Moving is hard just by itself, but the real challenge is deciding if moving out of town is the right move. Starting over is scary for anyone even for the most confident person.
I’ve been wanting to move for a while. After spending some time living in an apartment, I’ve decided that I want to get out of apartment living. At first, an apartment was the right choice. Since I’m by myself, single, I hardly, if never socialize or have people over, living in an apartment felt right and originally, I thought it was where I was going to live out my days. Spend 20+ years in a 1 bedroom, 1 bath apartment, but over time as the years go by, I find that apartments doesn’t suit me. Living in an apartments with dozens of other residents isn’t a good fit plus there’s also other things that contribute to my current situation.
In the last couple of years, I’ve had 2 floods resulting in water damage, I’ve had mice and there was a small fire on the balcony of the apartment above me that could have gotten out of hand, if the fire department wasn’t called. Then there’s the noise. I can tolerate everyday noises like the TV, walking, showers etc. Noise that comes with everyday living, but there are noises that just annoying and out of hand. Last year, there was renovations going on in the upstairs apartment that went on for weeks, at one point I had to leave town for a while just to get away from the noise. There were 11-12 hour days where there was hammering, power tools and sawing. It started to affect my mental health.
Unless you have lived in an apatment or are currently living in one. You wouldn't understand what its like to hear noises that aren't everyday noises. Some days, its an all day occurance where there's stomping or stuff getting dropped or moved around. It gets old and annoying. There's been times I've heard things that were louder then my TV I try and keep my TV low enough to not disturb my neighbors, but loud enough to block out any noise that occurs.
There’s a few things I can do. I can either stay where I am and risk having something else happen like another flood. I can sell but move into another apartment building which who knows what problems I’m going to get there, or I can rent my current apartment and move to another town 4 hours away and rent a townhouse and try it out for a year.
With how the market is now and in the city I live in, I can’t afford to sell and move into a townhouse. I would have to move up north where everything’s cheaper. I’ve lived just outside of Vancouver my whole life. I’ve never lived anywhere else. Moving to a town where I don’t know anyone is hard for me. I have a hard time connecting with people and making friends as it is. People have suggested joining groups or join a sports team, but it’s easier said than done. At least where I am, I have a routine, so I see a lot of the same people. If I move, I have to develop a whole new routine which is hard for me. I just can’t get up and do something. I have to build confidence to be able to do it. If I don’t know anybody, chances are I won’t leave the house.Â
I’ve come to the realization that I want to have a yard, have a garden, be able to plant things. I want to spent my spring and summer outside in the yard, building things. I want to put up Christmas lights. Decorate my front yard with Halloween decorations. Things I can’t do in an apartment. I feel cooped up. Some days I have cabin fever.
I used to go onto my deck at 2am in the summer and just think. It was my time to wind down, but in the last year or so I haven’t been able to do that. There is an apartment building that faces my building and one of the apartments is directly across from me. His office/TV room happens to face my deck. His desk is against the window so he’s pretty much looking right at me when he’s on his computer. I feel uneasy being on my deck because I feel eyes watching me, so I hardly ever go on my deck now unless I have to. Which is another reason why I want to get out of apartment living. I want to feel like I can do something without having neighbors watch me and wonder what I’m doing. You don’t get that privacy.
If I was able to afford to move tomorrow into a bungalow or a rancher. It’s tough to decide because I want to be able to move into a home that I want. I don’t want to move just for the sake of moving. I’ve outgrown apartments. It’s time to upgrade and be get into a bigger space, but financially the timing is not right. Mentally and physically, I’m ready to move, but I just can’t afford it right now. I can wait until the market is perfect or I can move into another apartment, which is something I want to avoid doing.
I just need more time before I officially decide on what I should do. Should I stay or should I leave? I want to be able to move on my own terms in a town/area that I want. I want to be able to have the space that I want. I want to do all the things that come with having a bungalow or rancher. So many things to think about.