2 Bdrm House or 3 Bdrm Townhouse?

my vote's always gonna be no shared walls. we lived in a duplex when i left my ex, which was a pretty nice place. i moved into a single wide trailer (i'm NOT trailer trash damn it!) anyway, EVERYONE kept asking me why i moved into a trailer and not an apartment. it's not a motorhome, you can't drive it (lol), but i didn't wanna SHARE WALLS! it feels like a home when you're in it, apartments never felt that way.
i'm wordy, sorry, my only point is - go w/the home! hands down! plus, HUGE bonuses for me would be having my mom & sister & my OWN yard! jeez! you're making me jealous! lol! good luck girl

House.

No shared walls... which you repeated, so it sounds important.
Also has hardwood floors, which you mentioned a carpet drives you nuts because of the stains.
And it has NO stairs, which you said you are tired of, stairs.
And you would have a garage.
And bigger 2nd bedroom.
Has a yard. Good for kids.
Again, and no shared walls!

AND this costs the same, as the Townhouse.

So, I vote: House.

By what I read, I think you seem to be happier living in the house. Your paragraph on the discription of the house is longer, and you don't have negative comments about it either. Sounds like you can adjust to the house without having the extra bedroom. If your kids sharing a room, isn't a big issue, then I say, go for the house. Husband can use garage as an office, kids get a yard ( always a plus! ) No stairs, hardwood floors, can stay up late, and maybe a dog is in your future. Oh and I have lived in a place where walls were shared and the owner lived there too. Can be a pain, depending on the mood / personality of the owner. Got nit picky at times. Felt like I was watching my back all the time. We later moved to a house :)

Personally... having lived in apts, townhomes, & houses... I would go with the house.

I also *strongly* prefer houses rented by a managment company. It's amazing how *ridiculous* landlords get about rental homes. It seems like 90% of them fall into 1 of 2 categories

- Never there when you need them (repairs, etc.)

- ALWAYS there, in your business, not following privacy / landlord-tenant laws (like you're some kind of country cousin that can't be trusted with the house, or to pay on time, or to tie your own shoes... that they're doing a *favor* to letting you stay in 'their' house, rather than a tenant that they've rented the house to. I've rented houses for more than 20 years, never paid late once, never not gotten back my entire deposit -even if I had to fight 2 times with idiots the courts agreed, the house was in stellar condition when we left- but I've had to deal with serious wackjobs. My inlaws are having to deal with one right now... who starts showing up IN their house -letting himself in- on a daily basis demanding rent every 2 weeks. So wrong, on so many levels. ESP in this climate where so many people have had to move out of their homes and put them up for rent, there are just waaaaaaaay more people who are emotionally invested in the house & don't know what they're doing than usual). Renting a house is JUST like renting an apartment, but many landlords don't see it that way.

I would NOT get a pet until you've lived in it for at least a year. Getting a pet means that when it IS time to move... your options become quite limited.

Having done the apt and townhome living and loathed it and owning our own home now I vote for house.
I had my share of the most horrible attached neighbors in those early years, the loud music during sex people, the abusive husband and their 2 kids who would scream in terror(yes, reported to police numerous times by numerous neighbors but she kept denying it when police arrived and he wasn't arrested! They were evicted finally but that's a long story). I always worried about walking to loudly when upstairs, especially when working late nights.
Don't miss a moment of that!
A little space is worth getting rid of all of that IMO. They can play outside, a garage is a huge plus.

Yesterday morning my (townhouse) neighbors had a big argument on our shared stairwell. This morning they had another shouting match in their downstairs powder room. I heard the toilet lid slam shut (maybe the argument was about leaving the toilet seat open...?) Oh, and the second hand smoke...Yuck! The chicken wing and tissue that sat in the hallway for a week because I wasn't picking up their mess.
TAKE THE HOUSE!!!
I wish I could move back into a house but I'm stuck with an FHA loan for now...

I have lived in apartments for the last few yrs and we finally found a house to rent and its so great! I would choose a house n e day!

My inclination is to say the house, especially if the kids are young enough that they can continue share a room for a few more years. Just make sure you are thinking about all the additional costs you'll have to incur with the house such as lawn care and utilities, gas to drive the stores, etc.

The house the house the house :)
We lived in our 2 bed apartment (big and with a view) for 15 years, the last 4 years with my daughter. We never heard complaints as far as noise, but I always felt bad for the lack of yard for my daughter to explore. When our son came along, we were forced to get a house, hands down the house is the way to go with kids. Regarding the shared walls, you don't need the stress and it's not fair to pass the expectation of "being quiet' to the kids. Now when my daughter cries, I don't panic and worry that there'll be a manager knocking on my door. Good luck on your decision

HOUSE!! When we sold our condo I swore I'd never live connected to anyone ever again. You cannot put a price on privacy.

Good luck!!

I would go with the house if you have kids - my backyard is WONDERFUL for my 2 boys, we use it everyday. Plus if the kids are nosy, run up and down stairs etc. you wont be annoying your neighbors. I vote house. Good luck!

House! I didn't realize how much I hated apartment/condo living until we bought our house. I absolutely don't know what I would do without my yard. My boys are outside in our large backyard every day, all day in the spring/summer/fall......if you have boys, then you know how important it is for them to be able to run off their energy :)! Like you said, you can have parties, BBQ's, get togethers and not worry about neighbors (to a large degree anyway). My only hang up would be the bedrooms, but from your post it sounds like your kids already share a room since your hubby uses the 3rd as an office. Good luck!

The real question is: what is more important to YOU and your family? Each option has it's pros and cons -- you have to assign the priority to each item (together with hubby) :)

The house sounds great but IMO you might want to really consider whether or not your husband will be able to use the garage as an office. That seems to be the only real gray area from your description. It sounds a little bit far fetched but I am thinking of our garage .... Just wouldn't work.... It is dark, unheated and would be a terrible space to work. The garage you have in mind might be really great. I think you could adapt to a smaller space, would love the yard, etc..... Just my 2 cents about the garage. If he works from home (?) he probably really needs a reasonable space to camp out.

I hope it works out for you! Good luck.

make a list of what you like and don't like about both places. When you are done it will be a no brainer. My husband and I did this when we couldn't decide whether to move. Once we say it all there on paper we knew immediately what we wanted to do.

House - for all the reasons you mentioned, and I hate nasty carpet!

I think you are leaning towards the house and that is the route I would choose.

I don't see any cons for renting the house as long as you are in a decent and safe neighborhood. I can't even tell you how great it is to have a backyard for the kids and to be close to family (if needed). Good luck!

The first rule of real estate is location - you don't describe much the neighborhood where the house is other than your relatives are close by (which is a plus!). If the schools are good and there are other amenities within reasonable distance, then you're in good shape.

I agree with the other posters that the biggest advantage of the house is the privacy - I lived in an apartment for years in a big city and now live in a detached home in San Diego, which is perfect since I have two dogs and two little girls. My house is also single story, and that was very important for us to have. We replaced the carpeting with bamboo, so the fact that there are already hardwood floors is a huge plus.

So, in short - if the neighborhood where the house is located is a good one, then you are golden.

I would go for the house. Nothing is more precious than privacy and a yard. I don't know what I would do without a yard for the kids to play in. I couldn't imagine worrying about the noise level in our home. Also, the wood floors, I would choose that over a little extra space for sure.

Think of it this way, the house (four walls, a roof, and a ceiling) may be smaller, but they kids can play outside in the yard, therefore will have more living space than before. And the pet, you can't beat that!