Apartment Moving Tips: Transitioning to a Single Family House

Apartments have quite a few appealing features. You don’t have to worry about fixing the plumbing or the air conditioning, and the amenities you need are usually on site. You have access to a gym, a swimming pool, and maybe even a tennis court. In dense urban parts of the Miami area, apartments are the way to live.

But eventually, you may want to move to a house. Maybe it’s your very first starter home, a big step in your life’s journey. Or maybe it’s a rental property, but you needed more space, more privacy, or a sizeable yard for your kids or pets. Either way, there are plenty of reasons to relocate from an apartment complex to a house. These apartment moving tips from professional movers can help you manage the transition to a single family home.

You Have a Yard Now

If you were living in a condo or townhouse, rather than an apartment per se, you may have had a little patio or garden. But if you’re moving to a house in the suburbs of Miami, you’ll probably have something you didn’t have before: a lawn. Lawns are high-maintenance. They grow fast, and nature doesn’t take kindly to a monoculture. Your Saint Augustine grass will quickly start sharing its space with crabgrass, clover, dollarweed, and other so-called weeds.

You’ll have to mow your lawn now, meaning you’ll need to buy a lawnmover. Of course, in some areas, you may be able to take a different approach to landscaping. Flowers, trees, and garden paths can be used to create grass-free naturalistic home landscaping. However, in many suburban areas, local homeowners’ associations may mandate that you have a certain type of grass.

Along with mowing your lawn, you’ll also need to take care of other aspects of your yard. You might want to plant a garden, or you may have azalea bushes that need occasional pruning. If you’ve always lived in apartments, you might not have any gardening tools. You’ll probably end up needing them — unless, of course, you hire a landscaper instead. That’s an option for many people, though it may be cost-prohibitive.

You May Need More Furniture

If you’re moving from a one bedroom apartment in downtown Miami to a spacious three-bedroom home in the suburbs, you may not have enough furniture to fill things out at first. Apartment living is all about compactness and saving space, but with a larger home, you suddenly have a lot more room. You may find yourself purchasing your first full dining room set, when in the past, you just ate at the coffee table. You might also be able to fit more stuff in your living area, or create a home office in one of your spare rooms.

Don’t Forget About Laundry

In most apartment complexes, you have access to on-site laundry facilities, and probably didn’t have a washing machine or a dryer of your own. If your house is rental, it may or may not come with a washer and dryer. If you own the house, you’ll definitely need to buy them. Lugging everything back and forth to a laundromat gets old quickly.

Make Sure You Have Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarms

Your apartment complex undoubtedly supplied you with a smoke detector and a CO detector. In your new home, you’ll want to make sure you have both of these things, and that they work correctly. You should also have a fire extinguisher on hand in case of emergency.

You May Need Some Lamps

In older houses, built-in ceiling lighting may be surprisingly limited. You might need to install some wall or ceiling lights yourself, or at least invest in a few nice lamps. Wall sconces, decorative lamps, and chandeliers can add character and visual interest to a room.

Apartment Moving in Miami

Moving from a Miami apartment to your new starter home? At Orange Movers, we’ve helped many people with efficient, stress-free apartment moving services. To find out more, call us any time, or fill out our online contact form.