You can still have trees and plant life in low density housing. You don’t need green deserts everywhere.

Why not prefer apartments in your own town?

Noise. Neighbours being closer.

Nah. I’m sorry, but fuck apartments. I was spending $22k a year. Apartment complex did a crap job clearing snow in the winter. My neighbors were disgusting. I had to walk across the complex to get to my laundry room, where the machines rarely worked. The AC wall units were expensive to run, and did little to cool the apartment. The downstairs neighbor’s front door slammed every time they closed it. The people next door would vacuum for an hour every night starting at 10pm. I got a $45 fine for hanging a beach towel over a chair on my balcony.

I mean shit, they decided to renovate the apartment beneath me, and turned off my heat and left for the weekend in the middle of winter. They turned off my water multiple times with no notice making me late for work. And then the construction workers stole my package before heading home.

I bought a house. Every time I pay my mortgage I build equity in my home. I have my own laundry room. I may have to clear the snow myself, but I have plenty of space to store a snow blower and shovels - something I could never do before. I can buy bulk sized non perishables too and save money, because I have plenty of space to store it. I can sleep at night without being awoken by my neighbors fucking to the sounds of Bob Marley. I can hang up a towel to dry without being fined for it. And if I need to do work, I can determine when or if the water is being turned off.

Oh, and renewing my lease would have seen me paying almost as much in rent as my mortgage payment. For what?

A lot of people are pro-apartmemt before living in one, so here are some fun facts:

1. Apartments usually have a maintenance cost, that covers as little as possible while still costing a lot. You never really own the flat, the building company does.

2. You often have a communal garden; it’s looked after by the lowest bidding contractor. Not all flats have balconies, so you are unlikely to have your own.

3. Fear of fire and flooding - if someone else messes up, your stuff is toast/soaked. Insurance companies love that extra risk, it gives them an excuse to charge more.

4. No flat has good sound proofing - the baby screaming downstairs at 5am and the thunder of the morbidly obese person upstairs going to the bathroom at 1am will denote your new sleep schedule (i.e. disturbed)

5. I hope you’re in for deliveries - apartments have no safe spots to leave things.

6. You will not be able to afford a flat with the same floor space as a house. I’m sorry, welcome to your new coffin.

7. Good luck drying your laundry (spoiler, your living room is going to have a laundry rack).

8. Good luck owning a bike (it’s either the bike or your laundry, take your pick).

9. Vocal intimacy becomes a community event.

Living in a flat is a pile of little miseries grouped together.