Just because you are on a shoestring budget doesn't mean you have to be hamstrung when it comes to style. Your job is to shoot higher than making your apartment habitable - you want to make it comfortable, attractive and a place to which you want to come home.

You'll be able to achieve a lot of bang for the buck with a staple of first-time renters and home buyers - the ordinary bed sheet.

As a textile resource, the bed sheet is a relative bargain. It can be cut, trimmed, disguised and reborn for all kinds of uses - decorative pillows, cafe curtains, placemats, vanity skirts, tablecloths, shower curtains, and they can even be painted as a dramatic backdrop for a living area or bedroom. Flat sheets can be found on sale almost any time Cheap Tricks For Decorating Your Apartment Recipe

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Your Responsibility To Promptly Submit Repair Requests To Your Landlord

by Dan The Roommate Man

As a tenant in a rental community, you have some advantages over homeowners. For example, you don’t need to worry about making simple maintenance repairs. What you DO need to worry about is submitting repair requests in a timely fashion. If you wait too long, YOU could be responsible for costly repairs.

Let’s visit Suzy Shmoe - a resident of Hypothetical Apartments. Suzy has a leaky washer. When her clothes hit the spin cycle, some of the water inside ends up on the floor. Since Suzy is a busy woman she keeps forgetting to turn in that repair request to her landlord. So to temporarily “fix” the problem, she surrounds the washer with big fluffy beach towels which she replaces after every load. Sure, it’s a makeshift job... but by the tim Your Responsibility To Promptly Submit Repair Requests To Your Landlord Recipe

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Dealing With Noisy Neighbors the Pacifist Way

by Dan The Roommate Man

Joe Landlord just received a phone call about a busted water pipe in apartment 3c, an overflowing washing machine in 2d and a broken window in 4a, so Suzy Tenant’s complaint about the “noisy neighbors” will remain low on his list of things to attend to. Perhaps, at a better time, Joe Landlord will be happy to help Suzy with her noisy neighbor dilemma. Sometimes, though, there just never is a “better time.” So what can she do in the meantime?

Because the duties as a landlord can become a bit overwhelming, sometimes, tenants don’t always get what they feel they need. Depending on how much help your landlord has, managing and maintaining a rental complex is a big job. If those work orders continue to pile up on Joe Landlord’s desk, your no Dealing With Noisy Neighbors the Pacifist Way Recipe

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The Minefields in Your Lease

by Dan The Roommate Man

In some markets across the country -- San Francisco, New York and Washington, D.C., for example -- the renters' market is so hot that properties are snatched up the same day they become available. In fact, many landlords in these markets find themselves negotiating among multiple offers.

In climates like these, propsective tenants often feel pressured to sign on the dotted line. The reality is that if they opt to take home the lease, read it carefully and return to the property the next day, they'll lose the apartment to another tenant. Unfortunately, this pressure to sign and do it quickly means that tenants merely skim the terms of their leases prior to signing them. Contrary to what you believe, all leases are not alike. And while la The Minefields in Your Lease Recipe

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