The penthouse suite may have a reputation for luxury when staying in the finest hotels, but when it comes to buying or renting, there are also advantages to picking something a little more down to earth.
Ground floor flats have a unique appeal that might not be immediately apparent when compared to apartments with lofty views. But here are just a few reasons why living at ground level can make your life better and easier than choosing a home higher up.
It may be that your preferred building has a communal garden, in which case it’s going to feel very much like it belongs entirely to you if you live on the ground floor. With immediate access to the outdoor space, living on the ground floor feels more like living in a traditional house than if you pick an apartment higher up.
Ground floor flats are also more likely to have their own private outdoor space than apartments on higher floors, which may only have a balcony.
Any parent with small children knows that one of the hardest things to get used to is wrangling a buggy and other child-related paraphernalia. Lifting all of this in and out of vehicles, squeezing through doorways, and carrying it up and down steps all day long is quite enough. By the time you get home to your ground floor apartment, it’ll be a relief not to have to think about tackling the stairs.
Younger children who are unsteady on their feet will also find it easier to get into a ground floor apartment than climbing up the stairs, which could save some bruised knees or tantrums at the end of a long day.
As we get older, it’s worth considering the benefits of having an easier entry and exit from our homes, especially as climbing stairs can become a problem. One of the advantages of a ground floor flat for older homeowners or renters is that it does away with extra stairs to tackle on a daily basis.
If you’re lucky enough to be moving into (or out of) a ground floor flat, you'll immediately see the advantages of being lower down. Moving home is always something of a physical and logistical challenge – so if you can do away with the stress and hard work of carrying furniture up several flights of stairs or negotiating how to fit it into a lift, so much the better.
Any major pre-move renovations are likely to be easier too, with tradesmen and their tools having more immediate access to your home.
There are so many practical reasons to look at the ground floor, but these flats do sometimes come with safety concerns, precisely because they're more accessible. In reality, your home can be protected easily no matter what floor it's on, and a properly secured ground floor residence will always be safer than a poorly protected home higher up. These days, there are a host of smart home solutions for securing your property, including security cameras or smart locks that will send push notifications to your phone in the event that anything should happen.
You can also follow our property insights for more tips on moving into the right home for you.
