In recent years, many new apartment buildings have been built in the city of Kanazawa.
The Hokuriku region has a high rate of home ownership, but most of the homes are detached houses. In Kanazawa, if you drive about 20 minutes from the city center, you can find a house with a garden for less than the price of an apartment in the city.
It's one thing to consider the price, but I think that many people born in the Hokuriku region are buying detached houses because they grew up in detached houses and are not familiar with apartments. They're not used to apartments.
However, I think there are many people in the Hokuriku region who think they would like to live in an apartment every time there is a heavy snowfall.
The only reason I think so is this: I don't have to clear the snow in front of my house!
In January 2021, the Hokuriku region experienced heavy snowfall. This year, I once again thought that an apartment would be a good place to live.
If you live in an area where it snows a lot, you'll know that snow removal is hard work (I hurt my back. It's been over a week and it still hurts). If the snow exceeds 20cm, when I go to work I have to remove the snow in front of my house, clear the snow from my car, clear the snow to get my car out of the parking lot, then when I get to work I have to clear the area around my company and the parking lot, and if there's snow piled up on my way home, I have to clear the parking lot, clear the snow from my car, then clear the parking lot when I get home... it's a continuous cycle.
In this endless loop, not having to clear snow from your home seems really appealing. This may not be obvious to people living in areas where snow doesn't accumulate, but it's a major benefit of living in an apartment in the Hokuriku region.
As I mentioned at the beginning, the number of apartment buildings has increased, and so have the opportunities to propose furniture for apartments. There are a few things I pay attention to when doing so. I think there are some points that are common to detached houses as well.
1. Location of multimedia outlets
Multimedia outlets (outlets for using the internet, television, and telephone) have the advantage of being concentrated in one place, so cords don't get scattered all over the place, making things neater.
However, having them all in one place limits the places where they can be placed, so if they are in an inconvenient location, it can be fatal when arranging furniture.
Before purchasing, check the blueprint for the symbol M. If it's a newly built apartment, you may be able to move in advance, although this may incur additional costs.
2. Storage furniture
There is almost no built-in storage space in the living room or dining room. In this case, you will have to purchase furniture later to fill in the gaps. It is important to think in advance about what you want to store and where.
People who have a lot of things need to be careful.
3.Furniture delivery route
The delivery route needs to be checked more carefully than for a detached house.
Even if your room is spacious enough to accommodate a large sofa, it may not fit in the elevator. The hallway may be too narrow. The same goes for dining tables.
From experience, sofas that are wider than 210cm cannot be divided. Be careful with dining tables that are wider than 230cm. *The size that can be brought into an apartment varies. In such cases, you can divide the sofa into two (couch-style sofa or corner sofa). We recommend adding a lounge chair to a small sofa.
An extendable dining table is ideal. If you are considering large furniture, we always check the dimensions of the elevator and the route to access the room if possible.
Sometimes, we even bring cardboard boxes cut to the exact size of the furniture. This is something that you might not realize is important to check.
4. Ceiling lighting installation location
This is fine for ceiling lights (semicircular lights that are attached directly to the ceiling and provide even illumination), but if you want to install a pendant light above the dining or living room table, you should check.
If possible, I would like to place everything neatly in the center of the furniture, but just like with multimedia outlets, they often aren't where I want them when arranging the furniture.
If you can move it in advance, or if you can't, you can make the wire longer and attach a hook to the ceiling to bring it to the center.
When I look at homes overseas, I often see people attaching hooks to the ceiling and bringing things to the center.
If that's not possible, you can also use a floor stand.
For each item, if you can imagine the furniture layout before purchasing rather than just looking at the floor plan of the apartment, you will have fewer problems once you move in.
Nowadays, most interior design shops will listen to your layout concerns and give you advice, and the same goes for detached houses, but when buying furniture, it's a good idea to bring a blueprint with you to the shop.
A bulldozer on top of a pile of snow on a nearby riverbank.
My car excavation site
(text: Doi)
DOI KOUHEI
Born in Toyama Prefecture, currently living in Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture, 40 years old
After becoming interested in furniture, I wanted to work in the interior design industry, so I went to an interior design school in Kanazawa. After working at a store interior design company, I started working at an interior design shop when I was about 23 years old.
Currently, I work at an interior design shop in Kanazawa City, doing everything from sales, corporate sales, furniture planning, and occasional delivery.
My hobbies are moderate running so I can drink alcohol without gaining weight, and simple cooking because I enjoy cutting vegetables with a knife.