How to Settle Into Your New Home and Connect with Neighbors
One of the most exciting parts of moving into a new home is decorating and making each room comfortable and appealing. The colors, furniture, and décor are all up to you, so you’re truly creating your own space when decorating a new home.
If you’ve moved from one town to another, it’ll take more than some Pinterest-worthy interior design to truly start feeling at home in the new area. Before you and your partner start swapping paint swatches, use these tips to settle into your new surroundings.
Unload Boxes and Start Loading a Grocery Cart
As soon as you unload the last box, make sure the fridge is working and head to the nearest grocery store for ingredients to make your first dinner and to prepare a treat for the neighbors.
Even if your table and chairs are covered with boxes, make a point of enjoying a simple meal at home as soon as possible. “There’s nothing that’ll get you feeling like yourself in your new kitchen quite like cooking,” according to Cambria Bold for the Kitchen. You can easily whip up some steamable veggies and a box of macaroni and cheese without completely unpacking.
While waiting for the water to boil, take an opportunity to get your bed set up and your basics unpacked and ready to rock. Your clothes and toiletries are easy to move when you begin organizing later, but you’ll be happy that they’re accessible at the end and beginning of each day while you’re still unpacking a week later.
Eating at home makes you comfortable with the layout of the kitchen and appliances. You’ll also get a better idea of what your counter space should be used for when you start pulling the toaster, blender and other small appliances from their boxes. These could be useful for preparing the treats you can hand out to neighbors.
Go for the Gut When You Introduce Yourself
A quick way to introduce yourself to the neighborhood and start getting comfortable is by leaving a letter or postcard in mailboxes. Let them know who you are and give them a little bit of information about you and your family, including your pets.
In an article for Realtor.com, Lorrie Cozzens suggests baking something to share or buying “little gifts to drop off as you introduce yourself.” Doing something like this cuts back on the time you would normally give to small talk, but it still leaves neighbors with a good impression — or taste — of what you offer the community.
Then, when you start to venture outside for small breaks from unpacking and staging furniture, your neighbors will feel much more confident approaching you. If they remember your dog’s
name because of your small note, even better.
Every Fur Body Needs Time to Adjust
Your dog needs to adjust just as much as you do to a new home. Moving can overwhelm your dog, and a stranger who knows their name might put them at ease. New smells, sounds, and people might cause your dog to act strangely until they settle in as well.
When you can, walk your dog on a leash around the new neighborhood and spend time together in your yard. Besides, spending time on your front porch lets you plug into the neighborhood, possibly making acquaintances and friends with passersby. Expand your connections by making playdates with other people’s pets.
Get Involved
Find your place in the community by learning about it, and you’ll be surprised how quickly the new town feels like home. From attending meetings to finding your new favorite restaurant, you have to expose yourself to new experiences before you start feeling like a local.
If your new neighborhood is part of a Homeowner’s Association, go to the next meeting. Your neighbors are a helpful source of information about the area. You could meet someone there that shares an interest with you, and you could either join or start a group together.
Other Things to Consider
When you move into a new neighborhood, there’s a lot of stuff to consider. So, don’t let any of the “smaller stuff” fall through the cracks as you get settled.
– Familiarize yourself with the local auto insurance laws and statistics. For example, in Oklahoma, the cheapest insurance company is State Farm Mutual Auto. However, you still need to shop around for rates before selecting a policy.
– When you move to a new town, chances are you’ll need a new dentist. Mouth Healthy has some tips to keep in mind when you start looking for a replacement.
– Similarly, you might need to find a new doctor, especially if you’ve moved far away from your old primary care physician. Fortunately, many websites provide information about the doctors in your area so you can see who you can depend on.
– If you have younger children and work full time, you might need to find reliable daycare. Do plenty of research to ensure you find one you feel comfortable with.
Once you’ve finished unpacking and made acquaintances along the way, finish settling into your new home by throwing a party. Knowing people are coming over will give you an extra boost of energy to finally unpack the last box and finish decorating your home. And is there a better way to feel good about your new home than by filling it with smiling faces?
Image via Pixabay. Thanks to our guest author Natalie Jones.