Adulting: Home Improvement

Home improvement is something that every off-campus student will likely face at one point or another. Whether you are staying for two years, one year, or one semester, your home is sure to need some upgrades to enhance your quality of life. 

One thing that is important to keep in mind when facing home improvement projects is that your stay will be temporary. Therefore, only make necessary improvements to your home. That way you can save money rather than break the bank by adding things that you don't need. An example of this would be anything that you want fixed because it doesn't look pretty. This could be a weird paint job, an ugly carpet, or a microwave that doesn't match the kitchen. If the house is functioning properly, style isn't as important of a consideration. 

When you decide that something does need to be improved, make sure that you run it by your landlord before you do anything. You don't want to have to pay for something if your landlord ends up offering to fix it for you. It's also important to inform them of what you are doing in case the improvement you want to make is something that your landlord isn't ok with. You don't want to change something or fix something only to have to tear it down and fix any damages that may have resulted because of the project.  

Another important tip is to be mindful of your skills and capabilities. Home improvement may not be for everyone. If you find yourself seriously struggling, don't be afraid to ask for help or use your connections. My roommates and I are constantly asking my stepfather for advice when it comes to our own projects around the house. He is always more than willing to share some tips and tricks with us. If all else fails, then he is happy to come down and give us a hand. 

The biggest issue we are currently dealing with in my home is that our front and side door don't fit their respective door frames properly. There is space between the top and bottom of the doors that allows for bugs to get in and air to get out. This is an issue for obvious reasons. For starters, the side door is right off of our kitchen, and we don't want bugs to get into our food. Second, our bills are going to be much higher because our air conditioning escapes through the cracks. After having discovered this, we decided we need to look into ways to help properly seal the doors. Hopefully we will be successful in our home improvement endeavors! Let me know down in the comments what some of your biggest home improvement projects are.

Adulting: Living with Roommates or Living Alone

    One of the most important decisions you will have to make when deciding to live off-campus is whether or not you are going to have roommates or live alone. There are pros and cons to both, but I am here to give you some tips to keep in mind when coming to a decision. However, at the end of the day, it comes down to your own personal preferences. 

    The biggest thing to keep in mind when living off-campus is cost. Roommates can make a big difference when it comes to paying for rent and monthly utilities. The cost of an apartment or house will usually cost less the more roommates you have living there, whereas living alone will result in you having to pay lot more. If you live alone, the burden of money is placed squarely on you, but this can be good or bad depending on how much you have saved up. Money may not be a big deal to you. However, a drawback to having roommates that help pay can be a difficult roommate that doesn't pay up. This leads me to my second tip, which is choose your roommates wisely. A lot of people think that living with their best friend will be a dream come true, yet this often is not the case. There are plenty of horror stories out there about first year students moving in with their best friends and it completely ruining their friendship. This is because living with someone and hanging out with someone are vastly different. Take a good look at your potential roommates and ask yourself if you could spend every day with them. Are they a lot of drama? Are they messy? Are they always partying? Do they have a lot of people over? Are they irresponsible? These are questions you need to ask yourself when thinking about potential roommates. One bad roommate can spoil things for everyone and add unnecessary stress.

    Another benefit to having roommates is that there is a plethora of knowledge between yourself and your roommates. If a lot of you are living together, there may be someone who knows something that you didn't, helping you to avoid potentially costly mistakes. I have personally been saved numerous times by my roommates. One example of this is that I was previously unaware that you needed to immediately switch utilities over into your name and pay a minimum fee every month. I had thought we could keep everything shut off until we moved in, but I was wrong. Luckily, several of my roommates knew this and had done all the legwork and gotten our names on the utilities. Something else I learned was that you can be fined if you don't shovel the snow off the sidewalk in front of your house. It is little things like these that make roommates invaluable. 

    As fun as roommates can be, some people just want to be alone. When you have lots of roommates, there can be a lot going on around your house or apartment. If you don't think you can handle this, then you should try to find a place for yourself. If you're unhappy or your roommates are unhappy, then it is a stressful environment for everyone. Consider what you need to be successful. Do you need close friends or socialization? Or do you need absolute quiet and a place to escape?

    I hope these tips were helpful. Let me know in the comments if you have any tips of your own!

Adulting: Living Off-Campus for the First Time

Hello everyone! 

I am back at school for the fall semester, which means I will be posting new blog posts for your viewing pleasure. I hope you will find this new batch of blog posts informative and helpful. 

After spending three years and thousands of dollars living on Ohio Northern University's campus, I was finally able to apply for off-campus housing. However, with this new living situation came new responsibilities, some of which I was not quite prepared for. I am going to share some of my experiences with you guys so that you will hopefully know what to expect when you are finally able to get your own place. Whether you plan on living on your own or have roommates, here are some tips for when you are looking for a place to rent.

One important thing for college students to note when looking for an off-campus house or apartment is that it is not going to be perfect. In college towns, landlords likely have several properties they are tending to at any given time. When renting properties, their goal is to make as much money as they can. This is not to say that your landlord is not a nice person, just that they aren't likely going to spend thousands of dollars renovating after each group of students leaves. This means that you'll likely encounter some unique patch works in the houses and apartments you look at. This is alright! You do not need your house to have a perfect paint job or a brand-new dishwasher. What is important is functionality. Do all the major appliances work? Will this space work for you and your individual needs? Remember, you will be paying to stay in this place, so make sure it is somewhere you will be comfortable staying for the school year, but do not expect it to be perfect. There may be places you have to compromise a bit. One example in my house is the kitchen. My kitchen has a variety of different appliances that do not match. We have a white refrigerator and a black refrigerator. This makes them look a little out of place where they are, but they both work perfectly. My roommates and I are able to use both refrigerators and the freezers in each of them both works. This gives us lots of space to work with.  

While I am not saying that you should rent a disgusting and unsafe apartment, I am saying that you will likely need to lower your expectations when looking. Your goal should be to find a place that costs less than your university's housing. Do not think of it as finding a new home to live in for the rest of your life. There are plenty of college houses and apartments out there that will meet your needs and get you through the school year.

Good luck out there!