I have always lived in rental houses, even growing up. My parents recently bought and built their own house from scratch almost 7 years after I moved and started renting my own properties. Everyone has nightmares about rents and stories of great landlords and not-so-great neighborhoods, memories of their first ‘starter’ apartment right out of college to that place they found by accident that turned out to be wonderful.

The question many of us ask ourselves when we move into a new apartment or rental house is whether this place could be considered “home.” Now, that concept of home is vague and indescribable, different between two people even in the same family. For some people, home is a certain set of objects, or people, or just a feeling they have about a combination of any number of things.

Making your rental feel like home, whether you’re there for two months or 17 years, is essential to your well-being, as well as the adjustment we all have to make when moving to a new place. I’ve found that as I’ve moved through rental properties throughout my life, 9 in the last 6 years to be exact, what has made each of those places feel a little more like home has varied. However, there are some elements that make me feel at home no matter where I am.

These items include the things that make me feel at home, namely random objects, pictures, and other belongings that I have collected over the years and painstakingly transferred through moves and even abroad. I have a shower curtain map of the world that friends have signed their names on; pictures of family, weddings, and college friends laughing together; magnets with Shakespeare’s best insults written on them; and a whole package of books that I can never give away. I have a chameleon-shaped tape dispenser and coffee mugs from places I’ve traveled.

All of these things make my rental properties look like home, but there are plenty of other ways to make your rental feel like home, too. Investing your time and effort in a rental property makes it feel more like your own; If you can and the landlord is okay with it, see if you can paint a wall a fun color or spruce up the place in a more aesthetic way to put your stamp on it. Hang pictures you like or posters with inspirational quotes. Post your world map on a cork board and pin the places you’ve been to or want to travel to. Stock your fridge and put some fresh flowers on the table, buy sheets you like and create a space where you feel comfortable.

Not every rental is a home, but every rental (no matter how big or small) can feel a little more like a home with just a little effort.