are very popular among the "middle class". Because they are relatively inexpensive, and also economical to operate. In our country (however, like everything new) they are gaining popularity very slowly. And one of the reasons for this is the incomprehensible format of housing.
Cottage or apartment?
Neither the first nor the second is suitable for a townhouse.definition. Because it is not your own house, but it is not an apartment in the usual sense of the word. It is two in one. Unusual, isn't it? It can be called both a city house (that is how the word is translated) and a country apartment. There is no official term "townhouse". In documents it is called an individual semi-detached house, and the housing in it is an apartment in an individual semi-detached house. As a rule, townhouses are residential complexes on a guarded territory and with their own infrastructure. Such complexes are built both within the city limits and not far from the city. Each owner of housing in a townhouse has their own small plot of land (here you can plant flowers, and arrange a playground or an alpine slide). In addition to the presence of a plot of land, it differs from an apartment by its larger area, an autonomous communications system, a separate entrance from the street, and several floors. Unlike a cottage, such a house has common walls with neighboring houses (i.e. it consists of blocks belonging to different owners) and a relatively small plot of land (from one to four hundred square meters). It differs from a country house in that it can be permanently resided in with a residence permit and the status of official housing. This type of housing can be registered as property both as an apartment and as a house.
Architecture and interior
Against the backdrop of our residential buildings, townhouses looksuch foreign guests: smart, neat and fashionable dandies. They have neither the pretentiousness of domestic cottages, nor the dull monotony of apartment buildings. These are most often two- or three-story buildings consisting of several sections (a townhouse of two sections is also called a duplex). Each section has a separate entrance from the street and its own adjacent territory for a front garden and an access road to the garage. Brick, monolithic brick and concrete blocks are most often used as building materials for townhouses. Wood is practically not used for the construction of such houses. These houses are also built using the Canadian "sandwich" technology (frame houses). A modern townhouse (from a conscientious developer) must have all the necessary communications (including the Internet and cable TV). A standard layout townhouse has a vertical character. The ground floor usually contains a garage for a car, a utility room with a heating boiler and a hallway. The upper floors contain living rooms (living rooms, bedrooms, offices), several bathrooms and a kitchen. Sometimes the layout involves placing the kitchen and living room on the ground floor. There may also be a more atypical townhouse: projects for such housing also include a basement, attic or veranda. These additional rooms usually house offices, billiard rooms, saunas, winter gardens or recreation rooms.
Advantages and disadvantages
First, about the advantages over an apartment orcottage. Firstly, it is worth noting its cost-effectiveness. This applies to both the purchase of a finished home and shared construction. Compared to individual construction, the construction of a townhouse is much cheaper (this includes centralized communications and the purchase of building materials). If you buy a finished home, then its cost in a townhouse is much lower than the price of a cottage. And even an apartment in the city center will often cost more than such a house. These houses are also economical in maintenance. Secondly (which is also important), the obvious advantage of a townhouse over an apartment is a homogeneous social environment. Usually, the interests, lifestyle, wealth and social status of all neighbors coincide (which does not happen in apartment buildings). And, unlike an apartment, it has a garage and a plot, and the living rooms in it are more spacious. And, thirdly, very often such houses are sold with a free layout. This means that their owner can fully decorate the housing to his taste and realize any design fantasies. There are few disadvantages to such housing, but they do exist. Compared to an apartment, it is more expensive to maintain (you will have to pay for heat and water according to the meters). And you can’t call it a full-fledged country house (compared to a cottage): the land plot is still too small. And, nevertheless, such “communal cottages” are becoming an increasingly popular type of housing. Why?
Question of preferences
The townhouse combines the comfort of a cityapartments, and all the joys of life in a large country house. Residential complexes from them are most often built near the city, surrounded by forests and near water bodies, where there is no noise from city transport, dust and smog. And built within the city limits, these houses become a kind of island of country life in a large metropolis or regional center. Life in a townhouse instead of an apartment is usually preferred by those who want to live in a spacious house with separate bathrooms, a garage and a plot of land. And instead of a cottage, it is chosen by those who want to combine the charm of life in the suburbs with the proximity of shops, schools, kindergartens and entertainment centers familiar to city dwellers. Therefore, a townhouse is a golden mean between a country house and a city apartment. And an economy class townhouse is generally an excellent solution if you want to move to a cottage and lack the funds to buy or build it. So, when choosing a new house or apartment, do not ignore such a new type of housing for us as a townhouse. Perhaps this is the option that suits you. We recommend reading:
