(1) Sublease I subleased my apartment to someone who is a little strange but I discovered she was just fine because we had to share the apartment for two weeks since she was so eager to move in and I didn’t want to sleep on a friend’s couck for two weeks.  I required a security deposit for one month.   I have subleased my apartment for April and May.  This saves me $1,500 dollars in rent. 

(2) Finishing Law School Early I did finish all the things I needed for law school early so, I moved out of DC before my classes officially ended but I was done with everything  and I will be going back for exams and will likely stay with a friend.   I have been at home taking a nice relaxing break but also studying some. 

(3) Bar Exam When I subleased my apartment I was at a point where I wanted to walk away from this whole legal thing and go in another direction.  I still want to do this sometime in the future but I owe it to myself to take the bar and give this thing a chance before I jump ship.  Unfortunately, I only came to this realization after I subleased my apartment until the end of June.  My classes will be in DC and they start in mid-May.  One of my friends will let me stay at his place gratis for May.  If I want to continue staying in DC then I need to find a sublease or just crash at school for a month.  I am reconsidering this option and thinking I should just take the class online from home since I don’t have to worry about a thing here.  I have applied and is expecting to sit for two bar exams.  I have started reviewing for the bar today.  I started with torts. 

(4) Internship My internship ended with a trip to the New York office to interview someone.  This trip was so unnecessary but I really wanted to go and my supervisor set it up.  It was a blast.  More importantly, I believe I made solid contacts in almost three offices.  I also made contacts with all the alums working in the organization.  Additionally, I went and introduced myself to the HR people in two offices.  I am still applying for jobs with the organization.  I have recently applied for a position that I feel matches my skills perfectly.  But more on this later.

(5) March Finances – I need to sit down and tally everything up for March but I have been scared to because I know I spent way too much eating out.  It was a whole lot of “we must do dinner since I am leaving town super early and won’t see you again.”  Too many of that.

Unexpected Expense My Sony Viao’s power cord isn’t working for some reason so I have been without my laptop for a few weeks and that has made updating my website difficult since I don’t update my blog from home.  But, now that I am back in the library studying I expect to update my site more often. 

I have listed my apartment on craigslist so I can sublease it.  I want to sublease it for part of April until July.  I have listed the apartment and got several responses.  I gave a skype tour to one interested party who was located in Boston.  I had three people who wanted to come and visit the place.  The first person came to visit on time.  The second person discovered upon plugging in the address to Google Maps that its awfully close to her ex and would rather not be that close.  The third person never showed up at the time he said and when I called him he was still visiting another place and just didn’t want to come up.  So, that’s one out of three for actual show up.  The first person however, wants to move in like now and they seem a little strange.  I told her than she can stay but she would have to share the apartment with me for the next few weeks and we can split the rent.  I am waiting to hear back from her about that.  

I have asked for a security deposit equal to a month’s rent and I have emailed her a sublease agreement.  This is the first time subleasing and I really hope I don’t get burned.

Okay, let’s break down why January 2010 was the most expensive month of my life. 

1. When the person you love the most come with an outstretched hand, you give…to the tune of $15,000.
2. There’s a First Time for Everything…Including Towing.  Stupid decision to park at my friend’s apartment cost me $100 and a 3:00 a.m. trip to go pick up my car from Alexandria, Va. 
3. That last law school tuition even after the scholarship hurts.  Badly. 
4. Way more driving…Gas was up due to my drive from home and because I am driving more because of my externship.
5. First dinner party resulted in Craigslist purchases of a cutlery set, salad bowl with tongs, dinner plate set, and some unrelated things like an Anne Klein coat!

Dining Set $15

 

Anne Klein Coat $25

Cutlery $6

 P.S. Thanks to reader “Howard” on MoneyHoneySF’s Blog who explained how to post word tables to a blog!

Five Tips for a Sane Selling Experience on Craigslist

• A picture is worth a thousand words.

Always post a picture of the item that you are selling.  If you don’t have your own picture then use a manufacturer’s picture.  It is also helpful to provide a link to the item so that buyers.  This will save you a lot of questions about the item from people who are slightly interested. 

• But, that doesn’t mean you can skimp on the details.

It is important to include as much information as possible about a product.  If you are listing a coat then you may want to let the buyer know more than just the size and color such as what material the coat is, presence or absence of any stains, whether or not you or any of your close family member is a smoker, whether you live with pets etc…  If you are selling furniture then it is very important to list the dimensions and this information is easily obtained by looking up the product online. 

• Price your items competitively and with leeway for further negotiation.

You can sell your item quickly and competitively if you search for the item before listing to see the range that is commanded by other sellers.  If for some reason there is no one in your area selling them item then you can command a higher price as most people wouldn’t want to drive out of the way.   Be aware that with most of the transactions there will be negotiation between the buyer and the seller.  This may occur over email or while the buyer is looking the product over. 

• Adopt a no holding/first come first served policy.

Craigslist buyers are notorious for not following through with their expressed interest.  If you hold something for someone then know that there is a strong chance they will come back and say, “Oh, I changed my mind.  I don’t want it anymore.  Oops! Sorry!”

• Adopt a cash only exact change policy. 

To make sure that you get your money it is better to make it cash only so that you get your money right then and there and you can be done with the transaction at the point of sale. 

Now, onto my crazy Craigslist Story

When I first arrived in Washington, DC I came with a lot of boxes and one office chair.  I later acquired a variety fo Ikea furniture from a Klippan sofa, to endtables,  a dining set, study table, shelf etc…  I brought a basic air mattress and a pump from Walmart with me to DC but that air mattress soon gave out.  I got my current air mattress off of Craigslist  just to last me until I bought a bed.  But, I never ended up buying a bed  until my second year because I found the air mattress unexpectedly comfortable.  And besides, when I think about all that I had to go through a lot to get the air mattress I intent to get my use out of it.  I found the listing for my current  air mattress and I responded.  A guy replied back to say it was still available.  So, off I went in search of the air mattress with my pump in hand.  I wanted to pump up the mattress to make sure it didn’t have any holes. 

So, I get there and its an unfamiliar part of DC.    I ring the doorbell and the seller opens the door and then the screen door and he lets me in.  When I get inside he closes the door and locks it.  I get a weird feeling at the closed and locked door.  It’s not a big deal, I tell myself.  It is summer and everyone likes to keep their house cool.  And I guess people lock their doors in DC a lot too.  The guy starts making conversation with me.  He graduated two or three years ago from college and he wants to know where I went to college and when I graduated.  I tell him where I went to school.  He then asks me if I want to something to drink.  I am starting to feel a little weird.  I tell him no and ask him where the air bed is. 

He takes me to the living room and I quickly unfold the air mattress, hook up the pump and wait for the mattress to inflate.  He wants to know what I am up to in DC.  I tell him about law school.  He wants to know where.  I tell him the name of the school.  I am starting to think coming by myself wasn’t such a hot idea after all.  I was starting to get a bad feeling about this.  Something kept telling me to leave and get out.  The dude is starting to look a little weird to me now.   He’s disgustingly thin.  He looks like he hasn’t seen the sun much.    He asks me something else nosey and I give him a short and rude answer.  He seemed to finally get the message I didn’t want to divulge all the details of my life over an air mattress.  The entire apartment is so quiet that I don’t think anyone else is here.  I deflate the air mattress fast, pay the guy and leave.

I almost run from the house towards the metro telling myself I really should have come with someone else or better yet just stood outside on the patio and ask to see the mattress.  There was no need to go inside.  He could be some crazy weirdo.  Or maybe I am overthinking this.   As I am speed walking away from the house I realize that I am missing something.  I open my bag to find that I forgot my pump back at the house!  Aaaaah!  I couldn’t believe it.  Without the pump there is no way I can get the mattress inflated.  I stop the speed walking and wonder what I should do.  I look back at the row house with terror.  I don’t think I can go back there, I think to myself.  I become indecisive. 

While I am standing in the sidewalk I see a girl walking on the other side of the street.  I wave and cross over to her and I tell her what happened and I ask her if she would come with me to the weirdo’s house.  She was an undergrad at one of the colleges in DC.  The girl was on her way to her job as a server and she had a few minutes to spare.  We walked up the steps and knocked on the door.  No answer.  We knocked on it again.  Again, no answer.   We knocked a third time and I called out that I forgot my air pump.  No answer.  I couldn’t believe it.  It wasn’t but five minutes ago that I left this dude and I haven’t gone that far so I know he didn’t leave.  I call him a couple of times and leave him messages asking for my air pump. 

 Hmm…I wonder if he is holding my air pump hostage because I was rude to him earlier.  It didn’t appear too outside the realm of possibility.   Also, he knows I am the one who is calling him because of my number.   Maybe he is being mean back to me.  I call one of my new classmates–a guy.  I ask him to call and if he gets a voicemail then to leave him a tough/manly/mean voicemail.  You know, one of those voicemails that would let the weirdo know that I am not alone and that I got people!  My friend complied with my request and left oh, a few voice mails on my behalf. S till no answer at the door.  Since there was no answer at the door my new friend–the random girl on the street–and I left for the metro.   I was feeling angry and confused about what really happened to my air pump and gave it up for the time being to a hijacking by the air mattress weirdo.  Later that day I get a text message stating, “got your multiple messages, and messages from your friend.  Fell asleep.  You can come pick up your air pump tomorrow.”  This time I went back with my classmate and I never put a feet inside the house.  It was a quick knock, grab the air mattress pump, bye!

So, was it just the case of me overreacting?  Was it female intuition?  Was the guy actually kind of shady?  Or, was he just nosey?  Was he trying to hit on me?  Or was it the case of an overactive imagination?

I have really turned this over in my mind after the incident.  While no one will know the actual answer I think  it is a little bit of  everything.   It was my first time in a large city like DC.  I was unfamiliar with the area and did feel uncomfortable being in an apartment alone with a strange guy with the door shut and locked for no reason that I could see.  At first, the young man I was dealing with looked normal, but soon something became unsettling as I saw him lock the door.  He did seem nice enough and interested in making conversation.   I think this entire exchange would have went a lot better if he didn’t close his door and lock it.  When he twisted that lock, in my mind, sirens went off.  Very loud sirens.  And I may have overreacted to the missing air pump by having a friend call and leave messages.   What say you? 

  Got any crazy Craigslist stories of your own? What are your tips for selling or buying on Craigslist?

• State #1 Bar Exam : July 27-28, 2010
• State #2 Bar Exam: July 28 and 29, 2010
• Apt. Lease Ends: July 31, 2010

I have a big decision to make about whether or not I want to extend my lease by one month so that I would move out at the end of August instead of July.  Do I really want to take the hardest exam of my life and then come back and move out of my apartment?  If I can avoid paying one extra month’s rent then I definitely do. 

It also depends on what exactly I will do in August.  Traditionally, law student’s do a post-bar trip after the bar exam.  I haven’t decided if I will and if so, where I will go.  If  I take a trip then I need to be out of the apartment so I can use the August rent for the trip.

There are things that take up space, you don’t use it but nevertheless it is hard to get rid of.  The perfect example is yearbooks.  I threw out my middle school yearbooks.  But the high school yearbooks were more difficult.  I ended up tearing out the pages from my high school year books that I wanted to keep and putting the rest in recycling.

When my friends and I compare our rents I come in on the lowest of the low spectrum with $750.  DC is one very expensive place to live if you want to live without a bunch of roommates/housemates.  AfterCollege.com put the average rent for a one bedroom apartment at $1,469 and Rent.com put that figure at an unheard of $1,100.  Most students and professionals who wants to live in a decent area that is close to the metro pays that much for a studio. 

 My Cali Friend’s rent is $1,250 for a studio while my New Mexico friend’s rent is $1,350 for a studio.  They both rent directly from condo owners which makes their rent lower than the typical apartment rates.  My Richmond study buddy pays $1,450 for a studio and she lives in an apartment.  They all live in a very nice area that is very close to the metro with a stone’s throw from a gym, grocery store, banks, restaurants and other convenience. 

 I pay $750 for a Junior 1 Bedroom.  I live in (ahem) a less-than desirable area of Washington, DC.  It’s the kind of place that I never would have lived in the first time I got to DC.  But, let’s just say my standards have changed and I have toughened up.  

 
I drive anywhere from 15-30 minutes depending on the time of the day to get to school.  If I want to take the metro then I will need to take a bus to get to it, but I don’t need to since I can park at school.  There is a grocery store that is about 10 minutes away but no gyms, banks or any other convenience. 

 This is the best I’ve had in law school.  A rent of $750 is dirt cheap in DC and it is the first time ever that I had a 1bedroom and I love it (except I live on the ground floor and sometimes people really like to stand outside my window and talk at 5:00 a.m.).     

 I used to have rent envy. 

 My first year my rent was $1,590 per month that was very convenient to my school.  This was really good for the stress fest and sleep deprivation that is the first year of law school.  It broke my heart every month to write a check out for “one thousand five hundred and ninety dollars” but I enjoyed the convenience and safety.  This was my first apartment and I vowed I will never ever pay this much for an apartment ever again in my life. 

 My second year I moved out to a basement apartment for $850 that was about 10 minutes away from school.  It was a complete dump and I hated every minute that I lived in that apartment.  In the winter it would never get warm enough even with my small personal heater.  The good thing was that the price of $850 included everything including laundry. 

 Okay, I actually still have rent envy.

There are three apartments where I live now.  The apartment that I live in right now is the biggest and nicest of the three with our own parking lot.  This is really good for me because I don’t have DC tags and I can get towed if I repeatedly park on the street.  The second apartment closest to us looks like a dump.  It’s just very ugly looking.  Then, the third apartment is much more decent looking and more like my apartment.  I am desperate for my rent to be lower next year because it takes up so much of my budget.  So, I called up the decent looking apartment and they told me their 1 bedroom apartments are renting for $850 per month.  Then I called up the dump and asked them how much and they said $650 for a 1 bedroom.  Hmm…$650 you say?  That would be an additional savings of $1,200 per year.  I can take a trip abroad with that kind of money.  Wow, that would be so nice.  And really, the place isn’t really a dump.  Sure, they have iron bars on their window’s and that just, um, adds character to the building, right?