Joanna James
Traditional thinking would dictate that owning a house with its own garden, sheltered from prying eyes, is how you should approach family life. However, times have changed, and living in cities is something that should be approached with innovative ideas, and a break from tradition.
Owning a house is great if you can afford it; however, in the modern context of everything, it's quite costly to own a sizeable house in a good neighbourhood – which is also centrally located. And financially it just makes more sense to invest in an apartment. Apartments are usually great investments as well because you can either rent them out or sell them off if you decide to. However, if you can't afford to buy one or feel putting down a mortgage is too much of a commitment at first, renting is still an option – and rent is cheaper than a mortgage. With the responsibility of upkeep usually falling mostly on the landowner, you'll be saving some money there as well.
Any lifestyle guide online will point out maintenance as a key benefit of living in an apartment. The responsibility of maintenance is a burden of the landowner and it's one less thing on your to-do list. You have less to worry about and less money you need to keep aside for things that need to be repaired.
Every apartment living guide should start with accessibility – this is what makes apartment living so great. Apartments are always located right at the heart of everything with nearby access to whatever you need, be it groceries, schools, or entertainment. And when living in a city, nothing is as important as ease of access – well maybe community but we'll get to that.
When looking for your ideal apartment, make sure to check the ease of access to everything you need just being 5 minutes away at most. Nowadays you have a wide selection of apartment complexes to choose from; it's easy to find something close to everywhere you need. If you have kids, it's good to have a few good schools nearby, supermarkets, and fun things to do can take second and third place respectively on the list of priorities.
Amenities are what you'll probably look for first when trying to find the perfect apartment – and why not? It's the most fun part. Every good apartment needs to offer its residents a good pool, a gym, a small supermarket/store a bar or a lounge with a pool table maybe and most definitely a laundry service.
Community is important if you are living in the city. The busy lifestyle can usually distract from getting enough social interaction and hanging out with friends, meeting new people and whatnot. However, by living in an apartment, you're in close vicinity with a bunch of people who are most likely from your social strata and share much in common with you. This can include lots of kids for your kids to play with and plenty of people for you to hang out with, without having to really go out.
A true believer that the pen is a mighty weapon, ventures into reaching the minds of every reader with the earnest hope of leaving an indelible stream of thought.
A travel writer who has a passion for fashion and a deep interest in admiring new and exotic attractions around the world.
