Living on a
“PH” (similar to a town house) has its pros and cons. Nonetheless, during the
last few years, they have become popular again, and the main reason is that
they don’t involve paying maintenance fees every month.
But that is
not all. The PHs, together with the duplexes, are seen as the possibility of
having one's own house, without the need of investing huge amounts of money.
Even though PHs can be more expensive than apartments, this will vary according
to its size and location. Moreover, currently, new types of medium town houses
are being built, so they can occupy less space, but at the same time, they are
practical, functional and comfortable (and cheaper).
For this reason,
due to the construction of these “smaller” PHs, many young families with kids
or couples choose this type of house when buying. Even tough buildings now
offer plenty of amenities which allow the owner or tenant to have a swimming
pool, a garden, parking space, etc. they all make the maintenance fees more
expensive and they means a big monthly sum to pay.
On the
other hand, when living in a town house, you don’t need an administrator, a
superintendent, maintenance fees, or other common expense. Should there be a
common area according to law, the co-owners will have to collect the money and
pay it all together. The difference with the apartment is that it is not a
monthly expense. Moreover, the infrastructure of the PHs is not as big as the tall
buildings with plenty of apartments, so there won’t be too many repairs to make
(at least not all the time).
The architect
Claudio Mazur, of “+UR Architecture” talked about the PHs' buyers and said that
they are usually final consumers instead of investors. This type of consumers
look for a reduction in their monthly expenses, and they also like having
"their own sidewalk; enjoying a back yard; a garden; a barbecue; a
terrace, and even a swimming pool; all this is considered by many as the
realization of their dreamed life."
A new type
of house is starting to go up in Buenos
Aires
