Ever done a 'garden' apartment?

[Penelope]

So we've been househunting for a couple of months. It's becoming clear that the cool vintage condos with the crown molding, etc, that I love are out of our price range because the assesments to keep older buildings in good repair are high. We live in one of those units now, but it's too small.

So unless we get lucky on a large 2br with some nook for an office for me, we might be best off with a new rehab development - the kind with less character but lower assesments. This would be dh's preference, in part because he's attracted to fancy kitchens. Not my aesthetic exactly, but I can be flexible.

And my question would be... (finally!)... in the development we looked at today there's a 'garden' (one step down/basement) unit, 3br so I could have office space, otherwise lovely, that we could afford. Or, a smaller 2br in the same development. Or some other option, who knows what. We can still look.

Any advice? Do garden units suck, or are they ok? This seemed to have decent light, and is genuinely nice... but I'm a little leery. Anyone BTDT?

[fluffernutter]

I don't know. The only one I've ever seen IRL was in a crappy apartment complex and it was so gross I wouldn't even look a the whole thing. I felt like I was in someone's not-quite-finished basement. Not much help, huh?

[liawbh]

My cousin lived in one, and they had really bad mold problems along the outer walls.

Also, when I was looking for housing in college, both of the ones I looked at had water marks somewhere.

So, at least in the Pacific NW, I think they're just too wet. Maybe it's better in other regions, tho'.

[darkstar]

We have friends that lived in a garden apartment. Their complaints were low cielings, no real windows and it flooded in teh end. But the buiding need some work like tuckpointing and the landlord was just a cheap jacka$$. If you like it...take it. Would you have to sign a year lease, possibly you could sign a month to month while you continued looking for another.Good luck!!

darkstar

[Penelope]

Oh, this does not sound good.

We'd be buying - it's a condo. We own now, we just own a small space.

Sigh...

[USAmma]

I had one in college and every time it rained too hard the rain came down the front stairs and flooded the place about 2 inches in water. The apt. manager sent someone to suck the water out of the carpets even before I had to call him, so he must have known it was a chronic problem. It wasn't a huge deal to me-- no kids yet, very cheap furniture that I just put up on bricks.

When it wasn't raining it was a great apt. Very private and it was $250/month. Can't beat that price!

Darshani

[UnschoolnMa]

In a dry climate I think it could be lovely. A space is what you make it, ya know? Barring any serious issues like structural problems etc I would say go for it. However, in the Northwest or some other wet area I would advise against it for sure. Good luck!

[mama ganoush]

we lived in one for years in dc and it sucked. we got a major rat infestation at one point-fairly common in dc but super easy in a basement. dp's allergies were unbearable, and it was always dark and dank. Plus, i didn't always enjoy people's feet walking by my head. and it could be very loud with cars, sirens, etc.

if it isn't in as urban an area as dc, and has more windows than our's, you certainly could make it cute. I saw plenty of cute ones there.

[Viriditas]

When I lived in London I rented a room in a garden apartment. It was lovely! Really light and not at all damp, lots of windows. I guess it just depends on the building. I think if you went and looked at the place you'd be able to tell right away if it was one of the dank/dingy ones or a nice one.

[famousmockngbrd]

"Garden Apartment"

So that's what they call it, eh? DH lived in one when he was in grad school and we used to call it The Burrow. It was seriously like he lived in a hole in the ground. But this was nasty grad student housing, I'm sure the one you are looking at is much nicer than his was!

[GoodWillHunter]

Not that I have any experience with this... but... I'm gonna say... NO. :LOL Based on the above opinions, I wouldn't do it.

[vanilla]

I live in one right now. It's super nice, top of the line everything....but the lack of natural lighting is becoming a serious concern of mine. We've been here for two years. No water problems, but everything was built very well. I've never had problems with being moody or anything, but this winter......I feel like I live in a cave. The artificial lighting erases any sense of daytime....I have little idea what the weather is like outside unless I stick my nose right up to a window and look out. We have big windows (egress) in the bedrooms...but I really wish they had been put in the main living area, it would make such a difference. So, with this experience, I would not recommend it. Our home is beautiful, but nothing can compensate for the LIGHT! Look up Seasonal affective disorder...I think that's something close to what I'm experiencing in my winter underground. Last winter I left a lot, took the kids out almost every day. This winter with three it has been too hard to do that, so I'm really noticing it. ANYWAYS, sorry to ramble! But I never thought LIGHT would be such a big deal. We are looking forward to spring! And moving in the fall!!!

[tinyshoes]

Just to drive home your point, vanilla, we lived in a north-facing top-floor (4th) apt for years, and that, too, is a wee bit dim. Seasonal affective disorder is for real, and I think my poor dh has it, livin' the corporate life in his windowless cube from dusk to dawn in the dark of winter.

Garden units make me tense because that's the unit that Scary Boogyman Criminal could easily enter without a ladder, y'know? Is there foot traffic outside your garden window? Would that be wierd, to look out at feet on the sidewalk (a la Cheers?)

Another angle, Penelope...there's a lovely serious of books, The Not So Big House by Sarah Susanka , and she is all about real living in less space, and when I read your mention of a nook for your office, I thought of Ms. Susanka. Maybe you can have your dh's 2BR cake and eat it, too.

I'll stop talkin' now, because I have not BTDT. Good luck with your move!

[Yooper]

I think they can be OK but I would have an inspector that specialzes in mold/water problems really check it out. Even before you call, check under the carpet in a closet, that is mold's favorite place to live. Everyone I know that has lived in garden units has had mold problems. And if anyone in your family has allergy issues, I would just skip it, it is not worth the risk. Also, get a light assessment. Either have the current owner or yourself spend the entire daylight hours in there and log how mich light you have at each one hour interval. Then compare it to your current living space. Sounds like a lot of work, but well worth it.

Yooper

[stafl]

if it's a "garden" apartment, does that mean you get the back yard to do what you want with? My father lived on the ground floor of a brownstone in Brooklyn, and had free reign over the back and front gardens, which for me would make it worth living in a basement.
But if it's just a dark, damp basement apartment... I don't think I'd do it unless lots of sunlight comes in the windows.

[mamalisa]

Dh and I lived in a garden for a few years. We had no trouble at all with it as far as dampness or light, it was a little dark, but we weren't home much so it didn't matter.

A funny story about someone "breaking" in though. The kid that lived upstairs was about 16, he used to go outside to smoke so his mom wouldn't know. One night about 2 am dh and I were sleeping and heard rustling outside our bedroom window. Dh jumps up, runs over to the window and yells something like, "get the hell out of here". It's the kid from upstairs. He scared the crap out of him. The next day dh is leaving the house and the kid stops him to apologize, he dropped his cigarette and he was trying to find it. Hopefully he stopped smoking :LOL

[Penelope]

We don't get any special privilages. Other than a much cheaper unit. :LOL

I'm still of two minds about it... I don't think mold would really be a problem, since it's a gut rehab by a developer with a good reputation. It's not like there would be hidden mold that had been festering, you know? Rats I had not considered! Yikes.

Mostly I'm wondering about light. We live on the third floor now and I do enjoy the amount of light we get, but I am going a little nuts because we're *so* short on space. That sounds whiney but we're a family of four in 900 sf and I'm working on my dissertation at home, so we have home-office needs in addition to our regular family needs. Even when ds moves out of our bed into dd's room, I think it will feel crowded. Our lr/dr are combined, and still rather small, so we really have four rooms plus a bathroom...

Anyway, I'm taking dh to look at this development tomorrow, so we'll see what he thinks. We also have friends that are moving, who I think would give us first dibs if we could meet their asking price, which they haven't yet set... but their kitchen needs work and I would want to paint. (I love them, but they have a maroon wall, a peach wall, a green bathroom, and off-white walls all visible from one place in their entryway! It's a little much for me.)

Housing decisions are so difficult for me!