Living in a condo in the Philippines entails a lot of expenses you will need to deal with heads on. In a report by AJ in numbeo.com, she cites that renting a one-bedroom apartment or condo in the metropolis area alone, rakes up 30,000 peso bill per month. With this figure in mind, it is unsurprisingly expected that as a condo dweller, you would want to come up with some customized life hacks your condo can definitely benefit from, to make life easier.
An alternative to curtains
If you are like many other young professionals who have just spent your last paycheck covering for your first and last month’s condominium rent, obviously shelling out an additional centavo for a new curtain will not be possible. Instead of being uncomfortable with the overwhelming sunlight shining from your large condo window, buy a low-cost picture hanging wire, eye hooks and T-buckles from your local home supply store. The T-buckles should be beneficial as they stretch across the windows for covering. Replace curtains with flat sheets; use cafe clips to hang them. Immerse in the softer light and privacy in your brand-new living room.
Shelve your stuff
Nothing compares to the satisfaction an organized condo brings. In most cases, as long as you agree to make repairs on the wall before moving out, your developer will allow you to put up shelving brackets. Get funky wallpaper remnants to put under your shelves that emanate colorful prints. Shelve your flat screen TV high above your wall to create a grand impression.
Cool off with a new shower head
One of the most common condo buyer mistakes is getting the wrong stuff from the store. One of the DIY projects that is simple to complete, but makes you feel good every day, is a new shower head. Different shower models are available with several selections of massage levels, enabling you to enjoy a spa experience right in your own bathroom. Don’t forget to save the original shower head though, so you can put it back should you decide to leave your condo for good. Since new shower heads are water energy efficient, you’ll be saving your own or your developer’s water bill.
Shoe boxes for your knick-knacks
Recycle usable stuff in your condo, such as plastic shoe boxes. Store your knick-knacks such as pens, paper clips and staples in clear plastic shoe boxes, instead of having to spend money to buy expensive mini containers. The transparent image of these boxes lets you have an easier time finding the stuff you need when you need them.
Organize stuff by task
Put every stuff in relation to each task to avoid disorganization and confusion when doing household chores. Put your broom in your broom closet in your cleaning storage area, and your dishwasher by your kitchen sink to get things organized without the fuss.
Label everything
Your condo life hacks will never be the same without marked labels. Put labels on containers around your house, whether large or small, to avoid distortion. Label your shoe boxes with the stuff that are inside to save you from panicking when you need to look for the necessities during urgent times.
Take off easily with a launchpad
Put up a hanged, customized hook and mini-recycled shoebox by your condo door. Hang the stuff you will need to bring before leaving your condo on this door hook. Or, put your stuff in the mini-recycled shoebox. Jackets, coats, car keys and large handbags should go on the hook. On the other hand, purse and handkerchief are among the knick-knacks that should go in the mini box.
Put up room clutter bags
Set up clutter bags in your condo’s rooms in the form of reusable, but attractive shopping bags. Put all of the stuff you are not sure you’d like to throw away in these bags. Doing this avoids clutters around your house, and also gives you time to sort out stuff you may need at a later time.
Reminders on post-its
Post-its of any brand don’t cost too much, and they come in handy too when dealing with urgent reminders. Keep several pads of post-its by the kitchen table, so that every person in your condo can make use of them easily when the need to do so arise.
Clear dishes away without delay
One of the perks of a condo dweller is being able to enjoy a furnished unit at certain times. If you are lucky enough to own a condo furnished dishwasher, make good use of this by clearing your dishes immediately after meals. Doing this should be easy since you won’t have to do the washing of the dishes yourself. The dishwasher does the job by itself. It does not take long to load the dishes in the dishwasher after every meal, and avoid flies and other insects crawling over your filthy dishes and kitchen sink.
The memories live on
Take pictures of the little stuff that has sentimental value before giving them or throwing them away. You know your old concert tickets or your old t-shirt won’t be any use to you anymore, but having their memories live on is something you’ll cherish for the rest of your life.
Assign a color to each of the person living in your condo. You can have a blue toothbrush, cup, forks and spoons, while your brother can have the same stuff in his favorite color—red. Color coding your stuff spices up things in your condo and makes your unique legend lives on.
Raise yourself higher
DIY condo bed risers make good life hack in your bedroom. Make use of durable wood and other construction materials to put up the bed risers under your bed and increase the space underneath. Enjoy the convenience of picking up things you dropped under your bed with ease, without spending a lot of money.
Customize your lights
Replace your furnished lights with new lights that suit your needs. If you value the benefits given to your health by taking the stairs in your condo, replace your furnished big lights with smaller ones, especially if your head bumps on the bigger lights every time you take the stairs. Smaller lights may be purchased at reasonable prices in many home supply stores.
Paint your condo walls
If your developer allows it, customize your condo walls by painting it according to your preferred designs and colors. Amazing temporary wallpaper sources are available at low prices for your condo walls, if your developer won’t allow you to do wall painting in your unit.
Find use in hidden storage
Baby proof your condo by putting a low-cost, but durable storage container under your baby’s crib. Baby essentials come in handy most of the time for your vulnerable baby’s needs. With this said, it is important to have access to your baby stuff, like milk bottles and diapers, immediately when you need them.
All-in-one package
Use a dresser as both your clothes storage and TV stand. Doing this is especially helpful when you have a lot of people living in your condo with you. You get to save money from buying a separate TV stand and a dresser, while enjoying the benefits that come in one package at the same time.
Open up your kitchen drawers
It may take a lot of DIY work, but in a small kitchen, you’ll need all the space you can get. Hack your “un-openable” kitchen drawers to store every stuff in your kitchen to avoid clutter around the small space. Supplies for this DIY project are available in stores at low prices.
Line up your fridge with spice racks
Miniature bottles at low prices are readily available in your local home supply store. Give your refrigerator a cute and artsy look by putting your spices in tiny jars. Line these jars in a rack in your fridge to make things stand out.
Pegboard for the huge stuff
Instead of leaving your cookware and other large kitchenware lying around in your kitchen, put them up in a pegboard to keep things organized and emanate an attractive look. You may opt to paint coat your pegboard if it looks outdated and old, instead of getting a new pegboard to save money.
Making use of these life hacks not only gives you an enjoyable and fruitful condo lifestyle, it also gives you a sense of accomplishment. You will find that going the extra mile to implement these life hacks in your condo present long-term profits during your entire stay at your condo. Be smart and take action proactively in making good use of these astounding life hacks.