First floor: Great for grocery drop-offs, bad on pipes
Pipe snakes, drain cleaner, vinegar: Does any of it help with pipes?
“Stay away from the first floor.” One of the first warnings I kept hearing every time I was looking for a new rental or home purchase was to shy away from the first floor. Why? First-floor units are often considered too accessible. Solicitors, political canvassers, strangers and rowdy kids are a magnet for first-level units. The windows and doors are right there. It can also turn into a dumping ground for mail deliveries.
However, first-floor units certainly have their perks: grocery drop-offs, food deliveries, laundry runs, quick dog walk exits and (depending on the street) a beautiful view outside. However, when I first bought my unit, I raised an eyebrow when I saw bars on the back door. I understood why.
The prior owners were no longer living in the state. And with glass windows on doors of an empty unit, all it takes is one heavy rock and an arm reach to break in. (I learned this the hard way when two guys broke into my parents’ home even though they had steel doors. The windows above the doors became an easy access point to climb over.) Still, I took those bars off of my doors immediately after closing day, and I got parts of the door upgraded to resolve this issue.
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While I’ve lived in first-floor, second-floor and third-floor units since the early 2000s, I will always favor first floors. Why? Convenience. From parking lot access to dancing and exercising as loud as I choose, I can slip in and out of my unit without bothering anybody else. There is one catch to first-floor units that not enough people gripe about — and is the one thing that almost stops me every time: pipes.