So, You’re A Subletter

By Lev Novak

So, you’re a subletter.

Don’t be ashamed! Many of histories greatest figures have been subletters at one point or another. There’s no evidence to support this, but I’m just going to assume that Jimmy Carter spent years subletting and crashing on people’s couches while he toured with his Witch-house alternative Ska band.

Subletting is a wonderful world of short-term living. It’s time to look at the plusses, and by the way; if you’ve been crashing at your friends for “a few weeks” then buddy, you’re a subletter too. Read on and learn.

1. Take Advantage

If you’re only in a certain place for a certain time, then there are inherent advantages.

Yes, you won’t know the area as well. Yes, decorating your room might feel like a waste of time if you’re getting out of there in three months. Yes, you’ll be living the life of a lonely transient, doomed to forever be traveling from one place to the next.

You know who else does that? Rock stars.

Take advantage of your situation. Without a fixed home you have two things people miss in their day-to-day life; flexibility and urgency. The first one is fairly self-explanatory- without a lease you can move in anywhere, anytime; if you find a good place or a good area, or you simply get bored, moving out is easier than it would otherwise be. But the second one is a little harder to understand, and that’s the easy one; urgency.

Imagine if you will, a nightmare world where you could only have eleven hamburgers. That was it; after those burgers, you were done with hamburgers forever. Sure, there’d be veggie and turkey burgers, but come on; it’s not the same. Now you, like anyone else, respect hamburgers already. But those last eleven would be at near-worship level. There would be hamburger-based milestones. Married? Hamburger. Birth of a child? Hamburger. 50th burger? Tears in your eyes, you have a burger.

Take that scarcity principle; if you’re only in a certain location for a short while, embrace it fully. Fall in love with the local places; learn every quirk of the place, because you don’t have time to take it for granted. Enjoy and cherish it. And if there’s nothing to cherish, woohoo! You get to move out quick.

2. Keep Your Goods Portable

Decorate with things that pack well, like books, or tiny red robots. Posters, if wrapped, can work, but cheap ones might just be easier to replace. Make sure everything you have can be moved easily, so that way moving is less of a drag all around. Because if moving isn’t a bummer, subletting becomes that much more fun- it’s about adventuring in a super-hostel, not so much “not quite living in an apartment.”

3. Learn

Take the time to learn from your apartment.

Each apartment has a lesson to impart, about people or things. Maybe your apartment taught you that a water purifier is a good thing if your sink tastes iffy, or that your basement isn’t always ready for partying if dust falls into the cups. Maybe it taught you something fun, like that a good kitchen will inspire you to cook, or that being near a train changes your life more than you thought. Whatever it is, take that lesson. When you leave that apartment, the lessons you learn will be your souvenir…and that way the apartment won’t leave your heart.

Awww.

4. If You Get An Already Furnished Apartment, Count Your Blessings Every Day

Trust me; getting a bed is less fun than you think.

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