Roommate-free Since 2011


It’s true! My roommate has moved out! Rejoice!

Lucky for me it was a somewhat-mutual decision, and also fairly amicable. There was only limited stealing of stuff this time, so I consider it a success.

Assuming everything goes well with my new job, I will be able to manage the $1300/mo rent by myself now.

To help create some extra income (I’ve already cut my costs down quite a bit) I’ve decided to continue renting out my extra spaces on Airbnb.

It’s really awesome, I’ve had great experiences so far (err, except for my drunk guest) with the service, and the potential to make lots of money is there!

So I have begun not only The Great Spring Cleanup, but also Operation Makeover.

I’m slowly going through my place cleaning, organizing, purging and redecorating in anticipation of my “new” life here and also for future Airbnb business.

Just this week I was told that Airbnb is sending a professional photographer to take shots of my spaces…for free! I’ll be able to use these photos to promote my listing and get way more business! I’ll finally be up to par with some of the other listings on there 🙂

 

This is fantastic news and I’m totally stoked…BUT it means that I really have to whip this place into shape!

Now, don’t get me wrong… my apartment is usually neat and tidy, but there is always room for improvement! I really want to cut down on clutter, open up the spaces and lighten them up.

Here’s what I’ve got planned:

  • De-clutter kitchen, find a new home for random plastic bag collection
  • Redecorate bathroom, warm it up
  • Paint dining room, declutter & organize pantry
  • Declutter my room by shifting random crap into my new storage closet downstairs, move bookshelf out
  • Move bookshelf into guest/TV room, organize space (not much needs to be done here)
  • Makeover entire second bedroom into deluxe guest room and library! woohoo!
  • Thoroughly clean every. single. room. as I go

Is it weird that I get excited about this kind of stuff?

I’ll admit, I’m a little afraid I’ve bitten off more than I can chew. I’ve been having dreams about cleaning and organizing, and I feel a little overwhelmed at times. But I’m mostly ok. I’ve got my trusty monster-sized list of things to do and am starting with the easier things and working my way up.

I’m also focusing on things that will directly impact the photoshoot, since it’s coming up on March 13th! Ack it’s so soon! So things like cleaning out the fridge and reorganizing storage spaces will have to wait until after while I focus on the big stuff.

I’ve actually made excellent headway. The bathroom makeover is almost complete (post to come) as well as the kitchen; and I’ve finally gotten a bunch of crap out of my room and the dining room.

Piece by little piece this will all come together!

Time for the reader input now; have you ever challenged yourself with a makeover task of this magnitude? How did you fare?

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6 responses to “Roommate-free Since 2011”

  1. I have been making over my house for the past 10 months! Ever since I moved in I've been moving furniture, getting rid of useless stuff, and decorating. I find the best way to do it is work room by room. If something is in the wrong room, put it where it belongs and go back to the first room. Otherwise it becomes kind of overwhelming!

    Good luck on the mini makeover for your place!

  2. First, CONGRATULATIONS on being roommate free! Second it's absolutely wonderful about the photo shoot for AirBnB!!

    You have quite the task list to get done before the 13th – but that's 13 days of doing something after work to beautify your space!

    You can almost read the excitement and release of tension now that your roommate situation has come to a close.

    Can't wait to see what you are doing to your new place!!

  3. As long as you do the work one room and one thing at a time, you’ll be much less likely to feel overwhelmed. Try setting up a schedule that will work for you with the tasks broken down in to subpoints so you can tick of each job as you get it done. I just finished Goddess Leonie’s Haven course, and I feel MUCH better in my space. You might consider doing the course (it’s six lessons) if you’re so inclined towards structure (and a little woo-woo).

    • Yup, I've already broken things down into manageable chunks. The bathroom and kitchen are now complete, and everything else is trucking along quite well!

      Even Luna is enjoying it now! She likes to chase the mop & broom 😉

  4. Congrats on the roomate situation. I'm surprised that you are going to continue the AirBnB thing, though, after that frankly scary situation you were in not too long ago!

  5. I've never undertaken such a mission. But I think it'd be great. If you prep your apartment for photographers, you'll end up with an apartment that you're happy to live in yourself, right? The whole Airbnb concept is new to me actually. I browsed around for a bit and am now interested in using it next time I got to Montreal, thanks for introducing us to it.

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