08 April 2012: Getting Ready

On Wednesday is our walk-through of the house, and after, we get the keys. Luckily, one of our roommates is the daughter of a general contractor, and he's doing the walk-through with us. We all know enough people that have apartments to be relatively certain how this part works, so here are some tips:

1. If you know a contractor/construction worker/renovator, take them with you! They'll know much better what to look for and what needs fixing than you will, whether you admit it or not. You want to catch everything that you landlord might not show you.
2. Take pictures! Stain on the carpet? Take a picture. Spot on the wall? Take a picture. Then, the landlord can't blame you when your lease is up.
3. Ask questions! Now is the time to get everything really, truly settled. Of course, you can talk to your landlord throughout your time of living in the place, but if there's anything important, get it out of the way now. This is the last step before you're all moved in.

I won't lie, I'm terrified. I don't know how I'm going to afford this and I don't know how I'm going to get to work (particularly in the rain, cold, etc.). I don't know where I'm going to sleep until we get a bed and I don't know how we're going to split up bills. But I'm approved, I'm signed, and I'm going to be a true renter in a few days' time.

28 March 2012: The Economics of It All

Finding a new house sucks. It really, really does. I've never had to pay rent before--the $12k a year for my terrible dorm room was covered by scholarships and loans, so none (or very little) of it came out of my pocket. Now, however, I've entered the real world.

Our rent is $1200 a month. That number alone is terrifying. But there's six of us, so that comes down to $200 a person plus divided utilities and all that. That's not too bad, right? I mean, it's a lot. But it's reasonable.

The hard part is that, for April and May, 3 of the 6 roommates won't be living there. They won't be paying rent. Suddenly, things jump up to $500. That's a lot of money.

At the job I'll have over the summer, I'll make $7.75. With tax and all that, it means I'll have to work approximately 30 hours the entire month to pay rent. That seems reasonable enough; of course I'll work more, but that's the bare minimum.

Thankfully, I have a job right now that pays $10/hr. I get paid on the 15th of every month, so I'll get two more paychecks with this job. That's about $400, or two months rent right there. I also have some money saved up, but that's to buy a car, so I'd rather not cut into that.

So, where's my advice or the lesson? For God's sake, save your money. You don't need to get tacos tonight, because you have ramen at home. You don't need that $10 candle when they have tiny candles at Wal-mart for like $2. It's okay to splurge on occasion, but refrain if you can. Rent is more important than how your house smells or, to some extent, how hungry you are. Yes, you need food, but sometimes you might just have to sacrifice your fancy food for normal people food.

And make sure everyone that's paying rent is fiscally responsible. I'm seeing a bit of that problem, too. My boyfriend just got his first job (at 21, bless his heart) about two weeks ago. He's making minimum wage, about 10 hours a week. I might have to spot him on rent. That's going to hurt me financially, but I'll do it, because I love the man and want him to live with us. But if you're not able to help your roommates with their share of rent, don't do it. Simple as that. No matter how good of friends you are, there's a chance they'd never pay you back, or not be willing/able to help you if you end up in hot water yourself.

I haven't even moved into this place yet (we do around 14 April) and I'm already stressed. This'll be fun, y'all.

27 March, 2012: Introductions and all that jazz

Hello, and welcome to First House Experience! I'm Chelsy, and I'll be your host on this blog. As you can see from both the url and the title, this blog is indeed about--wait for it--me living on my own in my first house.

When I say 'house,' I do mean house, but it's more like an apartment. We've not bought it. God no. We're renting it. And when I say 'we,' I mean me, my boyfriend, and 4 of our friends. So when I say 'house,' I also mean 'party mansion.'

Now, a bit about me. I'm days away from 21, and finishing my junior year in college. Currently I work in the English department at my university, and over the summer I'll work at a local county park. I'll also be doing odd-jobs and various schemes to make money, which I'm sure I'll blog about here, because I like having an audience almost as much as I like having money.

Down to what this blog is about, really. It's a learning experience. I've never lived on my own before (other than in a dorm, for the last 3 years), so everything is new. Rent, utilities, finding a way to school and work without a car: it's all uncharted territory. That's where this blog comes in. I'm going to chronicle the things I've done, the things I've learned, and how life is changing all around me. And maybe, just maybe, you'll learn something too.

Okay, enough of the sappy stuff. We sign our lease in less than 2 hours. I'm about to metaphorically piss myself in excitement, fear, worry, and some other emotions that don't quite have names yet. Welcome aboard, and buckle up--this will, unfortunately, probably be a bumpy ride.