Tips For Relocating To A New Neighbourhood
Just like buying a new home which is one of the biggest financial and emotional decisions that need careful consideration, moving to a new neighbourhood, city or town with your family is also a major decision that needs careful consideration. For yourself, it means moving away from all the great things you’ve become attached to in your current neighbourhood and for the kids, it means moving away from the friends they grew up with. There might be several reasons that make moving difficult and emotional but sometimes it becomes necessary to relocate because of some circumstances.
Reasons Why People Relocate
There are several reasons people to move to another community, town or even another city. They may include but not limited to the following;
1. Relocating to get closer to your place of work
A job far away from where you live can mean you have to relocate and get closer. Also When people get new jobs or job transfers, it sometimes becomes necessary to move to a new location if commuting from your current home to your place of work is stressful or completely impossible.
2. Security related issues
Living in an area where there is everyday robbery, theft and other crimes can be unsettling and scary for everyone and usually one of the main reasons that necessitate moving to a new community. Everyone wants security and peace of mind to sleep and carry on with their daily activities without fear of being attacked or their home being robbed in their absence.
3. Unable to access essential amenities
Living becomes extremely difficult when you always have a challenge accessing and utilizing basic amenities like water, hospitals, police security and the like. Anyone in this situation will love to move closer to a place where these services are at arm’s reach. It is an issue of feeling comfortable and everyone desires that.
4. A better/new house or apartment.
Moving to a bigger, better and more desirable home is a common phenomenon with home buyers. There are many reasons for this desire to move to a better home. If you have plans to start a family, you may want to upgrade and get a better place for yourself and your future family. Others may also feel their current home is not spacious enough and they need more space hence driving the need to relocate to a new house or apartment. It may also be the case that you have recently purchased your own home and you want to relocate and start living there.
5. Relocating because of relationships or family
Relationships between people especially that of family motivates people to relocate. For some people, living close to their family is very important and can become the reason they decide to relocate to a new town. There are many parents and grandparents who want their children and grandchildren to live close to them, see them often and have regular family time.
6. Change of lifestyle and surrounding area
Your current home and neighbourhood may not be interesting to you anymore and you may want to change that. Finding a place that makes you comfortable and happier then means relocating to a different place. Others may also want a change in lifestyle and therefore would want a place that can give that. It might be moving from a serene place to a bustling area or vice versa.
7. Change in Income
A change in income comes along with changes in so many things which includes living and housing conditions. People will want to relocate to a place where the price of the house, cost of renting, bills and expenses and the general upkeep of the home is low. On the other hand, affluent people will want to live in a neighbourhood that matches his or her status.
Factors To Consider When Moving To A New Neighbourhood
A huge decision such as moving into a new town means thinking ahead and planning your every move. Moving into a new home is one thing but moving into a new location and neighbourhood can take a bit more work. Before moving into a new area, there are a couple of things you might want to find out to help you know the neighbourhood or city you are relocating to. You might be interested to find out about…
1. Local Crime Rate And Safety
Safety undoubtedly is one of the basic needs of everyone and needs to be treated with utmost importance. Using Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, security and safety are at the bottom of the human needs pyramid together with physiological needs. The two combined constitute the basic needs of every individual. Everyone wants to have a sense of security and be able to pursue higher needs, therefore, when relocating to a new neighbourhood, take time to learn about the community and the level of security. You might want to find out the local crime rates in the area, the level of policing and security and even by-laws in the locality that enhances security. You can do that through personal interactions with residents of the community, town or city. The internet is an ecosystem with vast information so you might want to search for information about the area you are relocating to or you can also visit the local police station to make inquiries about the neighbourhood. Some neighbourhoods have a neighbourhood watch and they can help you stay informed about the community. After you have researched the general crime rate and security in your new area, you can come up with a general security plan for yourself.
2. Easy accessibility to major parts of the city
Wouldn’t it be nice if you just step out of the house and in just a short time you are at the park, mall, business centre or other major parts of the city? I would right? Everyone would love to get to where they are going without so much stress. So before relocating to a new place, you might want to consider the ease at which you will get to places from your home. Consider if it is easy to access public transportation from your area to other parts of the town. Almost for everyone, closeness to schools, restaurants, banks, grocery stores, cafeterias, movie theatres is a big deal that must be considered.
3. Schools quality in and around the town.
When you are a family with kids or thinking of having children, schools are an influential factor in buying a home in a particular neighbourhood. You wouldn’t want to be in a situation where your children always have to wake up very early and travel long distances to and from their schools. Responses to a survey conducted by realtor.com showed that many homebuyers considered school boundaries as important in their home-buying decisions. Moreover, the quality of schools around the neighbourhood also influences the price of homes.
4. Access to Care
When there is any form of emergency, it shouldn’t be difficult to get help and care. If it is a medical emergency, you should be able to access healthcare with ease without any delays or struggle. Same goes for police and fire service. These services should be available and close enough for your own comfort in case of any emergency. If you have special needs that needs attention every now and then, you have to find out how long you will have to travel to get care.
5. Cost of Living
Moving to a new city, area or neighbourhood might mean there will be a potential change in your living cost. Your expenses can vary with respect to prices of groceries, utility bills, and housing cost. It might be higher than your current cost of living or lower. You have to research and compare your current living expenses to the one you are about to get into.
Settling In Your New Neighbourhood
When you move into a new place, you will want to get comfortable quickly, meet new people ad build relationships. Here are some pointers to help you settle in as quickly as possible.
1. Introduce yourself
After a move, we are mostly busy unpacking and decorating our new home and we leave getting to know the neighbours until last or entirely forget about it. One of the quickest ways to getting comfortable and settling in is knowing your neighbours and the easiest way to do that is to introduce yourself and getting familiar with them. Look for opportunities to introduce yourself, be friendly and approachable. By so doing, you will feel a sense of community that provides a safer community where people look out for each other. You might be living close to these people for a long time so it is much easier if you make some friends.
2. Join your neighbourhood social network
It might be the case that your neighbourhood has groups on social platforms like Facebook or WhatsApp where they share information and issues relating to the community. As the newest member in the area, what better way to understand, know the issues the community is facing and how things are being done than to join the groups on the various social platforms. Find out from your neighbours about these groups and join. It even creates an avenue for you to make more friends online if you haven’t gotten the opportunity to meet them face to face.
3. Attend community events
Community organized events are great for building relationships. Having a sense of home and feeling you are a part of a community will take some effort from you as well. Do not exclude yourself from community activities but get actively involved in your new community, meet new people and build connections as new introductions will lead to another. Volunteer to participate in events to further expand your connections. If you have children, these events will be a good avenue for them to make new friends with other kids from the community.
4. Scout the area
When you are done unpacking, it is now time to get to know the ins and outs of the neighbourhood. Take time to explore and get to know places and how to get there. Google and online resources may come in handy when going around. If you are feeling sociable, then you can ask your neighbour about the best restaurants, parks, libraries and entertainment hubs. If you are feeling adventurous, you can go out and scout the area on your own. If you have kids, finding recreational spots like parks, playgrounds and libraries will help keep them entertained and less bored in the new neighbourhood.
5. Be a good neighbour
Communicate with your neighbours. Share phone numbers, email addresses and be open to welcome them. Your neighbour should be able to come up to you, share some cookies with you and ask you to watch over their home while they are out of town. Like a good neighbour, you should be able to do small favours for each other, be kind to your neighbours, do nice things for them, and invite them to parties and events. Being a good neighbour also means keeping up your space. Don’t be the neighbour with dirty gardens, grown lawns and dirty yard. It is always nice to have a neighbour with a nice garden and a nice yard. Being a good neighbour can help you enjoy your home a lot more.
Moving to a new neighbourhood is a great deal. Whenever you decide to move and settle in another place, you are restructuring and changing many areas of your life so you must not rush it. Thoroughly research and evaluate your next steps so that you can make an informed and confident decision in your next step.
