Even if your apartment is temporary, it’s nice to come home to a place that actually feels like home. But spending hundreds of dollars on a place that you know you will eventually move out of does not seem practical. If you want to upgrade your rental apartment and still keep your deposit, check out these suggestions.
1. Make your front door welcoming.
If you want your rental to feel like home, start with the front door. If your apartment door is surrounded by a hundred other doors that look just like it, make yours stand out. Get a cute welcome mat or a welcome sign for your door, or be budget savvy and make your own. Hang a wreath, add some lighting, paint the door if you are allowed, and maybe add some small porch furniture. Or, when all else fails, buy a potted plant! Whatever you do, pull the entire look together by making sure your outdoor décor is complementary.
2. Update your counters and walls.
Weird, green kitchen counters and bland, white walls can get pretty old after a while. Of course, if you’re renting, your landlord probably won’t replace those outdated counters or allow you to paint your bedroom. There are ways to claim a temporary space as your own without going against your rental agreement, though. First, you can buy Contact Paper that looks like granite for your kitchen counters. Wallpapering is a time consuming and semi-permanent task, but your walls can sport some peel and stick wallpaper instead. There are some really modern and classy designs out there that will appeal to anyone’s taste in home décor! If you don’t want to go through the process of putting up removable wallpaper, invest in some affordable art.
3. Add some life by displaying flowers.
You can change as much you want, but remembering to upgrade not only the visual presence of your home, but also to enhance the mood of your house, is something that can really help your renovation process. A simple way to enhance the personality and mood of a room, that is also very inexpensive, is to add some flowers and plants. By adding some nature inside your home, you will be sure to enhance the persona of whichever room you choose to make the change. It can be as easy as cutting down a few of your plants in your yard, finding a vase you already have, and plopping it on your counter top.
4. Fill up your walls.
Make your apartment more personal and homey by filling up the walls with pictures, art, and any other décor you may like. If your landlord is totally against any holes from nails in the wall, get creative! Command strips are pretty cheap and they are strong enough to hold frames. Command hooks are great for hanging lights and curtains. You can also use Command hooks to organize just about anything, from baby bibs to vertical herb gardens! As pretty as picture frames are, they can also be very expensive to purchase. For a more modern look, forget about the frames and frame your pictures in washi tape. All you have to do is print out the pictures you want, tape them to the wall and frame them with the washi tape! Not only will it personalize your apartment, you will also add just enough color to those boring, white walls.
5. Work with the color scheme.
Some apartment color schemes can be really outdated. It is easier to work with what you have, rather than fight it with contrasting colors. Even if you aren’t in love with the pink bedroom tile your landlord decided on, find complementary colors that make it work. This will disguise it rather than make it a focal point. This can easily be done by adding small decor such as vintage plates, picture frames and flowers that will help disguise the bold color scheme and tie the room together. This can also help with adding a touch of personality to the space!
6. Ask your landlord.
It can never hurt to ask! If you hate the wall color, ask if you can paint. If appliances are falling apart, ask if he or she can replace them! Even a gross shower head would be easy for them to replace. The worst that can happen is the word “no.” So don’t be afraid to try and make the changes you want!
If you are thinking about upgrading your apartment, get to it! There are plenty of quick and affordable ways to make your rental feel like home and your landlord will still love you for being such a great renter!
