UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA SOPHOMORE David Levitz just finished a social experiment, The Rented Life. For the fall 2013 semester, the acting and journalism double major had to rent or barter as many things as possible in an attempt to stay below the national average of college living expenses.
The challenge, which was created by BookRenter.com, was issued with the intent to:
• Highlight the rising costs of a college education.
• Showcase the many creative ways students can save money.
• Demonstrate the importance of the “shared economy” in today’s society.
David was chosen after BookRenter.com found his YouTube channel and asked him to submit a one-minute audition video explaining why he was right for the project.
As for the types of things he buys, barters or borrows, David says, “Anything and everything. Meals, books, toiletries, school supplies, transportation, furniture, clothing, Halloween costumes, entertainment—the list really goes on and on.”
One of David’s assignments was to redecorate a room in his apartment for under $35. To accomplish “Décor for the Poor,” he and a friend headed to local yard sales and snagged some great deals, including an “all-you-can-fit-for-$10” bag sale. To find the yard sale and other deals, David frequently used apps and websites.
“The Rented Life has introduced me to so many resources, such as gsalr.com to find local garage sales, spinlister.com to rent out my bike, 8tracks.com to listen to free personal music playlists, and, of course, BookRenter.com to rent textbooks for great deals,” he explains. “Sites like Yelp.com and RetailMeNot.com are helpful for finding local deals as well. I used a special University of Minnesota Facebook group called ‘Free & For Sale’ to buy some of my apartment furniture from fellow students.”
Buying from neighbors can certainly help for the bigger purchases, which usually involve hauling. Luckily for David, his best deal was a leather couch he got from a moving sale in his building … for $30. He even got a microwave and toaster oven thrown in for free!
So what’s David’s incentive? “I am passionate about The Rented Life project because I wish it had existed when I was a freshman,” he said. “I knew very little about college budgeting back then, and would have loved to have followed The Rented Life student to get tips from a peer currently in college. I also think the YouTube format is a really fun way to share advice with a broad audience, and have a blast making videos.”
Of course, it never hurts to have a financial incentive: David gets an allowance from BookRenter for the semester’s living expenses, and he gets to keep whatever money is left over at the end of the semester. Now THAT’S a good deal!
The experiment was filmed as a Web series of the same name. See it online at www.bookrenter.com/the-rented-life.
