3 Considerations To Ponder When Moving To A Rural Home *

*Collaborative Post.

Most people have, at some point or another, felt like fleeing the intensity of the city or town environment into a lovely, rustic cottage they can spend the rest of their days in. The quietness, the fresh air, the beautiful landscapes, it all seems too good to be true.

Of course, with the benefits of this kind of remote living comes disadvantages, but not necessarily so many that the move is somehow not worth taking part in, it’s just that there are benefits and downsides to living anywhere.

For instance, living in a beautiful inner-city apartment block may be utterly secure thanks to the security at the front desk, the round-the-clock camera coverage, and the spaces that protect your parcels. But then again, what if you have a noisy neighbour? As such, no place is 100% perfect, but it can be tremendously worthwhile.

So, let’s take that mindset and consider not necessarily the downsides of rural living, but the extra considerations you may not have pondered when planning this move. This way, you can remain utterly informed and assuredly certain about moving to this new life chapter:

Running Errands

It’s important to note that when you live more remotely, daily convenience becomes less common and reliable. This is fine for the most part, and sometimes even the point – getting away from a heavily built-up area is often quite nice.

But this may mean that you need to have deliveries sent to your local post office instead of your door, or that one-day delivery on some items is no longer possible. On top of that, it may be more worthwhile to shop for groceries and other essentials less often but to purchase more each time. Purchasing non-perishables, and investing in a larger freezer to freeze goods can keep you functional for some time.

This also means that if you are ever unable to make it into your local town, perhaps because the roads have snowed over too much or a vehicle goes down (as walking to the store may not be feasible), you’ll at least have a week of food to keep yourself in check.

Sewage Fixtures

Many rural homes are connected to the public water supply now, and so it’s unlikely that you’ll have to focus on acquiring your own well water or purchasing it through larger tanks or converting it through rainwater. However, it’s true that a large sewage tunnel has probably not been installed simply to cater to your household and the smaller households near it, at least if you’re enough away from the main village residences.

This is why septic tanks are so useful, and with fittings like black pipe, the proper installations of this secured, sealed runoff can be considered, especially for the appropriate release of gas. With a proper septic tank installation, often within a shielded construction or underfloor, you can pay for drainage every month or every other month so that the outcome is properly considered.

Community Safety

Community safety is so much more important in rural communities, because you’ll be further out from emergency service headquarters. The police, ambulances or fire departments may take ten extra minutes to get to your property compared to those in suburban environments, and as such, it’s good to plan.

Of course, you can’t help if you have a health issue, and while we can prevent fires by careful property management and care, it’s not as if you’re 100% protected from the chance of them happening. However, community communication and care can help you more easily prevent a great deal of security threats to your local area. Reporting suspicious cars to the local community, getting into your neighbourhood watch scheme, and reporting any issues you’ve noticed to others can be a good way to help you become proactive regarding the safety of your local area.

On top of that, with security camera installation, well-installed gates and fences, and long-term thinking as it relates to rural planning, you’ll be much more able to protect your space and home even if you’re further away from the policing resources. 

To conclude, living in a rural environment can be tremendously worthwhile and enjoyable, but you will have to care for your property and lifestyle perhaps a little more than you were expecting. With errand planning and long-form survivalist thinking just in case, sorting out your sewage lines and getting involved in community safety, you’ll be in a great position going forward.

Then, you can begin to focus on the interesting elements of settling in, such as seeing the stars with more clarity, dealing with the utter quietness, and of course, seeing a fully pitch-black night.