ApartmentLiving: If you're fighting with the garden - and losing, it might be time to try apartment living. But don't do anything dramatic, warns Edel Morgan.

The signs it might be time to trade down to an apartment: when you suddenly realise that you and your strimmer have been engaged in an epic battle with the garden and the garden is winning.

And for the first time you truly understand what it is to "rattle" around a house that's too big for your needs.

Trading down can make sense from both a financial and lifestyle point of view, but beware the potential pitfalls. The first could be your choice of location.

"You need to be careful about dramatic change into a totally new area," says Simon Ensor of Sherry FitzGerald. "It's one thing to move to the country to be near children or grandchildren but people should think twice before moving out of an area they've been in for much of their life for no particular reason. There is a certain comfort in familiarity, having family nearby and people knowing you when you go to the shops."

The type of apartment development you choose should be a consideration. The age-profile of downsizers tends to be 50-plus, children reared and hoping for a freer, low maintenance lifestyle.

A brand new development may bring with it late night parties and a younger age group of resident while an older scheme with a high percentage of owner occupiers is more likely to attract the more mature buyer .

Downsizers may find themselves with more time on their hands to travel or visit their holiday home abroad and move to an apartment because it is more secure when they are out of the country and the gardens are being looked after by a management company.

Others sell up because their equity is tied up in a house "that they don't necessarily need, and that could well be valuable, especially if it's in a prime location and is no longer of benefit to them," says Simon Ensor

Apartment life might not be as carefree as you imagine. Before committing to a development, check if it is well run, with a good sinking fund and well-maintained common areas.

The smaller the development, the more likely it is you will become involved in decision making over its day-to-day running .

Living in 74 to 92 sq m (800 to 1,000 sq ft) may prove a challenge at first. "There is an adjustment, no doubt about it, so it might be an idea to bring as many personal effects as possible," says Ensor.

"Obviously you won't be able take all your furniture with you, but it's a good idea to be surrounded by familiar things.

"In my experience though the overriding feeling is usually one of massive relief at having a much smaller area to maintain" he says.