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I really don't care where you live. When I was a kid we always had laundry rooms in our houses, but I still knew that most apartments didn't have washer and dryer hookups by the time I was about 9.
Can you give an example of what you are looking at? I've looked into this a lot for our condo, and I finally gave up. I wasn't convinced any of them were good enough to make paying for, installing and taking up the room worth it.
I don't have a washer or dryer, and my complex also doesn't have a laundry room. I do laundry once per week, the day varies, and going to the laundromat doesn't bother me at all, because I can run errands afterwards.
I couldn't imagine doing laundry for that many people on a portable machine. Nor could hauling all that laundry to wash it either.
Doesn't that get expensive? When DH and I were first married - we went thru a roll ($10) or quarters easy each week doing laundry at the local place. We moved and rented a washer and dryer for $40/month (older units from a couple running a rental business) since we didn't want to buy (military , weren't sure where we were headed next) -
I'd look for a place with room for fullsize applicances - I had to buy stackables for our current place and coul barely give away my old (but working) washer and dryer. I see them cheap all the time at our Habitat for Humanity (some brand new!)
Plus this would be a quality of life issue for me - I'd rather have free/family time than spend hours at the laundrymat
You DO live in a cheap apartment! What you pay for your apartment gets me a room in my city - and many other urban areas. It is rare to find an apartment in my area with washer-dryer hookups unless you are willing to pay a premium (think $2000 a month for a 1 bedroom) or you find a room in a house or the rare lucky apartment with hookups. Since our housing stock is old, many of the apartments were built before washing machines were available and they have not been retrofitted because of the plethora of laundromats. Many apartments have a washer-dryer in the basement, but not all. My boyfriend lives in an older apartment building with 3 apartments (pretty standard around here) with no basement washer-dryer. He has a car so he just drops it off at a wash & fold, but his roommates laundry twice a week on their bikes the half a mile to a laundromat.
To the OP - I think you do have far to many people to make a portable washer work comfortably. Would you consider handwashing some items? I spent 6 months living in Mexico where you had to take your laundry out and my host mom warned me not to send out my underwear (I didn't ask ), so I got used to washing underwear in the sink/tub. Underwear, bras, socks, and camisols could easily be handwashed, and it would likely keep them looking fresh longer (and it can be a chore for the kids to do their own!). I often wear a pair of pants 2 or 3 times before washing them (but do iron before using), which also helps stretch laundry.
Not particularly frugal, but shop around at your local wash and folds. My last apartment was on the 3rd floor and to get to the basement washer and dryer I had to go down a rickety fire escape, in a back door, and down a really dark staircase. Half the time, the washing machine didn't work and the landlord had no interest in replacing it. I was going through chemo at the time and really couldn't make the trip up and down such steep stairs - especially when I didn't know if the machine would cooperate or not! I ended up having it picked up and delivered - and it wasn't too expensive. Something like .80c a pound with free next day delivery. I just left the laundry on my porch and it would come back to me cleaned, ironed, and folded. Ironed sheets! If you live in a lower COL area, you might be able to get more mileage or find someone who does it in their home. It is more expensive than a quarter operated laundromat, but it also would save you a ton of time and hassle. I think I was averaging $40 a month for this service, with frequent bedding laundering as well.
You DO live in a cheap apartment! What you pay for your apartment gets me a room in my city - and many other urban areas. It is rare to find an apartment in my area with washer-dryer hookups unless you are willing to pay a premium (think $2000 a month for a 1 bedroom) or you find a room in a house or the rare lucky apartment with hookups. Since our housing stock is old, many of the apartments were built before washing machines were available and they have not been retrofitted because of the plethora of laundromats. Many apartments have a washer-dryer in the basement, but not all. My boyfriend lives in an older apartment building with 3 apartments (pretty standard around here) with no basement washer-dryer. He has a car so he just drops it off at a wash & fold, but his roommates laundry twice a week on their bikes the half a mile to a laundromat.
To the OP - I think you do have far to many people to make a portable washer work comfortably. Would you consider handwashing some items? I spent 6 months living in Mexico where you had to take your laundry out and my host mom warned me not to send out my underwear (I didn't ask ), so I got used to washing underwear in the sink/tub. Underwear, bras, socks, and camisols could easily be handwashed, and it would likely keep them looking fresh longer (and it can be a chore for the kids to do their own!). I often wear a pair of pants 2 or 3 times before washing them (but do iron before using), which also helps stretch laundry.
Not particularly frugal, but shop around at your local wash and folds. My last apartment was on the 3rd floor and to get to the basement washer and dryer I had to go down a rickety fire escape, in a back door, and down a really dark staircase. Half the time, the washing machine didn't work and the landlord had no interest in replacing it. I was going through chemo at the time and really couldn't make the trip up and down such steep stairs - especially when I didn't know if the machine would cooperate or not! I ended up having it picked up and delivered - and it wasn't too expensive. Something like .80c a pound with free next day delivery. I just left the laundry on my porch and it would come back to me cleaned, ironed, and folded. Ironed sheets! If you live in a lower COL area, you might be able to get more mileage or find someone who does it in their home. It is more expensive than a quarter operated laundromat, but it also would save you a ton of time and hassle. I think I was averaging $40 a month for this service, with frequent bedding laundering as well.
Really? Curious as to where you live (state, region, city, whatever you feel like sharing) because it is very common here. Washer/dryer connections are considered a "bonus" in many places and sometimes only available in 2 or 3 bedroom units as well.
This is generally true even in newer complexes but specifically in the case of my neighborhood I am sure it has something to do with the available rentals being older (generally 1920s through 1960s). I am in Texas. The only time I expect washer/dryer connections is when looking at house rentals.
Anyway about the washer and dryer, the one in my current complex has small top loaders that are often out of service. Really hard for me, after having a nice front loader at home for years. Since there are only three of them this is a pain, when you go expecting to do three loads and one is out. Or when you haul it all there and they are all in use. So yes, it takes planning, thankfully I am a night owl so I can usually do it at 2 am when no one else is wanting to do laundry.
The dryers are nice and big though and cheap ($.75 for an hour!) and powerful enough that I never need that full hour, but that is not going to be necessarily true for wherever we end up moving to.
It totally has to do with the area you're living in and the older rentals. Every two bedroom apartment I had in San Antonio had washer-dryer connections. Every apartment I looked at had them also, because I wouldn't consider an apartment without one. After I had kids, I couldn't imagine living without easy access to a washing machine any time of day.
That being said, I can't imagine washing laundry for a family of five in a tiny portable machine. You'll end up having to run it almost constantly. All those wet clothes hanging around drying will make your apartment more humid and your air conditioner have to work harder. I had a stackable washer/dryer when my oldest was an infant, and only the washer worked...the apartment always smelled like wet clothes because every day I had to do an itty bitty load of laundry and hang it to dry.
Personally, if I absolutely couldn't find a house or apartment to rent with washer dryer connections (probably only if you insist on living in an apartment in the Alamo Heights area, everywhere else you'll be able to find an apartment with connections), I would take all the laundry to a commercial laundromat once a week and just get it all done that way. Oh, and I would take my husband along to help cart the stuff back and forth
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), so I got used to washing underwear in the sink/tub. Underwear, bras, socks, and camisols could easily be handwashed, and it would likely keep them looking fresh longer (and it can be a chore for the kids to do their own!). I often wear a pair of pants 2 or 3 times before washing them (but do iron before using), which also helps stretch laundry.
