How To Prepare to Buy an Apartment in 2020

December 11, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

As 2019 winds down, you might be thinking about your living situation for 2020 (especially if your lease winds down sooner than later). If you’re a New Year’s resolution type, you might even be thinking about major life changes you can make not just for the next year, but for the start of a new…

How to Host a Holiday Dinner in Your First Apartment

December 9, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

One of the joys of living alone is, well, being alone. You get to choose when to have people over, and all your living space is just yours, nobody else’s. So when you’re having a bunch of people over for a holiday dinner in your apartment, preparing for the big night can feel a bit…

How to Decorate Your First Apartment for Christmas

December 4, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

If you grew up in a home that celebrated Christmas, you likely have memories of waking up on Christmas morning and finding your neatly wrapped presents awaiting you under your Christmas tree. As an adult living in your first apartment, fitting a proper Christmas tree in your home is much more challenging. If you’re living…

Five Ways to Save on Your Winter Heating Bill

November 27, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

When it’s cold out, few things compare to the rush of warmth that passes through you as you step into your apartment from the outside world. Keeping your apartment’s temperature bearable tends to get a bit pricey, but if you cherish warmth, you’re likely OK with your winter utility costs going up just a bit.…

What Is Co-Living?

November 25, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

You’ve heard of sharing an apartment with roommates – if you’re like many Americans, you’ve almost certainly done so at some point in your life. Now, get ready for what is gradually becoming a new setup for sharing apartments with other people: co-living. As you might have guessed from the fact that “co-living” is its…

Store Brands Vs. Brand Names: Which Is Really Cheaper?

November 22, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

As you walk the aisles of a supermarket or drugstore, you’ll see a handful of different brands selling similar products. Whether you’re buying frozen vegetables, contact solution, or cleaning supplies, you’ll have the option to purchase your product from whichever brand you like best. Or maybe you’re looking to buy the least expensive option possible,…

Your Ultimate First Home Office Checklist

November 20, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

If all you need to get your job done is a laptop and internet access, then you can work from pretty much anywhere, including home. As of just over a year ago, five percent of Americans – roughly 16,000,000 people – work from home. Since commuting can be a huge burden, as can lacking control…

What Is a Guarantor?

November 18, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

Even if you’re mentally ready to move into your first apartment, you might not be financially ready. In some parts of the country, it’s common practice for landlords to require that your yearly income be 40 times the monthly rent, limiting your available options (or forcing you to split your rent with roommates). That’s why…

Five Essential Subletter Etiquette Rules

November 15, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

If you’re subletting from someone, you’ll be living in an apartment that’s at once yours and very much not yours. You might be a bit worried about how you can properly feel at home while respecting the original tenant’s space. With these five essential rules for subletter etiquette rules, you should have no trouble comfortably…

Six Tips for Reading Your Lease

November 13, 2019 | By Stella M AuthorMy First Apartment

As exciting as it might be to sign a lease on your first apartment, actually understanding everything that’s in your lease can be a total headache. A lease is a legally-binding agreement, usually written in legal language that can be overwhelming to read. You might be tempted to skip some of this “legalese” and just…