We know that saving money is a constant struggle. Life’s expensive, especially in cities like New York, Boston and Chicago. Equally, everyone wants more and better space in their homes. (We can help with that!) We at RentHop put our heads together to come up with five creative ways to do both at once. Let us know your thoughts!
Get an on-faucet water filter. If you don’t mind tap water, stick with that. If you prefer the taste of purified water, or if you’re (justifiably) scared of the myriad pharmaceuticals that find their way into city water supplies, you have some choices. You can buy bottled water, but that means lots of expense and extra recycling trips, as well as valuable storage space. (You’ll also note that bottled water is often just tap water — be careful!) You’re better off with a water filter. There are some great carafe filters, but if you’ve got a small refrigerator or countertop, get and attach an on-faucet water filter. You’ll need to buy filters to keep the water clean, but they’ll more than pay for themselves by comparison to buying bottled water.
Credit: RIBI Image Library/CC BY 2.0
Sell (or donate) your stuff. It may break your heart to part with that sweater…until you realize that people will pay good money for it. But posting stuff on eBay or Craigslist is hard, right? Not so much. Here are some handy guides for selling on eBay and Craigslist. Bear in mind that depending on where you live you may need to deal with state sales taxes or similar – here’s a helpful resource for dealing with that. Also, remember that you need to be extremely careful when selling (and buying) on these sites. Remember to protect your person and your personal information!
If you don’t want to deal with buyers directly you can sell your stuff through consignment shops. Broadly speaking a consignment shop will take possession of your stuff, sell it and give you the purchase price minus its take. Most towns have at least one – New York has several – and they’re often great for shopping as well as selling. If your stuff isn’t worth reselling, don’t just trash it – donate it, and take the tax deduction. Note that if you donate property valued at more than $250 you’ll need an itemized declaration of the property donated (which you can create with the staff at the center where you donated it). Put this document with your other tax documentation. Also, make sure that the organization to which you’re donating is qualified for this purpose. If you’re not sure, ask them.
Here are eight handy tips courtesy of the IRS on getting deductions for charitable donations.
Netflix + Chromecast = way cheaper than premium cable. There are several devices available today that let you stream directly to your TV. Assuming you have wireless internet in your apartment, having a Chromecast (or a Roku box or similar) means that with a subscription to Netflix or HBOGo or similar you can do away with premium cable channels (and, presumably, the capacity to Tivo one or more shows). If your apartment building has free wifi, you’re definitely in luck — no separate cable required!
Want to know more about how Chromecast works? Try here.
Libraries are better at keeping books than you are. No matter where you live you almost certainly have a public library. Use it. You can borrow hard-copy books if you don’t like reading on your Kindle or iPad. Many also lend ebooks — look here, or check your library’s website. But either way, don’t forget to return them! You can also donate books, CDs and DVDs to your public library (make sure to request appropriate tax documentation).
Separate note: if you still have a DVD player, you can rent lots and lots of DVDs for free from the library. In theory you could do away with your digital subscriptions and your Chromecast or other streaming device. If you have the discipline for this, you’re a better person than we are.
Two more handy ideas. Window treatments (if you pay for heat and AC). A good set of curtains or blinds can help you keep your heating and cooling costs down. If you’re getting blinds, make sure you get “room-darkening” vs. “light-filtering” shades – the room-darkening version will retain heat/cool air better. This guide can help you make the right choice. This will also make your apartment feel much more finished (and keep your neighbors from peeping!).
Credit: RepairWindowBlinds/CC BY-SA 2.0
Multipurpose generic cleaning supplies. Very few things actually need purpose-designed cleaning solutions. (Also, you can make many varieties of effective cleaners out of things like baking soda and vinegar. See here for some ideas.) Also goes for shampoos, too – and keep in mind that shampoo can double as soap in a pinch.
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Moving? Check out our handy tips for dealing with movers.
Staying put? Here are some tips for making your apartment look bigger (without getting rid of your stuff!).
