10/10/2014
What to consider when looking for house
For many people beginning life on their own, the prospect of living an independent life can be exciting.
When starting out on your own, begin with the basics such as seats and make the best use of the space you have.
When starting out on your own, begin with the basics such as seats and make the best use of the space you have. FILE PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
For many people beginning life on their own, the prospect of living an independent life can be exciting.
However, in their excitement, they forget to take into consideration a number of factors when looking for a house. Take the case of Anne Wambui, for instance.
When she decided to move out of her parents’ house in May this year, nothing mattered to 27-year-old Wambui as long as she got a house of her own.
“I knew for certain that I would enjoy the search as much as I would enjoy being self-reliant,” she says.
“However, I was aware that my income would not allow me to live in one of those beautiful houses in a gated community, which I admired so much.”
RUDE SHOCK
As a result, Ms Wambui decided to go house-hunting in middle-class, gated suburbs where rents were affordable and where security was fairly good, such as Buru Buru in Eastlands.
“Since I was looking for a one-bedroom house, it had to have a sitting room that could accommodate a five-seater sofa set, a coffee table, and an entertainment unit,” she says.
And the bedroom would have to accommodate a 4x6 ft bed, closet, dressing table, and study table and still leave enough room to move around.
The kitchen had to accommodate a four-burner cooker and a fridge and still leave some working room. However, when she began her house-hunt, she got a rude shock.
“Even though most of the living rooms could accommodate my furniture, the bedrooms and the kitchens were way too small.
“Some bedrooms could take only a 4x6ft bed and a small dressing table, while some kitchens were too small even for two people to work in comfortably, let alone accommodate a refrigerator,” says Wambui. “Every house I visited had at least one room that was not big enough.”
DARK INSIDE
Her search also took her to apartments whose main door faced the building’s main entrance and staircase, meaning that everyone has to pass by your door when leaving or entering their apartments, making it extremely inconvenient and noisy.
Then there were houses that were dark inside because their designs did not allow in adequate natural light, or because they were in blocks built so close to each other that the taller ones cast a shadow on the shorter ones. It is, therefore, important to consider the location of doors and windows.
Although Wambui did come across a few suitable houses, she says they were in very high demand. “Although I finally got a house that suited my immediate needs, I am still not comfortable because there are one or two things I have to compromise in order to keep my space stylish and inviting, and still make it functional,” she says.
If you furnish your space the right way — especially rentals, which you cannot remodel or redesign — it feels bigger and serves you more efficiently, says Helen Njeri Wandaka, an interior designer with Décor Pebbles. Below are tips on what to consider if you are just getting set to live on your own.
SPACE
Usually, when you are just starting out on your own, you are unlikely to have much furniture. Ms Wandaka, therefore, advises that you first strive to acquire the basics such as a bed, a cooker, and some seats and to invest in more stylish and space-friendly furniture as you progress to bigger space.
She adds that, since most first-timers invest in one piece of furniture at a time, you would be well advised to invest in furniture that fits into whatever space you have. You can later dispose of it as you move to bigger space.
For instance, it does not make sense to buy a seven-seater sofa set that leaves little or no room for movement when you have a small living room as this only makes the place look cluttered.
“For starters,” Ms Wandaka suggests, “you can invest in scatter cushions, carpets, rugs, or a medium-size, curved or L-shaped sofa, which will leave a reasonable amount of space for movement, especially if you like entertaining.”
ENTERTAINMENT
Since entertainment is a critical aspect of how much you enjoy your life as a tenant, it is advisable to find out whether the place suits your entertainment liking, such as access to DStv and other cable requirements.
And as much as we would all like to have a big television, investing in a 40-inch flat screen when you live in a bedsitter or studio apartment does not make design sense, no matter how big the room might seem, Ms Wandaka says.
It will only dominate the room and make other things, such as your priceless art piece, appear insignificant.
It is also advisable to invest in gadgets that fit in nicely with the rest of the décor, and which do not make the home feel like a movie theatre, where the entertainment unit overshadows everything else.
KITCHEN
Regarding the kitchen, Ms Wandaka advises that you first determine the kind of kitchen equipment you have, or plan to buy, as most kitchens in the rental apartments you can afford at this stage in life are too small to comfortably accommodate a four-burner cooker and refrigerator.
If you cannot afford an apartment with a big enough kitchen, invest in a “Meko” in order to leave enough space to prepare food, do the dishes and, if space allows, fit a one-door refrigerator, she says.
BEDROOM
When it comes to the bedroom, it is advisable to invest in a 4x6 or 5x6 bed for starters, as most bedrooms in affordable rental spaces are too small to accommodate a bigger bed and still leave enough room for a dressing table and wardrobe and leave space for movement.
“One of my friends bought a king-size bed when she was moving out of her parents’ home, but was forced to return it to the furniture store because it occupied most of the room in her first apartment,” Wambui recalls.
Ms Wandaka also advises investing in trendy storage spaces for foldable clothing in order to save space in small bedrooms, where even a medium-size closet would take up a lot of space.
SPACE RELATIONSHIPS
When house-hunting, look for a house with conveniently located adjacencies — spaces which, ideally, should be near each other — which are both functional and stylish.
In a small house, it might be difficult to clearly differentiate adjacencies, but wet areas such as the kitchen and bathroom can be adjacent, just like the living area and kitchen should be. Then there are the public areas that are accessible to visitors.
However, the bedroom should face away from these areas because it is private. For instance, you would not want guests peeping into the bedroom when visiting the bathroom.
For houses with a dining area, the space between the serving hatch and the dining table should be wide enough to allow people to pull out chairs and sit comfortably.
ORGANISATIONAL OPTIONS
Another issue to consider is the harmony you want to create. For instance, determine how the various furniture groupings will work.
Will the entertainment unit, the sofa set, and coffee table, which are the main items in a living room, fit comfortably in the house?
Will the bed, closet, and dresser fit in the bedroom or will you have to do without one and clutter the balcony or start looking for a buyer?
Thinking about these options will make it easy for you to determine the suitability of the house even before you move in.
Always bear in mind that the orientation of the furniture pieces in relation to each other and the spacing between the pieces encourage functionality and social interaction.
