The communal areas of a building are becoming increasingly valued by the homebuyer. It is an indisputable fact that new housing, especially if located in a residential development, has more and more amenities as well as communal areas that offer interesting services. It is not surprising that newly constructed residential developments have gyms, working and play areas, sports facilities or even, for instance, urban orchards. There is no doubt that these spaces provide added value to the property, and the homebuyer takes this into account more and more. Although these communal areas have always been very much appreciated, the irruption of the coronavirus has made them become even more valued. At present, when purchasing a house, the homebuyer looks at the spaces of the property. Unfortunately, we are living through some difficult times due to the health crisis and, thus, the confinement has made us have to spend much more time at home. Today, more than ever, we need to feel comfortable at home as currently our homes have also become our workplace. Therefore, if the property has a communal area which enlarges the space allowing access to recreational facilities, then it will have an extra and the homebuyer will take a much more positive view on the house.

A NEW CONCEPT OF HOUSING

Currently, the real estate sector is detecting that the homebuyer inquires about communal areas, a fact which did not happen before. New construction housing is more and more sophisticated and offers complements that did not exist previously and the investor is well aware of this. It is becoming increasingly more habitual for the homebuyer to ask about the communal areas of the property that he/she is thinking about buying, as occasionally, these areas are interesting complements that improve the quality of life of the owner. It is just that, having at one´s disposal, without having to leave home, a wellness space, a wine cellar and even a cinema room is nowadays possible as more and more developments include these services in their residential spaces. Some time ago, in this blog, we wrote an article about how houses with a swimming-pool had increased in price after the confinement, as have houses with a terrace and a garden. Subsequently, property developers have become aware of this and hence, have taken a step further offering ever more luxurious services. In point of fact, it is about bringing up to date the concept of housing because communal areas not only offer new services but they also favour social life and the interaction of neighbours.

DOUBLE SAVING

Property with communal areas which offer different kinds of services may, at first, be more expensive. However, in the long run this cost is amortized. This is because if one has a leisure area at home, there is no need to go out and this means saving in time and money. This double saving is very important because on the one hand, this extra investment will be amortized eventually. And on the other hand, the owner will have more leisure time as he/she will break free from moving to other places of leisure away from home. In any case, we can say that communal areas have stopped being a residual and exclusive matter. This implies that these types of services have ceased to be considered an accessory and are now regarded as part of the house.