Small Ways to Personalize Your Senior Living Apartment
Moving into a Senior Living Apartment can be an exciting but strange time in your life. You’re not alone if you feel like your apartment isn’t quite yours yet. Adding your personality to the home can help you acclimate and warm up to your new life. And doing so doesn’t have to cost you a lot of money or time. Instead, use the suggestions below to spruce up your new home with minimal effort and money.
Add fresh plants
Head to a local garden store or grocery store and choose a bouquet of your favorite flowers or a new potted plant with lush greenery. Natural pops of color can make any room feel more inviting, and a bouquet placed on the kitchen island or counter or the table can cheer up your space. Plants can draw attention to central areas or fill in empty spaces. Plus, flowers make for a great conversation starter with guests.
Accent a wall
While you may not be used to the layout of your new home yet, an accent wall can help you solidify the flow of an area and add layers of your personality. There are a few avenues to choose from when it comes to accent walls: you can have maintenance paint them, strategically place a favorite piece of furniture as a focal point for the wall, or hang a large picture or picture grouping to create an accent wall.
Clean with your favorite products
Everyone’s home has a distinct smell. Typically, your home will take on the scent of the cleaning products you use. Most people don’t recognize their home’s scent, but if the smell of your new home feels strange and unfamiliar, dust your furniture with your favorite furniture polish, quickly wipe the counters with your favorite cleaner or dish soap and rag and spray your favorite air freshener or place fragrance plugins in a few outlets and you’ll notice how much more familiar and cozy every room feels.
Customize your storage
Finding a place for your belongings is a big step you can take to make your new place feel like home. From hooks by the front door to self-closing drawers and under-bed storage, think through each room in your home and how you can make it more functional.
Hang a photo wall
Display or hang your favorite photos of your family, friends, and pets on a wall where you can enjoy them. Keep them in the frames or pick new frames that match your color scheme.
Decorate the front door and add some decorations
Impress your guests by hanging a wreath on your door. Some communities allow for decorations such as plaques or figurines next to your front door. Display things to spruce up your front door and express who you are. It will help you find your apartment and introduce you to your neighborsIf y.
Spruce up an outdoor space
If you have a patio, it’s important to create a space for chatting and relaxing. Invest in comfortable chairs that will still give you plenty of space to easily maneuver your patio. A small side table or two is all that you need on your porch if your space is limited. Senior Communities often have large outdoor patios that are centrally located with comfortable seating so that you can enjoy the outdoors. Don’t take your large patio furniture for your small patio or porch, enjoy the benefits your Senior Community provides with their larger outdoor seating areas. This can encourage you to spend time getting fresh air and decompressing from your big move. Plus, it’s a great way to chat with neighbors passing by and have a safe social distancing location to enjoy a few drinks and snacks with them.
By making these changes, you can turn your new Senior Assisted Living Apartment into a home quickly and easily. Arizona Senior Moving can help you with all these ideas on your move-in day!
Top 7 Reasons Seniors Downsize
Like many things in life, there are no courses or manuals for making some of its most important decisions. Whether they’re emotional or financially driven, or a combination of both, sometimes you just have to go with your gut. And while there’s no easy answer, recognizing your motivations for downsizing can help you make the final decision on whether it’s time to stay or go.
Financial stability: Are you retired or experiencing financial hardships? Have your monthly expenses increased over the years due to the escalation in the cost of living? If so, this may be an opportune time to downsize, especially If you’re feeling a financial crunch. Selling your home for a smaller, lesser expensive place can help you to save money, reduce your monthly expenses, and possibly increase your disposable income.
Home equity: If you’ve owned your home for several years, there’s likely a lot of equity, particularly with the rise in home prices over the past few years. This may be a great reason to sell as you can use the proceeds from the sale to downsize and have some cash left over to add to your nest egg.
Homeownership: Are you tired of being a homeowner and no longer want the responsibilities of the upkeep or ongoing expense? Whether it’s due to financial, physical, or other circumstances, it may be a good time to discuss selling and explore rental options or consider a Senior Living Community.
Home upkeep: Having less maintenance is often the key reason for downsizing. Not only can it be costly, but it can also be dangerous. For example, if you’re older and have to climb on your roof to clean the gutters, you may be putting yourself at risk of a serious fall. If you’re beginning to feel overwhelmed with your home’s upkeep, it may be a good time to consider a downsizing move.
Life changes: Unexpected major life-changing events, such as divorce or the death of a spouse or partner or an illnes or injury, may require you to make some changes, both in your financial life and your lifestyle. They may even be the catalyst for making your final decision to downsize.
Lifestyle: Have you aged out of your neighborhood? Are you an empty nester and your home now feels lonely or too big for you? If so, it may be time to consider downsizing to a smaller home and into a community that makes sense for you. There are many options in the Phoenix and Sun City area for Active Adult Communities and Senior Communities that match your financial and lifestyle needs with other like-minded people.
Proximity to family: Your adult children and grandchildren may not live close to you anymore and chances are you want to be in closer proximity to them. Whether you’re retired or still in the workforce and able to work remotely, it may be the right time to sell and downsize.
If you’ve decided to begin the downsizing process, be thorough in your research—the options are endless. Whether your motivations have to do with a lifestyle change, lower cost of living, or health challenges, be sure to contact Arizona Senior Moving to assist you in your downsizing adventure “Home upkeep: Having less maintenance is often the key reason for downsizing.” “Life changes: Unexpected major life-changing events, such as divorce or the death of a spouse or partner, may require you to make some changes, both in your financial life and your lifestyle.” .
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Simple Steps To Improve Indoor Air Quality
Air quality is not something people generally think about when cleaning their home, but it has a huge impact on health. There are simple ways to get cleaner air in your home with little to no effort.
Indoor air pollution
Chemicals found in synthetic furniture, flooring, and some appliances leak into the air in your home without detection. This, coupled with a lack of air flow, can be the culprit for most indoor air pollution. Minor sources of indoor air pollution are excess moisture and unnatural household cleaning products.
Indoor AIr Quality (IAQ) and how it’s measured
IAQ (indoor air quality) refers to the air quality as it relates to the comfort and health of the building occupants. IAQ is measured through an IAQ Sensor. Some varieties can be expensive depending on how much you want analyzed, but basic ones are affordable. The sensor monitors and gives feedback on the level of VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) in the space that come from paints, sprays, cleaners, and furniture.
What is a good IAQ Index Score?
A home with an IAQ Index score of 150 would be considered to have very poor indoor air quality. A score of 0 would be an exemplary IAQ score.
What health problems can poor air quality produce or enhance?
Poor IAQ can produce a wide array of health issues. Minor issues include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Symptoms like these will come and go like a cold, commonly mistaken for allergies. Long term effects after exposure for long periods of time can be different respiratory diseases, heart conditions, and sometimes cancer.
What can I do to improve my IAQ?
Have no fear, because there are simple, easy steps you can take around your home to instantly improve your IAQ. Options include: air purifying plants, air cleaners, ventilation improvements, and natural cleaning products or furniture.
What are the top 10 air purifying plants?
CAUTION: If you have a cat or a dog in your house, you need to do a little more research on which plants are toxic to them.
Spider Plants
Dracaenas
Golden Pothos
Areca Palms
Chrysanthemums
Bamboo
English Ivy
Rubber Plants
Chinese Evergreen
Peace Lily
It can be stressful to hear that our spaces are full of different health risks. Now that you know about IAQ, you can take the suggested steps to improve your living space.