CasaSugar

Cool Idea: A Bright and Fantastic DIY Wall

CasaSugar — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 10:00:54 -0700

Alexa, the creative presence behind the blog The Swell Life, recently transformed a wall in her apartment from a boring off-white shade to this eye-catching grid of color. The project is renter-friendly, and it cost her less than $20. Plus, most importantly, it looks utterly fantastic.

Alexa explains, "Like a lot of people, I live in an apartment. The type of apartment complex that doesn't allow painting of any kind. I really try to jazz up the blah eggshell walls with color, whether it be colorful artwork or colored lampshades that cast a hue on the wall. Well, I wanted to step it up a notch with my décor beyond that and do something totally different with my bedroom wall that would make visitors come in and say, 'Wow! You did that?'"

Wow indeed! To find out what she made this wall from, read more.

Alexa achieved this look through multicolored scrapbook pages, Zot adhesive glue dots, and a tape measure. Yes, scrapbook paper. I was surprised, too! Want the full DIY directions to get the same look? Read all about it on her site!

Are You in the Market For a New Crib?

CasaSugar — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:00:27 -0700

If you're looking to buy a new home right now, this sour economy is probably working in your favor, as prices have been driven down. If you're trying to rent, your hand doesn't look as good, as rental costs have risen. Are you content in your pad or looking to move?
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Five Paint Alternatives For Renters

CasaSugar — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Painting is the easiest and most affordable way to transform a room, but unfortunately it's not an option for all of us. A lot of landlords forbid painting rentals, leaving many to put up with impersonal, depressing, plain vanilla walls. If this is the case for you, I urge you to think outside of the paint can and consider an alternative that will give your pad some pep without upsetting the management. Check out this slideshow to see my five alternatives to painting! Source

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Lauren Conrad's Pad Is Up For Rent

CasaSugar — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 09:53:36 -0800

I'm sure all of you Hills fans would kill to replace Audrina in Lauren Conrad's Spanish villa in the Hollywood flats. Well, something tells me that reality is not so far off. Conrad is renting out her 3,009-square-foot, four-bedroom, 3.5-bath home for $11,000 per month. Conrad and her BFF Lo Bosworth moved into a high-rise condo in the Westwood area of LA in favor of more security and privacy. I'm also guessing that Lauren's feud with her neighbors over the commotion of paparazzi and MTV crews at her digs might have motivated her to move elsewhere. To see interior photos of LC's pad, read more.

Would you like to rent out Conrad's pad? I certainly would! I actually think it's sad that she's decided to move; it's such a cute house. To each her own, right?

View 7 Photos ›

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How-To: Snag Yourself an Apartment

CasaSugar — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 11:00:17 -0800

Now that you know how to find an apartment on Craigslist, I'd like to give you some tips on how to snag the apartment you want. If you found a listing you like in the newspaper or on a sign, no need to put on the earmuffs: these tips apply to you, too.

First of all, if you see a listing that's even of vague interest to you, email or call the contact with all of your information, and do it fast. Some digs will go within a couple hours or a day.
You should have all of your credentials and references ready to show a potential landlord in case something pops up.

To hear the rest of my tips, read more.

When you've made an appointment to see an apartment, get there early! If you're first, the landlord will show it to you first, and if you like the place (assuming you have good credit), it's yours. If you come after it's been shown, you may lose out.
People can be flaky, and there are a lot of scams on Craigslist, so don't hold out for anything thinking you've found "the one." Keep sending out emails and visiting apartments until you've signed a lease.
On that note, don't be a flake yourself. If you've said you're going to visit an apartment, go! And, come prepared with anything the landlord has asked for, in addition to extra credentials and references. Also very important, bring a checkbook when you visit an apartment. Be prepared to put a deposit down, or even the first/last months' rent (if you want it) when you visit the place: it's pretty standard to ask for either of them.
Also, take photos. You'll be looking at a lot of apartments, and you'll want something to look back at if you end up deciding between places.
Finally, keep at it. Don't get bummed or frustrated. Don't panic if you need to leave work early. Apartment hunting is practically a rite of passage, and your bosses will understand.

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How-To: Find an Apartment on Craiglist

CasaSugar — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 09:00:07 -0800

Apartment hunting is a necessary evil. It's not fun, but you can't fake it either - unless you actually like crashing with your parents. Short of throwing money at a broker, there aren't too many secrets to apartment hunting; you've just got to search the local papers, classifieds, and online agency listings, cruise the neighborhoods you like for signs, and of course, scour Craigslist in depth. I'm sure you can handle most of this, but there is a method to the madness of Craigslist that you may not all be aware of. It doesn't guarantee you a dream pad for the price of a shanty, but it'll at least get you in front of what you're looking for. If you're looking for tips on how to up your credit score for a prospective landlord, you'd better check out SavvySugar. To hear my tips, read more.

First of all, if you're looking for an apartment from long distance, you should be extra cautious, demand to see many photographs and references, and don't sign a lease until you or someone you know has visited it.
Moving on - no pun intended: You should begin looking for a place two months in advance of when you want to move. Most places are listed about a month ahead, and in big cities, apartments will go in a day. But, if you give yourself two months, you'll get a better idea of what's available, what you can afford, what neighborhoods you like, and how quickly things are going.
You should already have an idea of what you're looking for. So write it all down in front of you, and don't be too picky; a penthouse apartment with maid, pool, gym, and ocean and mountain views for $700/month is never gonna happen.
The wonder of Craigslist is that it allows you to add your search terms to your RSS reader. To do so, go to your city's site on Craigslist, click "Housing," then fill in specifics like keywords, rent, number of bedrooms, neighborhood, and whether you need a pet-friendly place. Then, choose "apt/housing for rent" from the drop down menu, and check off "has image." Then, scroll to the bottom of the page and click the yellow "RSS" button. This will bring up the feed and allow you to add it to your RSS reader. Try Google Reader or Bloglines, if you don't have one already. Just so you know, you can use this same method for looking for furniture, cars, or anything else on Craigslist. And, you can download an app to your Blackberry or iPhone for your reader so you can read listings on the go.
If you're open to a range of living situations, neighborhoods, rents, etc., then your chances of finding a place are greater, but that also means you'll need to subscribe to more feeds. So go through the last step again until you've entered all the possible search terms and combinations.
I have 118 blogs in my RSS reader (a lot!), so if I were apartment hunting, I'd want to compound them all. You can combine a bunch of feeds into one with FeedBlendr.
If you're afraid to get dirty with an RSS feed, you can do it the old-fashioned way, by making methodical searches. Peruse Craigslist's various categories (apartments, rooms, sublets) the same way you entered a range of search terms. You never know: a temporary rental could last three years, or a shared apartment could be with someone who travels nine months of the year.
Whichever way you'll be reading the listings, you need to do so routinely. Get up first thing and the morning and then look again every few hours. Set an alarm if you have to remind yourself.
When you see something that you might like, click on the map link at the bottom of the CL page to verify its address (people lie about neighborhoods sometimes). Or better yet, use a Google Maps/Craigslist mashup like MapsKrieg, which allows you to see all the listings for your location on a map.

Stay tuned for tips on actually snagging the apartment you want once you've found it!

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Cool Idea: Maps Krieg

CasaSugar — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 13:00:28 -0800

In big cities, Craigslist is the master when it comes to looking for apartments. But, unfortunately people tend to fudge about what neighborhood their listings are in. Google Mapping dozens of listings a day can really cut into your day job - and who wants to be homeless and jobless?
So, along came MapsKrieg, a website that has mashed together Craigslist and Google Maps, so you can view apartment listings, photos, and details geographically on a map. Just type in the location you'd like to search by address and city or zip code, and it'll reveal clickable pushpins for each listing. Or, you can just navigate a listings table that lists the headline, rent, listing date, and says whether or not photos are available. Obviously, the site only supports cities that already have listings on CL, so you might be out of luck if you live in rural areas. The drawback is that as it stands, in beta, you can only search by location, not keywords like "studio," "furnished," "cat-friendly," etc. But, it's a start. I've got my own digs now, but I sure do wish I'd known about this handy site in my renting days.

Open House: Home Ownership Blues?

CasaSugar — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 04:30:00 -0700

I'm sure that, like me, you've been following the news of the mortgage crisis in the United States, and the drop in home prices due to it. Even if you don't want to follow it, you can't help but hear the coverage! While lower home prices are potentially good news for home buyers with stellar credit and a down payment, it's not so great for folks who bought their houses during the housing boom. We bought our home four years ago, and while our home has appreciated in value, thanks in part to work we've put into it and its great location, it certainly has been affected by the market downturn. Unfortunately, I also know some people who bought their house at a higher price than it's now worth, thanks to the market downturn.

What about you? Do you own your home? Does the downturn in the real estate market have you singing the home ownership blues? If you don't own, are you happy about it? Will you take advantage of the lower home prices now? Has the housing downturn affected your ability to sell your current home, or make a cross-country move? Tell me by commenting below.

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Have You Ever Been Fooled Into Renting a Bad Apartment?

CasaSugar — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:00:47 -0700

Last night, in the first episode of this season's Ugly Betty, Betty moves into an apartment of her own in Manhattan. Unfortunately, she gives in to the realtor's pressure and signs a lease for the apartment sight unseen. When the Realtor assures her that the other apartment is just as charming as the one Betty doesn't get, Betty innocently believes her.

And as you can plainly see, Betty was duped. While I've never had anything this extreme happen, I've had my share of bad rental experiences. Before I bought my house, I did have to deal with everything from dirty apartments to bizarre landlords (one actually stole some of my furniture while I was living in the house). Have you had any bad rental experiences?

Midday Muse: A Foolproof Summer Decorating Ritual

CasaSugar — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 12:00:00 -0700

I recently came across a quote from designer Jeffrey Bilhuber in House Beautiful that made me want to throw all of my Summer style and endless Summer tips to the wind. When asked if he lived by any Summer decorating rituals, he said:

No. I've rented a cottage on Nantucket and can't wait to get there. 'Have peppermill, will travel,' that's my Summer motto. Really, that's all I need. So here's my advice: Rent someone else's house. Just get away from it all.

I love it. I mean . . . Summer should be carefree and full of ease. Maybe we shouldn't be worrying about introducing bright colors and lightweight textiles into our homes, and just escape it all instead. That's easier said than done though, right?
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