Uh oh. The FTC better not let that go through.

In the places you want to apply, check the laws on how much income landlords are allowed to require co-signers to have. For example, in Portland, OR, landlords may not require that an applicant’s gross monthly income be more than 2 times the monthly rent if the rent is above the amount affordable to people making 80% of the median household income. If it’s below that, then they can’t require more than 2.5x. (Apologies for the run-on sentence, that wording was almost directly copied from Portland’s renter’s handbook.)

Amazon: I avoid them because of worker abuse and union busting. While prime shipping is convenient, planning around not having it comes pretty naturally. Just plan as if it’s not an option at all. This does require good internet search skills to find sites that sell what you’re looking for, but I can’t express how worth it the work is to get better quality products.

Starbucks: I avoid them because of union busting. I make most of my coffee and tea at home, it’s cheaper and better anyway. Otherwise, I go to a local cafe. My area has a lot of them, but even if yours doesn’t, try asking around.