Family-friendly apartment blocks the way of the future

The Australian Dream doesn’t just involve a house, backyard and a picket fence. Many families are now choosing apartments and finding them just as amenable for their children.

When I moved from Melbourne to Sydney with my partner Troy Friscic, I opted for a three-bedroom apartment, rather than a house that would have left us commuting for hours. Now with a five-year-old son, we have no intentions of moving to a house.

The stigma of apartments as being designed for a single person, a couple or renters is starting to shift. Not every apartment block is made equally, but increasingly architects and developers are looking at how they can make homes more suitable for families. 

Our apartment has everything a family could need. 

There’s a great community environment and, when you have shared facilities, you get to know each other. There are 130 apartments in our block and I know 25 per cent of the residents, largely due to sharing a carpark and swimming pool.

Our block is five storeys high and our’s is a single-level apartment. It was one of the first green buildings in Sydney, filled with natural light with little need for artificial lighting during daylight hours. It also has great cross ventilation, so there’s no need for air conditioning in the summer months, which keeps bills down.

We have a lot of space. There’s a lawn out the front where children can play and a pool in the centre of the building. For three or four months of the year, it’s where a lot of families meet up with each other.

Orientating apartment block design around family living is very helpful but it’s not just up to the individual developer to implement. The council has a huge role to play in providing community parks and amenity in the local area, particularly where density rates are increasing.

Councils often have 10-year plans outlined online, which buyers should look at before deciding to purchase. These show what will be built by the Council. These services are critical for people who live in high-density apartments. We are five minutes to a skate park, library and recreation centre that I know my son will use when he gets older.

There’s also a crucial role for home owners themselves. When you buy into an apartment, be prepared to take steps yourself to make positive change. Join the executive committee and attend meetings to help shape the attitudes of residents in your building. 

Along with other families in our apartment block, we fought to have certain things changed to make it suitable for family residents. The bylaws and strata laws were designed when the block had fewer families and needed updating. Before we pushed to change them, children weren’t allowed to play in common areas and including a 20-metre section of lawn outside my apartment. There were also rules about the pool that needed updating to become more family friendly.

Buildings need to adapt as the demographic changes. With more families moving into the apartment lifestyle, we’ll see even more of a shift.

Liana Rigon is a former real estate agent, mother and proud apartment owner.