Should I Buy A Penthouse?

The penthouse seems to be at the pinnacle of every city lovers dream. It is often the top floor of an apartment building and will be made into a much more lavish and luxury living space than any of the others below it. Just take a look at some of these top apartments for rent near miami for example! It is the main aspiration for many to eventually be able to afford to live in a penthouse apartment, but not too many of us manage it in our lifetimes.

But what’s the big deal about living in a penthouse? Today we are going to take a look at the pros and cons of living in a Penthouse apartment.

The Pros

The prestige

There is something that just screams sophistication and success about being able to say that you live in the penthouse suite. It is a joy which you will benefit from every time you step into the lift and press that PH button to get home.

Peace

The beauty about living in a penthouse suite compared to any old apartment is that you have the whole top floor to yourself, and because if this you have much more privacy than the other residents in your building. Plus, you have a great view of the city below and are further away from the noise of traffic below. It’s a win win.

Penthouse-only perks

Some of the greatest perks of living in a penthouse are ones which you won’t get anywhere else. You will often have floor to ceiling windows which bring in a huge amount of light as well as some stunning views over the city all through the day, you may get a private outdoor space to enjoy, and even higher ceilings than the rest of the apartment building.

Customization

With most apartments that you buy, it can be difficult to make any changes to the space. However when you buy a penthouse suite you have much more freedom when it comes to doing things in your living space. The ability to use your outdoor space in whatever way suits you is something which really sets it apart from the other living spaces available in an apartment block.

More stable market

Due to the demand for the penthouse apartments, they will always sell for more than the apartments below- usually a level of 5-10% more than others. And because if this, they are also at less risk of being affected by changes in the market.

The cons

The weather

Because you are living directly underneath the roof, you will be more susceptible to changes in the weather and temperature too. Depending in the state if the insulation you have in your roof, you might struggle with the apartment either being much colder or much hotter than the others in the building.

Maintaining outdoor space

If the reason that you want to live in an apartment rather than a house is that you don’t want the hassle of keeping your garden, then you might be a little shocked at the maintenance for your outdoor space. The best way to go is picking hardy shrubs which can survive through the winter and can handle harsh pruning in the spring. You will need to brush up on your skills a little bit!

Workers

When work is being carried out in the apartment building, you will likely have the issue of workmen coming in through the penthouse in order to access the roof and other parts of the building.

Property disputes

If you decide to buy a penthouse suite in a newly constructed building, you may end up involved in disputes over who owns which parts of the building. A lot of the time the main issue is the outdoor space, if it hasn’t been marked out properly there may be a few disputes on who owns that piece of land and these will need to be resolved before you make any changes to your property.

Added costs of renovating

If you come to a point when living in your penthouse and you decide that you would like a larger space to live, you can extend out or up onto your property. Of course, with you being on the top floor of a large building, the logistics of this can be difficult and therefore the cost of any renovation you decide to do will be high. You will also need to realise that just because you are a penthouse suite does not mean you have the automatic right to extend, you will still need to ask for permission from your local authority as well as the board at the building. If you do get the permission to renovate, it will be much more challenging than building on the ground, and will likely cause a lot of disruption to your home while the work is being carried out. You might even want to rent somewhere or stay with a friend while the work is being carried out to ensure that you can still go about your daily life with no disruptions.

Safety issues

The major disadvantage of living in the top part of a multi-story building comes when you think about an emergency. If you live on the top floor of a building when a fire breaks out or you have an accident, it will take you longer to escape and longer for the emergency services to get to you and help. Another issue you may want to think about is that at high altitude the phone reception is usually not as good, so this can be an issue if an emergency occurs.

Traffic

Living in the city is not without its merits: you are closer to work and will be able to avoid the highways to get to where you need to be, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t still traffic.

Overall, a penthouse can be an amazing place to live. You’ll feel like royalty living in an apartment at the top of the world, and you have the ultimate level of peace and privacy to live your life how you want to.