Let me start with this: I DO own some things. I own a car. I own furniture. I even own some decent jewelry. However, I don’t have the capital to just own many things outright. It’s one of the plagues of my generation. Our parents owned homes by the time they were our age, and we have a hard time just finding an apartment we can afford. It’s frustrating.
But that’s enough complaining.
We’ve been dealt this hand, so let’s make the best of it. Let’s be the next Greatest Generation. One of my favorite things about Millennials is our desire for innovation. We will figure out a way. It’s beautiful.
Renting satisfies my craving for something new without breaking the bank. I enjoy my rental lifestyle. Instead of trying to “fix” my desire for constant change, I’ve decided to embrace it. I enjoy changing my look often, but that’s a hard thing to budget for. Instead, I’ve decided to join two services that allow me to wear something and send it back for a monthly fee. Gone are the days of leaving tags on clothes–this is a legitimate business model, and you’ll never have to feel sketchy as you return an item after a date.
Each week I will put up pictures of the pieces I receive from Rent the Runway and Le Tote. Then I’ll share the outfits I put together. I’ll also share updates of my “renovations” to my apartment. We rent in DC where buying is just out of the question for us, so we decided instead of saving for a down payment we would beef up our 401ks, have a comfortable savings, and travel while enjoying rent control in a neighborhood we love.
So let’s dive into the fun world of being a Rentanista with this week’s batch of items.
I receive 3 items from Rent the Runway and 5 items from Le Tote about once a week. The sooner you send back items, the sooner you receive a new batch, so it varies from week to week.
Here are this week’s items from Rent the Runway:
Here are my 5 items from Le Tote:
I am really excited for this batch! Hoping the dress fits, because I think it would be gorgeous for Thanksgiving.
Check back soon for more about the two services I use.
Rentanista 2.0 
Interesting. Just a few comments/questions. For clothes, is it really cost effective to “rent” outfits that cost less than a few grand? I feel as if some of those outfits are versatile enough to justify owning, & don’t cost “that much”. Also, the rent control needs to be seen for the problem it is, (b/c it is what contributes to higher costs for the rest of us). But I digress. You DO have a lot more freedom to travel however. That’s provocative. I’m going to ponder this now, (which is really all one can hope for).
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Next week I’ll give more of a rundown on the more clothing oriented site (LeTote), but after looking at my spending habits (on Mint.com–highly recommended for those of us just starting out budgeting) I was spending HUNDREDS a month on clothing, but wearing the same thing over and over. I decided that instead of buying these pieces I would rent. I do monthly unlimited rentals, so I know that I will only spend a specific amount per month (which is less than the hundreds I was spending). I would say in the first month of doing this, I cut my clothing spending by 75%. I am also a self-diagnosed shopaholic. This satisfies that craving.
As far as rent control…it’s a tough subject for me to breach. I will say this: I didn’t agree with it before, but now that the cost of living in an urban area has skyrocketed due to gentrification and people are being constantly displaced I don’t hate it like I did before. However, in all fairness, I am enjoying the benefits of rent control by living in an old building that takes Section 8 vouchers (hence the reason they are rent controlled), so I am completely biased.
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