4 Money-Saving Tips For Apartment Living While You're In College
Posted on: 8 January 2016
Renting an apartment near your college or university is a great idea, but when you're living on a student budget, you may find it difficult to make the place feel like home. Here are four money-saving tips you can use to make your apartment look and feel great, even on a student budget.
Opt for secondhand furniture
A used bed becomes brand new with a new mattress or mattress pad. That sofa with a torn cover gets a new lease on life with a slipcover. Aunt Agnes' ugly chair that she insisted you take with you for your new apartment can be transformed with a slipcover or throw. Used furniture can be charming--think shabby chic--or it can be disguised with a few cleverly placed covers and pillows, so there's no reason you can't furnish your apartment on a student budget. Check thrift shops and the local classifieds for any furniture that might be sold cheaply or even given away.
Get creative with storage options
If you think you have to buy storage containers for your stuff, think again. Recycle plastic or wooden crates by standing them on their sides and stacking them to form bookcases. Take advantage of your walls by hanging removable hooks (the kind with the sticky backs that won't damage your apartment's walls). Turn your old suitcases into instant under-the-bed storage units. As an added bonus, keeping them zipped closed will keep the dust bunnies out.
Don't fall for appliance overload
It can be tempting to think that you need to fill your new apartment's kitchen with everything you see in the kitchen section of your favorite store, but as long as you have a microwave, refrigerator and working stove with an oven, you're good to go. Many apartments provide these, but if they don't you can get by with a toaster oven and hotplate. A coffeemaker and toaster are also great choices, and they can be very inexpensive to purchase.
Decorate creatively
There's no need to spend money on decorating your apartment when you're on a college student budget. You can find plenty of inspiration on websites like Pinterest for cheap or free ways to decorate your new apartment. Try using double-sided, wallpaper-safe sticky tape and paint sample cards to create a mosaic on your walls, or cut shapes out of removable contact paper and create a scene. You can also save your glass jars and spray paint them for instant vases. Get creative, get inspired, and save your money.
There's no need to be a broke college student with an apartment that you don't love; just use these tips and enjoy your new apartment all throughout your college years.
For more information on apartments near your university, check up on real estate listings and contact rental companies, such as Uptown Rental Properties.
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