As I am writing this now, I'm about a week away from signing the lease to my very first apartment with my best friend. This is going to sound cheesy, but my freshman year of college here at Indiana University went by so quickly. It's crazy to think that just a few months ago I was moving into my dorm. Now I'm in the middle of registering for classes for fall of my sophomore year and finding a place to live on my own.
There are a few things I've learned while searching for an apartment on a budget. Not only am I paying my tuition slowly but surely, and working 40-hour weeks at good ol' O'Charley's on Third Street, I am going to have to start planning on paying my half of the rent, utilities, food, etc. Like I said in my last article: adulting is hard.
1. Maybe a one-bedroom apartment for two people really isn't so bad.
For months, the plan has been to find an affordable (as in less than $750/month total) two-bedroom for the two of us to share - that is also a somewhat reasonable distance from campus. Turns out, in a college town, that's nearly impossible to find. We settled for looking for a large one bedroom that we will make work. Luckily, we found one that's $475/month - everything included - and that's total, not per person. Pretty good, am I right?
2. Location, location, location (or not).
Prime location for going to school and living off campus is important but also very expensive. If saving money on rent is really a huge aspect in your apartment search, you have to be willing to branch out. The farther you go from campus, the cheaper places get. Owners of houses and apartment complexes near the university jack up the prices fully, knowing college students will pay it because they need a place to live.
3. DIY Decor
Pinterest is a beautiful thing and can also help you create beautiful things. Creating soap dispensers out of empty liquor bottles, using a stack of books to create an end table, and making quilts/tapestries out of old blankets or t-shirts, are all just examples of things to make your first (or second, or third) apartment cute on a budget.
4. You don't need to spend thousands of dollars on furniture.
Think about furniture you actually need, not furniture you think you need to fill your apartment. In your head, two end tables, one on each end of your couch, a coffee table, sitting on top of an expensive area rug, with a TV stand underneath your expensive TV, probably sounds like the dream living room. But think about what you really need. A couch, a coffee table and a TV sitting on any type of surface you can afford will do. Don't buy these things from Pier 1 or IKEA just yet; check stores like Goodwill first. Pinterest comes in handy with these things, too.
5. Grocery planning should be a weekly chore.
When thinking about all the extra money I'm going to be spending outside of rent and such, I've realized that groceries will probably make up a large sum of that extra money. I eat a lot of food, as does the girl who will be living with me. Creating a food plan will probably be very beneficial to keeping your budget as you move into your first apartment.
Thus far, that's all the advice I can give. I'm still learning as I go, and from here on out, I hope it only gets easier to figure out. I'm guessing that won't always be the case, though.
