Items that you can take on Rent

By Renting a few things, you can help the environment

Varun P
5 min readApr 30, 2023

There are many debates and discussions on whether one should take a house on rent or buy it; even multiple books are written on the subject. Each party deliberating this have their arguments justifying the scenarios.

Buying a house is a significant decision for almost everyone, and listening to different views can help in decision-making.

We use a few other things in our life, which do not need extensive research. Change Started is an environmental platform, and we will share some points that make renting a better choice than buying.

Having said that, it depends upon your personal choice, situation, and the environment.

Why Renting is Better

Save Money: One of the most significant benefits of renting instead of buying is that it saves money upfront because rental rates are lower than prices if you want to purchase an item.

Save Space: Instead of keeping heavy and bulky items in your home, you can save space by renting out for the time you need and returning it.

Helps in Product Validation: Renting is an excellent idea if you still need to determine what equipment to buy and want to test the product before purchasing. You can even explore multiple options.

Reduce your maintenance Expenses: When you buy a product, you must spend money on frequent maintenance, like washing, cleaning, polishing, etc., to ensure the product is fit for a long time. When renting, you can return when you see the product quality diminishing.

Helps the Environment: Renting ensures that multiple people use the product. This means fewer resources were consumed for the same product to be effectively utilized before being discarded.

Children's Toy I Image

Take the case of a toy that a child would play with for a few days or months and then stop. If you have bought the toy for your child, once the use is over, you will either discard it, give it away, or store it. While if you gave it to a charity or someone, its utility would increase; if discarded, it might pollute the environment, and if it is stored, it takes your storage space. On the other hand, if you take a toy on rent from a trusted source, you can let your kid play as long as they want and then give it back for that toy to be used by another kid. Therefore, renting helps save money and space and reduce the emissions a toy would have incurred.

Items that you can Consider Renting instead of Buying

Dress and Fashion accessories

Fashion causes about 10% of overall carbon emissions, consumes high amounts of water, pollutes rivers and streams with harmful chemicals, and ends up in landfills after brief use.

In the era of fast fashion, we must wear clothes that are made with sustainable materials and, in addition, avoid buying clothes that we plan to use for a brief period, like during parties, social gatherings, or weddings.

Fashion jewelry, wedding dresses, gowns, tuxedos, lehengas, and sherwanis are expensive, worn only for one-off occasions, and then kept at the back of the cupboard. Therefore to avoid this, we can easily take such expensive dresses on rent instead of buying them.

Children Toys

We love our children and do our best to pamper them with toys and gifts. However, children only play with these toys for a certain period; sometimes, that could be just a few days.

No doubt, toys have an essential role in children’s learning and development, but instead of buying toys, we can take them on rent and return them once the child stops playing. In addition, we should also try to ensure that we are giving toys that do not cause any harm to our children.

Furniture

Furniture is an integral part of house interiors which provides comfort and utility. If you are staying temporarily, it is better to take furniture on rent instead of buying. Investing in furniture for a short-term stay will not only burn a hole in your pocket, but you must also pack and transport it when moving out.

Furniture on rent also helps you to change your interiors every few years instead of being fixed for an extended period.

Books and School Textbooks

From history to philosophy, politics to science, reading books builds our knowledge, expands our perspectives, and contributes to intelligence, among many other advantages.

Few books substantially impact our lives; we would like to keep them for further reading or passing to someone in the family or friends. Not all books are like that, especially fiction, school textbooks, etc., which are read only once. Taking books from Library or rent-shops is a much better option for these books.

Bicycles

Riding bicycles has its share of benefits, and one of them is fitness and well-being. The popularity of bicycles among the older generation is continuously rising, especially among enthusiasts who like riding on weekends for health reasons.

If you are not a regular cyclist or use it as a weekend fitness routine, consider renting instead of buying a bicycle whenever you desire. In many cities, centers are made where bicycles can be picked up for a small charge. Some bicycle centers are enabled through technology that helps users pick and pay using smartphone apps.

Bicycle I Image

Handy Tools and Small Devices

If you are one of those who sometimes become a mechanic for a minor repair, installation, or DIY project, tools like drilling machines, repair kits, and small devices are needed. These activities are irregular and rare, so these tools can be rented instead of purchased.

Cutlery and Crockery

Get together, parties, social gatherings, and functions are not everyday occasions for most of us. So whenever you have a special occasion in your home, you can take cutlery and crockery on rent instead of storing a pile of them in the kitchen cabinet.

Camping Equipment and Adventure Gears

You can blame it on Instagram or better accessibility, like cycling, adventure activities have caught the fancy of many youngsters and thrill seekers. Mountain treks, hikes, fishing, and camping are on the travel list of many travelers.

A few of us might do it regularly, while it is an occasional holiday for most others. So if you need camping gear, tents, hiking boots, sleeping bags, special jackets, fishing equipment, etc., it is better to take it on rent.

Wrapping Up

Ultimately, deciding whether to buy or rent an item should be based on careful consideration of your choices, resources available, and circumstances.

Originally published at https://changestarted.com on April 30, 2023.

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Varun P

Working towards a sustainable future. Product Manager. Write about— Environment & Sustainability I ClimateTech I.