If you were to ask me my opinion on renting a house 5 or 6 years ago I would have told you that I was very much against it. Living in someone else's home, unable to put your own stamp on it. It's not at all what I wanted.
Fast forward 2 years from then and we were looking at places to rent. Unable to fork out the ridiculous amount of money needed for a deposit on a mortgage we were left with no other choice but to rent. It wasn't what we wanted but it meant that we were able to live together and begin a new chapter in our life.
Fast forward another 2 and a half years to today and I can tell you that my opinions on renting have completely changed. Of course I would love to be able to own our own home and hope to do so one day. The one thing I would say to anyone with doubts about renting is to just consider it. You'd be surprised how much you can do to put your own stamp on a place, without the need to dig out the paint pots and wallpaper paste. Providing you are renting an unfurnished property there is plenty you can do to make your own mark on your home.
Furniture and home furnishings can say a lot about a person and a home and can allow you to personalise a space and cheaply too, especially if your creative and good with your hands. Don't be afraid to think outside of the box. From pretty fabrics to make your own cushions and curtains, right through to buying your choice of bedding and bath mats in a bid to personalise your space. Displaying photographs on the mantle or bringing in a bookcase and filling it with little trinkets and more photos of happy memories, it all helps at making the place your own. (I plan to type out some more blog posts featuring some DIY home décor ideas, similar to the fireplace makeover, so keep your eyes peeled for some of those coming soon.)
We've been living in our home for 3 and a half years now and I'm still making changes, all without altering the basic foundations. When it comes to time to leave, we will be able to revert everything back to how it was when we moved in. So maybe renting isn't so bad after-all, it's funny how your opinion on something can change over time hey.
~ Gem
I'm a renter and it suits me just fine. The UK is one of the few places in the world where renting appears to be frowned upon. I'm also lucky that my landlord leaves me to do what I like with my flat and actually likes my decorating style and always comments if he visits (not that I've seen him for a couple of years now!).
ReplyDeleteSometimes I make changes in the flat, like I replaced the plug sockets with ones more to my taste and people were like 'the landlord should do that' but for me it's my home, I've lived there for 5 years now and so I think they've served their purpose.
Victoria x
FlorenceandMary.com
We are unlucky with the agent that we are with, in that we can't do any decorating. I even got told off for painting a wall the exact same colour as it was previously just to freshen it up.
DeleteI completely agree with you though, it is our home, I want it to look nice and don't mind spending the money on the house for it to do so, it's just a shame that in this instance we're not able to x x x
We rented for five years while we were trialling our new lifestyle and I have to say I loved it.
ReplyDeleteIt makes you think more carefully about how to make the most of the spaces and really make it your own. We were allowed to paint, so we did, everything went from magnolia to white and it was surprising how much it cheered the place up. With lots of colourful accessories in our favourite shade of green it soon looked and felt like home.
I'm sick of the sight of magnolia, every wall in every room is painted magnolia haha. Renting has definitely helped us to learn that a country lifestyle is the one we want, I don't regret doing it at all x x x
DeleteYou've definitely made this house into a home, Gem! I can see all of the personal touches you have added and it looks cosy and comfortable.
ReplyDeleteThank you, I've loved doing it. I'm definitely a faffer :) x x x
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