Which would you prefer?

[Pollito916]

A townhouse in a larger suburb (pop. over 100,000) that is well known for it's top school district (among top 5 in the country) and appreciation value of homes, or a house in a small town (less than 10,000).

If it helps, here is some background. We are a young married couple, with no children, but plan to start a family in the next year or two. The townhouse is 2 beds, with a loft and finished basement. It is only a couple years old and in great shape, and a great location - close to work, shopping, train, etc. The house would be new construction, so we could choose 3-4 beds, and everything else. It is a little farther from work (but not much), and a very rural area, but the subdivision is new and full of young couples and families. One of my co-workers lives there and loves it.

I know that ultimately I have to make the decision, but I am so stuck right now I don't know what to do. And we have to be out of our apartment by the end of August, so I am running out of time and need to make a decision.

Thanks!

 

[tiggersmom2]

I would prefer the house.....and I also like small towns. But that is just me.

 

[Pop Daddy]

the townhouse in the populated area

 

[Poohnatic]

The house. The house. The house.

I've owned both, and the common wall can be a frustration sometimes. I loved my house outside a town with a population fo 2,000. Well, not so much the house, but the small town.

Suzanne

 

[Miller1412]

If this is a house you're planning to live in only for a short while...go for the investment. Buy in a good location and go for the equity. Just be careful in a town house that the neighboring townhouses aren't a lot of rentals. That can hurt your resale value. It is generally easier to resell a single family home than a townhouse. (Experience speaking here ).

 

[tubaman]

I would go with the house. You should make a poll

 

[Ava83]

You sound like you have the problem we had. We just sold our townhouse We went looking for a home in Naperville, decided against it (it was overpriced)(there is nothing else wrong with naperville-I mean no offense) and bought a lot in one town over and are building a home.

The school in our neighborhood is the best in the district, and the town has been growing in leaps and bounds. Its still growing right now but we believe it is growing in the right direction and think it will pay off for us in the end.

I vote house.


Peg

 

[ilovepcot]

House! Too many practicals reasons to even begin listing.

 

[Serena]

I don't want to share walls with any strangers. Nope, no way. Give me a house.

 

[Pollito916]

You sound like you have the problem we had. We just sold our townhouse We went looking for a home in Naperville, decided against it (it was overpriced) and bought a lot in one town over and are building a home.

The school in our neighborhood is the best in the district, and the town has been growing in leaps and bounds. Its still growing right now but we believe it is growing in the right direction and think it will pay off for us in the end.

I vote house.


Peg

We are in the same area! Do you mind me asking where you are building?

The townhouse is in Aurora, but has Naperville schools. The house is in Plano. I work in far west Aurora, off Orchard Rd, and DH works in Batavia.

 

[Pollito916]

I would go with the house. You should make a poll

Thanks for the advice. I think I will make a poll.

 

[Beth76]

How are the schools where the house is? I'm more inclined to go for the townhome if you think you'll be able to move after your children are born. A two bedroom townhome could work with one child, but anymore and you'll be cramped.

 

[Pam]

Small town living!

That's how I was raised, DH was raised and our two kids are getting the same upbringing!

 

[Ava83]

Plainfield, is where we are going. The north part of town. We had to stay on 55 my parents watch our little one and we have to be able to get there easy.

Plano is a growing community and as you know we are running out of land here in the west suburbs. I love it out that way.

Have you looked at Montgomery ,Oswego, Elburn, Sycamore or Decalb? The are off 88.

 

[pearlieq]

The townhouse is in Aurora, but has Naperville schools. The house is in Plano. I work in far west Aurora, off Orchard Rd, and DH works in Batavia.

I knew it! Howdy neighbor!!!

We're really close by and dealt with kind of the same issue. We wound up moving farther West for a bigger home. Honestly, it has its pros and cons. We love the house, we love the schools (we're Oswego 308, you'll probably be Plano 88), we like our neighbors and the character of our neighborhood. However, it's tough being in the boonies. The best restaurant within a reasonable distance is Chili's. Nearby shopping is limited. There isn't all that much to do--just a small movie theater, a couple of golf courses. Going pretty much anywhere (downtown, malls, cultural events) is a pretty long hike.

The upside though is that it slowly gets better. New schools are built, new development comes in. They're expanding the BNSF train line out to us next fall. They're building stores, they're building restaurants. We're discovering little small town hideaways.

The plus side of Plano is that the development is huge (if we're thinking of the same place), it will be very family/child centered, and that development will come. It sounds like you'd have a reasonable work commute, and with the amount of new development/young families you'd almost certain to get both new schools and very strong taxpayer support of those schools. I wouldn't worry too much about the quality of the education. I'm a proud product of District 204, where your townhouse is, but even though there were lots of bells & whistles, I still think you'd get a quality education out of the Plano schools.

A word about resale. You'd be able to sell the townhouse in a matter of days if you put it on the market after you bought it--you'd probably make a tidy profit. It might be a bit more of a challenge to sell the new house quickly if you wanted to--there's so much new construction that you're really going to be competing with builders for a few years if you want to sell the new house. Just something to keep in mind if you move often.

We built with Lakewood Homes, the same builder who is doing the big development in Plano. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me!

 

[lajones81]

We are in the same area! Do you mind me asking where you are building?

The townhouse is in Aurora, but has Naperville schools. The house is in Plano. I work in far west Aurora, off Orchard Rd, and DH works in Batavia.

If you want information about the school districts, just let me know. I can give you some information.

 

[PryncessChrysty]

We are in a similar situation in that we are a young, about to be married couple with no children. I would choose the townhouse as it fits your life right now, and will be a good starter home for a family. In about 5 years or so down the road, you'll be able to use the equity in your townhome to purchase a more family oriented home.

Good luck in making your decision!

 

[Pollito916]

I knew it! Howdy neighbor!!!

We're really close by and dealt with kind of the same issue. We wound up moving farther West for a bigger home. Honestly, it has its pros and cons. We love the house, we love the schools (we're Oswego 308, you'll probably be Plano 88), we like our neighbors and the character of our neighborhood. However, it's tough being in the boonies. The best restaurant within a reasonable distance is Chili's. Nearby shopping is limited. There isn't all that much to do--just a small movie theater, a couple of golf courses. Going pretty much anywhere (downtown, malls, cultural events) is a pretty long hike.

The upside though is that it slowly gets better. New schools are built, new development comes in. They're expanding the BNSF train line out to us next fall. They're building stores, they're building restaurants. We're discovering little small town hideaways.

The plus side of Plano is that the development is huge (if we're thinking of the same place), it will be very family/child centered, and that development will come. It sounds like you'd have a reasonable work commute, and with the amount of new development/young families you'd almost certain to get both new schools and very strong taxpayer support of those schools. I wouldn't worry too much about the quality of the education. I'm a proud product of District 204, where your townhouse is, but even though there were lots of bells & whistles, I still think you'd get a quality education out of the Plano schools.

A word about resale. You'd be able to sell the townhouse in a matter of days if you put it on the market after you bought it--you'd probably make a tidy profit. It might be a bit more of a challenge to sell the new house quickly if you wanted to--there's so much new construction that you're really going to be competing with builders for a few years if you want to sell the new house. Just something to keep in mind if you move often.

We built with Lakewood Homes, the same builder who is doing the big development in Plano. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me!

Thank you Pearlieq! That is exactly the type of information I have been looking for. I am also a product of 204 schools, and that is why I am inclined to stay there. The house is in Lakewood Springs, so you are right about that, too. I like the idea of living in that type of neighborhood.

I think the townhouse is better for us right now, and even better, my realtor called this morning and has the exact townhouse we have been looking for, before it officially goes on the market. We rushed to see it after work today, and loved it, so we put in a bid. Now we just have to wait, and see! When we have kids we'll think about a house again.

 

[MEG&MINNIE]

With lots of new building and new families moving in ,the school system will more than likely improve !The "new" residents in town will demand and expect a better school system for their children... just get involved by making sure the school district is doing their best for all the children. Set the standards high. With more young families moving in to the "small" town,the tax base will improve.

 

[pearlieq]

Glad to hear the townhouse worked out for you! Hope everything goes well with the bid! You can hardly go wrong with real estate in that area.

We built our first starter home not too far from WVHS down Eola. When we sold it to move out here it was only on the market for only a couple of weeks and we made about 35k on it in less than 2 years.

With the way people move around here, there will be plenty to choose from when you're ready for the house.

Always good to run into another 204 grad! WVHS '97 here!