Many people move to Massachusetts for college or for temporary business engagements. If you’re about to make this exciting move, then you might be on the lookout for a charming apartment to rent out.
Well, finding a beautiful apartment anywhere in the state is easy, especially around the Boston and Cambridge areas, which are highly welcoming for temporary settlers like college students from out of the state. The real challenge is making the most of your rented apartment for as long as you need to be in Massachusetts.
So here are our top suggestions on how you can make apartment living in Massachusetts more ideal:
- Make it your own
It’s definitely challenging to think of your rented apartment as your own since you’re practically barred from making structural changes to it, but fixing its layout and decorating it to match your personality is still very much on the table.
Simple acts like hanging photographs or artwork on the walls can make you feel right at home in your apartment. After all, as long as your lease contract is valid and existent, the space is completely yours to enjoy and make your own.
It’s important to wake up and come home to a place that’s completely yours every day in order to feel that you truly have a place in the city.
- Buy space-saving furniture
The most challenging part of living in an apartment is making do with a rather small floor area. More often than not, you won’t be able to bring into your flat everything you used to enjoy if you grew up in a bigger house.
The workaround is to invest in space-saving furniture — or those that serve more than one purpose in your apartment living. For instance, there are box stools that have removable covers so you can use the inside for storage. Murphy beds are another great idea, so you can get more floor space during the day.
- Throw summer parties
Summers in Massachusetts are absolutely wonderful, but locals always say you’ve got to earn them. Indeed, winters in the state can range from uncomfortable — to downright awful. This is why you have to enjoy the summers when they come.
Aside from going out to bask in the summer sunshine, you can also throw intimate summer parties right at your own apartment.
- Run a business from your apartment
Fortunately for local businesses and small entrepreneurs, the economy in MA is ever-booming. This means you can make the most of your apartment by transforming it into a pseudo-office for any business venture you might be interested in.
If you’re interested in e-commerce, for instance, all you need is to set up a computer corner quiet enough that you can focus and make a couple of calls every day if need be. If you’re allowed to have an oven in your apartment, you can also start a small baking business. Maybe you can interest your own neighbors with your homemade cookies.
Rent can be steep, so having a side gig can also help you make ends meet.
- Hook it up to solar power
Renters don’t really have the freedom to install their own rooftop solar panels or even window panel provisions, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to tap into solar power as an apartment dweller in the state.
In fact, it’s very easy to find community solar in MA. The beauty of shared solar is that it allows you to utilize the city’s green power sources without making any structural changes in your flat. All you have to do is subscribe to a solar farm in Massachusetts, and your clean, guilt-free energy will be delivered to you via the same wires and cables already existing in the building.
- Open it up to furry friends
Finally, if you really want to feel that your apartment is a real home, you can open your doors for some furbabies. As long as your landlord or building administrator allows it, it’s a good idea to share your apartment space with animals, who might also be looking for a place to belong in the city — just like you.
Apartment living can be lonely at times, especially if you’re living alone, and having an animal around can help make you feel that you’re never truly alone.
Now, that’s how you make the most of your apartment — and your time in the beautiful state of Massachusetts. Even if you end up moving on and out of the Bay State, you will always look back at your time here with fondness, if you are able to make your MA apartment feel like home.
