10 Tips to Decorate Military Housing or Rentals – On a Budget!

Due to moving or PCS’ing often, military families are usually living in rentals or military housing. It might not seem worth it to not decorate since you may have to move in a short while. However, I feel that if you put that extra touch into making a house a home, it can definitely improve your perception and attitude towards a duty station.

Now, decorating a rental or military housing can be challenging since there may be regulations preventing you from making major changes.The finishings in rental spaces can oftentimes be generic and dull.

However, there are affordable ways to dress it up and change your place from drab to fab. You’ve seen my military housing hacks before, now check out these 10 Affordable Decorating Tips for Military Housing or Rentals.

Paint

If paint is allowed, choose light neutral colors that will be easier to repaint over before you move. You’d hate to have to pay for primer and paint to paint over a bold color. You don’t necessarily have to paint all of the walls to have an impact either. To save money, you can paint one statement wall.

Walls

Plain stretched canvases are affordable and can be customized to your taste. Almost anything can be decoupaged or painted on them. You can try stapling fabric on them, or using scrap paper. You can also use washi tape or wall decals. Decals can even be applied to furniture and tile.

Curtains

Curtains can be surprisingly expensive. You can use fabric or long table clothes. Use curtain clips as an easy way to no-sew and hang them up.

Mirrors

Mirrors are an affordable way to make a space appear larger. They can also make dark spaces look brighter. Check out flea markets or home decor or home improvement stores for deals.

Kitchen and bathroom

They make temporary tiles for backsplashes. There are also creative ways to decorate your cabinets temporarily with washi tape or contact paper.

Floors

I love rugs. They protect the floor (and your deposit). They also add warmth, color and texture to a blank space. For smaller spaces or even great rooms, throw or area rugs can be used to define living areas. To save money, try finding remnant piece of carpet and have them finished off.

Lighting

Since you usually can’t change the lighting fixtures, you can always invest in lamps. I like to invest in a great-looking base, and then save money on the shade since I can always change them out.

Furniture

For rentals or military housing, consider furniture that does double-duty. A couch that can be a sofa bed or daybed. Think ottomans that double as storage solutions or kitchen islands with storage underneath. You’ll get multiple uses for one piece of furniture which is a great way to save money.

Accessories

Accessories don’t have to be new. Use Craigslist, flea markets and yard sales, buy/sell facebook groups. In the military community, a lot of people PCS out and want to purge their items, so check our military social media groups for anything for sale.

Plants

Houseplants can add a much needed touch of life to a space. For military families who move a lot, you can invest in fake plants that don’t have any upkeep (or water bills). If you want to have the real thing, you can try succulents or other drought-tolerant species.

Check out my etsy shop for the ULTIMATE PCS BINDER PRINTABLE KIT or printable art pieces for your new place.

Do you have any tips for decorating military housing or rentals? P.S. Check out the giveaway below from the National Military Family Association!