Many families start out life these days in apartment buildings. Unfortunately, the property ladder can be hard to break into as the cost of living continues to go up and up. So, you start your family in a smaller place than usual, which can come with complications. Having a proper house to raise your family gives you plenty of room to breathe. Being in an apartment isn’t as fantastic, and you’re probably looking to move out as soon as you can afford to do so.
Keeping that in mind, here are some of my top tips for apartment living when you have kids:
Try to find apartments with good amenities
If possible, look for apartments that have extra features for your kids to take advantage of. For example, many places come with children’s play areas on site, and you can click to find out more about this. The benefit of this is that you have outdoor areas for your kids to play and run about, basically filling the void of not having access to a garden.
Other amenities/features include simple things like elevator access. Think about it, you might be on the second, third, or fourth floor of an apartment building. You also may have pushchairs and baby carriers to bring with you when going in or out of your apartment. Without an elevator, your life is considerably harder walking up and down stairs with all the extra baggage.
Create as much space as possible
Ideally, you want to create as much space as possible within your apartment. This can be done by moving into an apartment that has an open floor plan. As such, you have much more spacious living and dining areas.
But, you can also do things like move around the furniture and buy space-saving equipment to create more space. The aim is to make your apartment feel bigger than it might be, so your family doesn’t feel as though it’s living on top of one another!
Save, save, save!
The last tip is a simple one; save as much money as you can.
There’s nothing wrong with living in an apartment, but every family would prefer to have a proper house with a garden. You just get more space and more freedom – and it’s way better for a growing family. So, try to find ways to save money wherever possible. Ironically, this is where the first point about amenities comes back into play. Let’s say you move into an apartment complex with its own gym. Now, you can cancel any existing gym memberships and use this one for free. Look at all the other ways you can reduce your spending, allowing you to save quickly for a mortgage!
Being a parent is stressful at the best of times, but it can be even harder when you live in a much smaller environment. Still, apartment living isn’t impossible and it can be made easier if you follow some of the tips above. Remember, the end goal is to get a family home to call your own, but this might mean you have to mentally prepare yourself for a few months or years in an apartment before reaching this goal.
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