Decorating an Apartment on a Budget

Decorating an Apartment on a Budget

Renting your first apartment may be a bit challenging especially you're on a tight budget. It's not only the rent and the other bills that have to be paid monthly but also the maintenance costs should you decide to make any decorative changes.

When anyone rents an apartment, the apartment owner will typically ask for a deposit and a few months rent in advance. The deposit will normally only be returned when the lease ends and if there is no (or little) repair needed before it can be occupied by another tenant.

Here are some cost-saving tips when decorating an apartment;

1. If you have any posters, one good idea is to use straight pins to hang them, and make the smallest holes. If they are framed, use the smallest nail possible so that when the lease ends the holes will be easy to patch using a spackling compound.
2. If the apartment is fully furnished, cover the furniture with decorative and colorful throws to prevent it from getting dirty or stained.
3. Buying a disposable rug or carpet would be better than an expensive one to protect the floor. Outlets such as Home Depot offer some great choices that are nice looking and very inexpensive. Should the carpet become soiled or stained you won't feel badly about throwing it out due to the small investment.
4. Check out retailers like Pier One Imports or IKEA for inexpensive furnishings and accessories. IKEA has many options from which to choose, and is quite inexpensive.
5. Inspect the apartment with the landlord before you move in to check for existing damage, or cracks or holes in the walls from the previous occupant. These should be duely noted so that you are not charged for this damage at the end of your lease.
6. Tenants can usually paint or apply wallpaper only with permission from the owner. In many cases landlords will allow the walls to be painted, and will even pay for the paint, if they approve the color. Most owners who will allow repainting will specify the color which is generally an off white, but you can negotiate. Be sure there is sufficient paint saved for any touch up that needs to be done later.
7. If you want privacy use curtains that can be hung using spring tension rods. These are both easier to assemble and disassemble than standard curtain rods.

When starting out on a small budget, cover all the bases and you will save money decorating the apartment. It will also help make the apartment a comfortable place to live until you decide to move elsewhere.

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