Category: Multifamily
5 Ways to Organize Your Bill Paying System
Sometimes we can get busy and forget about a utility bill or misplace our cable bill.
Follow these steps to sort out your bill paying system and you’ll feel much more organized!
1.Keep bills together in one area- Whether its a plastic tray on your desk or a basket on your kitchen counter, always place the bills you receive in one place. Receive e-bills for some of your utilities? Print them out and put them in your designated place too so you don’t forget about them!
2. Make a calendar- Use a small pocket calendar to mark the dates that your bills are due along with the amounts. Seeing this visually will help you keep track of your finances for the month.
3. Designate 2-4 days per month to pay bills- If most of your bills are due at the beginning of the month, you can probably get away will only paying bills once but most of us have them spaced out. Pick the days that you will sit down and write out your checks and put stamps on your bills to ensure they get out on time.
4. Record your paid bills immediately- As soon as you pay each bill, immediately record the payment in your check book (or spreadsheet). Don’t wait until later because if you do, there’s a good chance you will forget.
5. Prepare envelopes for reoccurring bills that you mail- If you pay a certain bill by check each month, write out 12 envelopes with the proper mailing address and put stamps on them all at once. Now you have a year’s worth of envelopes prepared and you don’t have to worry about being late with payment if you run out of stamps.
5 Ways to Make a Small Room Feel Bigger
We’ve all heard the trick about adding multiple mirrors to a space to make it appear bigger but there are other steps you can take to give the illusion of more space!
1. Use light colors – Decorating in dark colors makes a room look and feel smaller. By keeping the walls white or a light neutral shade it will appear larger.
2. Make room for natural light – Open the curtains and blinds and make way for natural light! This will brighten up your space and having the windows open makes any small room feel bigger.
3. Reduce your clutter – Make sure you aren’t over-doing it in the decorating department and only display minimal decor. Having too many knick knacks and pieces of furniture in a small room will make it feel closed off.
4. Rearrange the furniture – Don’t stick with your original layout! Every once in a while its a good idea to rearrange the furniture in a room to see if there’s a better way to set up. Maybe you’ve been missing out on lots of extra floor space and you didn’t even know it!
5. Buy multi-functional pieces – Instead of having a coffee table, an ottoman and an end table in your living room, maybe search for a piece of furniture that can take on all three roles. This will save you both money AND space in your home.
5 Ways to Make Your Apartment Closet More Organized
We’re all guilty of letting our closet get out of control every once in a while. To save yourself from making a mess and drowning in clothes and shoes in your closet, keep reading for our closet organization tips!
1. Get rid of what you don’t wear! Rather than letting old items take up space, clean out your closet at the end of every season and make a pile of clothes/items that can be donated.
2. Use baskets and hooks! Baskets on the shelves in your closet can hold smaller items like hats, gloves and purses. Hooks can be used to hold items like belts and scarves to keep them out of the way.
3. Get a shoe organizer! If you are someone who has a lot of shoes, try investing in a shoe organizer that hangs over the door to your closet to free up all of the space on the floor.
4. Avoid piles! If you fold clothes and start piling them on the shelves in your closet you’ll quickly start losing space! Pretty soon your pile will grow and become the home for items you don’t know where to store.
5. Use vacuum-sealed bags for storage! If you are normally keeping your winter clothes in the back of your closet during summer, consider investing in vacuum storage bags! You can store all of your sweaters and coats in the bags and then shrink the bags down and store on the shelves or on the floor to make space.
20 Days to a Clean and Organized Home
Did you know you could organize your entire home in 20 days? Sometimes when we think about the amount of cleaning and organizing that needs to be done at home it can be overwhelming. The best way to handle your organization is to tackle it one area at a time! If you designate one day (or even just a couple hours in that day) to one area you can have an organized and revitalized home in no time! Here’s our 20 day organization challenge list! Feel free to tweak it based upon your own needs. Remember…you don’t have to tackle these projects on consecutive days. Cross them off as you go and when you’re all done sit back and relish in the cleanliness:)
Day 1: Medicine cabinets
Day 2: Coat closet
Day 3: Under beds
Day 4: Laundry area
Day 5: Under sinks
Day 6: Fridge and freezer
Day 7: Kitchen cabinets
Day 8: Bedroom closets
Day 9: Desk or office
Day 10: Garage
Day 11: Patio or balcony
Day 12: Linen closet
Day 13: Kids toys
Day 14: Living room
Day 15: Car
Day 16: Bedroom dresser
Day 17: Nightstands
Day 18: Handbags or backpacks
Day 19: Pet areas
Day 20: Pantry