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Which is better, Living in a House or Apartment in Jakarta?

December 5, 2021
Living in Jakarta, House or Apartment

Before our move to Jakarta, my husband and I were contemplating and asking around. Which is better, Living in a House or Apartment in Jakarta?

Real Estate Couple GIF by Gloria Nilson Co Real Estate - Find & Share on GIPHY

Of course, the more feedback we got, the more confused we were. So, we made a guide for ourselves which I think can help fellow expats when they move to Jakarta in the future. Or this could also be hopefully helpful to expats currently living here but are in the midst of contemplating whether to stay in their current house or move?

Here are the things we considered:

Budget

Most expats have budget allocations for their housing. Check yours and start from there. You can consult with your broker given the budget you have. Big houses in Jakarta in prime locations will definitely cost more than your ordinary houses. Apartments can possibly cost less but there are factors to consider as well. Houses in Pondok Indah, Kemang, Menteng, and Senopati are normally expensive because these are prime locations near international schools and the business district.

Apartments in prime locations may possibly cost more than houses, too. While Pondok Indah and Kemang are primarily landed houses, apartments are also now in these areas. A lot of expats have chosen apartments over houses. Sudirman is in the business district so apartments are expectedly quite expensive as well.

Location

We considered two things when we chose the location. One, my husband’s office location, and second, my children’s school. School buses are available for our children but we still pick them up when they have after-school activities. So, we opted to prioritize proximity to my husband’s office. Our children are home before my husband is home. He is not delayed by traffic so our dinner time is not compromised. We can eat together during breakfast and dinner.

What I am pointing out is, it depends on your lifestyle and priorities. We cannot change the location of my husband’s office and my children’s school. We need to look at the pros and cons of our chosen location. Jakarta is notoriously known for its traffic so we needed to consider this factor a lot.

Lifestyle

Our family lived in Korea for 15 years. Though there are different types of housing in Korea, we have lived in apartments the whole time we were there. This is a very important factor for us. My husband knows I will be struggling with language and adjustments on our first few months here in Jakarta and managing a house may be overwhelming for me. Aside from concerns of living in a landed house, I will be adjusting to the language barrier, too. I would need to deal with different people for different concerns. Leakage, gardening, and several other concerns inherent with living in houses.

We chose to live in an apartment as I will only be dealing with the building management and our broker for almost all my concerns.

Security and other manpower

Most houses employ security guards – at least in the expat community. For us, that is an additional expense plus another person to deal with in my day to day. A pembanto or helper and a driver are enough for me to deal with. Other expat houses also have a gardener as part of their contract with the house owner. It is also not uncommon to have a swimming pool so regular maintenance is needed and this is another manpower.

Living in an apartment already gives us 24-hour security, cleaning services in common areas, and swimming pool maintenance.

Amenities

Houses offered to expats commonly have a swimming pool. If you want to have your own private pool and maintenance plus manpower is not a concern to you, this is a great option. You will also have your own private garden and a bigger space perhaps to move around with your family.

Apartments have swimming pools, gyms, and convenience stores. Other apartments have a tennis court and a basketball court plus safe walking and jogging paths. Some have restaurants nearby. There are also a number of apartment complexes that are directly connected to malls. If this kind of convenience is for you, then you know what to get.

I hope this list helps fellow expats in their search for a house or apartment here in Jakarta as this has helped us a lot in getting our housing here.

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16 thoughts on “Which is better, Living in a House or Apartment in Jakarta?”

  3. Living in particular place needs proper plan and considering all the things that are most likely needed in daily living. Thank you po Ms.Wendy for sharing this helpful blog to give an idea to those who are planning to be an expat family.

  4. This is very informative po. A nice guidelines for someone who will consider living in jakarta. I appreciate that you are so detail oriented, very helpful po lahat.

  8. Thanks for sharing this information. I think it depends on where you going to live. For example here in Australia, we are currently renting a house, which means we are only paying our weekly rent and monthly utility expenses. For the house maintenance (like broken stairs, airconditioning fixing, plumbing, etc.), the landlord takes care of it, including the monthly council rates.
    If I own the house, I will pay for everything of it, and for our current lifestyle, it isn’t practical for us. We are planning to get our own home once the kids are all adults, and just me and my husband alone (and our cats!).
    These are all different if we choose to live in the Philippines, where everything is quite cheaper. And I can employ a housekeeper or two!

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