I have photographed the following window before. You can see it on a post from several years ago about Halloween HERE.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Windows and Wrought Iron
Vienna's architecture is a constant source of discovery and delight. Every day there seems to be a surprise awaiting a glance. These were found in the vicinity of Landstrasser Hauptstrasse and Petrusgasse in Vienna's Third District. There's a certain appeal about these buildings that some would say are in need of paint.
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Those are grand, old buildings even if they are a bit down at the heels. In some cities it is possible to find housing in former homes of the truly wealthy for reasonable money, but care must be taken to look at the neighborhood. Some are no long safe. For the past 20 years or so a wave of urban restoration has swept through many American cities, but I don't know about Vienna.
ReplyDeleteOf the sixteen towns I've lived in, Vienna is by far the safest. Pickpockets and burglaries seem to be the biggest crimes of concern and, while they have increased since Vienna was named the best city to live in, they are still relatively rare. There is constant restoration of these old facades (and most buildings do look much better with a coat of paint) but these buildings seem to have a certain poetry in their naked states which I wanted to record before they are transformed by the paintbrush. Apartment prices have skyrocketed recently in Vienna with a 75 square meter flat typically listed for EUR 400,000+. Yikes!
DeleteWow, apartment prices are in the range of New York, or London. Don't think I'll be moving to these cities any time soon no matter how exciting they are. At one time a wise real estate investor could make real money by investing in the right neighborhoods, but much the "easy" money has already been made. Typically old buildings need way more than just paint. More like total rebuilding, but the rewards can be substantial if the buildings are in the right place. The 18th and 19th Centuries produced some beautiful and fanciful architecture which deserves to be preserved.
ReplyDeleteOften apartments here are sold without kitchens, so that can make the cost even higher. Ikea has a deal with another Swedish company, Karlson Hus, to sell their flat-pack homes with a credit for furnishings at Ikea. They're very energy efficient (triple-paned windows, heat pump, floor heating and walls that are about a foot thick) and a 73 sq. meter, two-bedroom home with balcony and porches sells for EUR 200,000 - 250,000. They aren't grand palaces or villas but they're pretty cute. I've been told you can rent land from the abbeys in and around Vienna (that apparently own much land) for something like EUR 1500/year with a 99-year lease. Not sure how that would work if you ever wanted to sell the home....
DeleteThose prices seem much more affordable, if not inexpensive. That's still a quarter million dollars plus for the apartments. If the land contract with the abbeys is like many places, people can own the house, but not the land it sits on. The house can be bought and sold many times before the land lease runs out. The land rent seems nominal. Urban real estate is always interesting.
ReplyDeleteI had not heard of building on rented land...might scare off potential buyers around year 90.
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