Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Sin embargo, el piso de mi vecino es menos caro que el mío. - However, my neighbor’s apartment is less expensive than mine.

sin embargo literally means however or nevertheless. It introduces a contrast just like pero, but it’s more formal and often appears at the beginning of a sentence or clause. pero can appear in the middle of a sentence.
Example with sin embargo: “Sin embargo, no quiero ir.”
Example with pero: “No quiero ir, pero tengo que hacerlo.”

Why do we say el piso de mi vecino instead of “mi vecino piso” or “mi piso de mi vecino”?

Spanish expresses possession with noun + de + owner. So el piso de mi vecino means the apartment of my neighbor.
• “Mi piso de mi vecino” would imply “my apartment of my neighbor,” which is illogical.
• You could say mi vecino as the subject, but not to describe its apartment directly.

Why is the word piso used here instead of departamento or apartamento?

In Spain piso is the standard term for an apartment in a building. Departamento and apartamento are more common in Latin America. If you’re in Spain, stick with piso to sound natural.

Why use menos caro instead of más barato? Don’t they both mean cheaper?

Both phrases compare price, but they have slightly different focuses:
• menos caro (“less expensive”) is a direct negation of “expensive.”
• más barato (“cheaper”) treats cheapness as a positive quality.
They’re interchangeable in most contexts, though más barato is a bit more colloquial.

Why is the comparative structured as menos caro que and not menos caro de?

Spanish uses que after comparatives of inequality (more/less … than). You use de only in superlatives (the most … of/in).
• Comparative: menos caro que (“less expensive than”)
• Superlative: el más caro de (“the most expensive of”)

What does el mío refer to, and why is there an article before it?

el mío is an independent possessive pronoun meaning “mine.” The article (el/la/los/las) is mandatory before independent possessives in Spanish. Here it stands for el piso mío, so the full idea is “the neighbor’s apartment is less expensive than my apartment.”

Why is the verb ser used for price rather than estar?

Spanish uses ser for inherent characteristics, definitions, identities, and qualities like price. Something’s cost is seen as a permanent attribute in that context. estar would be used for temporary states or locations, not for stating how expensive something is.