These days, buying a condo unit has become a normal occurrence. The past decade has seen the increase in the development and sale of the condominiums resulting in the growth of the property industry.
With this growth, increase in supply of units resulted in lower prices. Lower prices meant more people were able to afford the condos.
But, before you buy any condo unit, consider the following:
Living in condominiums is costly.
When in comes to value for money, condominiums do not offer the best value. The average price of a cramped 18-sq.m. studio-type condo unit is 2 million pesos. For 2 million pesos you can already buy a 50-sq.m. house and lot with a yard and your own walls: with condo units, your walls are shared with your neighbors.
You also pay extra premiums when you live in a condominium: higher water bills, association dues for the condominium building’s upkeep, and other miscellaneous fees that the condo home owners’ association will charge.
Condominiums are not the best investment.
With the looming collapse of the property boom, the promised ROI on your unit will probably take longer, or none at all. Many developers have made it their marketing pitch to clients that buying a condo will be a quick and large ROI. But as soon as the units are built and turned over, many pre-selling buyers are having a hard time selling their condos. As more and more condominium development are being built, there is an over abundance of units for sale. People are now being bombarded with tons of advertisements for condos and as with most buyers, the price is always a big consideration. So, the quick flip that most developers are promising becomes just that, a promise.
Another downside to buying condominium units is you don’t always get the good quality materials. Megaworld Corporation condominiums are great examples of this. The horror stories of their owner clients are well documented. Water damaged walls and ceiling, substandard workmanship and materials are just a few of the woes that besiege the owners.
Condo living is not great and healthy living.
Most developers like Megaworld Corporation excessively market their properties as offering the best of what life has to offer. This is farthest from the truth.
It has been proven that the higher the condominium is, the more damaging it is for the environment. What developers are doing is cramming thousands of people in a small area, with condo units that are so crammed and poorly ventilated. Some don’t even have windows for natural light to come in. Again, it has been proven that natural light is more beneficial to the productivity of a person.
Even if the condo offers a lot of amenities, when you do the math, a 25-meter pool will not be enough to the thousands of people that will be potential residents. The same goes with the gym and other amenities. This is why if you must buy a condo unit, you should go for mid-rise ones with few buildings, similar to the Oasis developments of Filinvest Land Inc.
Another not so popular side effect of living in condos, or crammed spaces, has to do with eyesight, especially that of kids.
As common knowledge in developed countries like Singapore, children who grew up in confined and crammed living areas develop astigmatism early on. The reason for this is that their eyes get used to focusing on near objects that their ability to focus on far objects becomes weakened.
Condominiums offer a false sense of privacy and security.
Although it has been popularly believed that condominiums offer privacy and security, this is not always the case.
Living in condominiums mean that you should be more conscious about your actions and activities because you and your neighbor are only separated by a 4-inch thick wall. Oftentimes, whatever you do that will make noise will be heard by your neighbors.
When it comes to security, there is no condominium property that is completely secured. Oftentimes it’s your neighbors that will steal from you. Since malicious people can easily monitor your activities, they can target you and break into your unit when they know you are not home. Even if there are CCTV cameras in place, it will not deter the commission of the crime, only review it.
Purchasing a condominium unit is a major decision that has to be deliberated thoroughly. Make sure that you are fully aware of the pros and cons of living in or investing on condominiums. Do your research and get feedback from actual owners not just sales agents and developers. A little effort can save you a lifetime of regret.
Megaworld Complaints 