How to Decorate Your New Place Without Risking Your Security Deposit
Making permanent changes to your new place is probably prohibited in your rental agreement. But there are things you can do to spruce the place up without violating your contract. In this article, we’ll discuss some of the ways you can decorate your home without compromising your security deposit or making your landlord upset.
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Take Precautions Before You Decorate
Remember that most rental agreements come with standard clauses that prevent you from making any permanent changes to the property. While painting is usually one of the few exceptions to this rule, you may want to check with your landlord if they’re okay with your choice of new wall colors.
Other than consulting your landlord, there is one other precaution you can take: renters insurance. A good renters insurance policy will safeguard you against any damage that may be caused by seemingly simple renovations. To properly understand what renters insurance is and how it works, you’ll need to look over different policies and choose the one that provides you with the benefits you need in your particular circumstances.
Use Room Dividers to Allocate Space
If you had your own home you’d probably go to work at re-inventing the wall space to suit your lifestyle and the other members of your household. But as a renter, you’re limited because the owner of the house won’t approve any drastic changes.
Room dividers can be a helpful way to create private spaces, allowing you to have more rooms and distinguish a function for each one. Room dividers are also cheaper, easy to install, and won’t leave any sign that they had been there once you take them down again.
Avoid the Use of Nails & Screws
A good rule to abide by is to never use any nails or screws unless you absolutely need to. Leaving holes in the walls may end up coming out of your security deposit. If you do need to mount something heavy like a TV or a piece of artwork, remember to patch the wall when you move out and paint over it so as to hide where it was.
But wherever possible, use alternative means of mounting your pictures, art pieces, and clocks. Double-sided tape is a great alternative that won’t leave any lasting marks on the walls. Handy rollers can also be a game changer in mounting several items onto your walls without the risk of losing or decreasing your security deposit.
Use Decorative Furniture that’s Also Practical
Coffee tables, bookshelves and side tables serve important functions within your new home. But to decorate your place at the same time, you may want to consider using pieces of functional furniture that have an inherently beautiful design. This will not only spruce your place up but also minimize the need to add more decorations to your living areas.
Decorate Your Floor with Color Matching Rugs
Rugs are a great way to add a whole new atmosphere to your rooms. Use rugs that match the rest of your color scheme, or get ones that have neutral colors that work well with any color scheme. Rugs add much to your rooms while leaving no trace of their existence once you roll them up on moving days in the future.
Use Lighting to Enhance the Ambience
Portable lamps serve as a cozy alternative to light fixtures that may compromise your security deposit. A nice lamp on a decorative side table can do wonders for your home and won’t leave any marks like fixed lights would. If you use lighting wisely you can even make a room look and seem larger than it actually is. Lights can also serve as an opportunity to add color to your room if you use the right shades to match your desired color scheme.
Make the Best of Plant Life in Every Room
If your rooms still look a little empty and drab, plants can be your final solution to touch up corners and areas. When a section of a room seems like there’s just something missing, it’s usually a plant. When it comes to decorating your home, plants are massive game-changers!
Purchase small, medium and large pot plants that work well with the area you’re trying to spruce up. Use your imagination and envision plants in areas you may not have thought about putting them. The great thing about plants is that you can move them around as needed, and can eventually take them with you when you decide to move elsewhere.
Wrapping Up
You don’t have to make any permanent changes to your new place in order to decorate it well. By utilizing space wisely, understanding the nuances of lighting, and making clever decorative purchases, your new rental will feel like the home you really want.
