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Creative Solutions: How'd they do it?
, P7 c" m/ w* ?6 w! o7 s! INothing says home like the living room couch. G* p* N: Z1 c0 ^6 }6 @% o
4 l( p( Y3 i* a0 v; b$ IAlexandra Zabjek C% n4 l7 s5 m6 c8 W3 d6 s/ w; X
The Edmonton Journal% b' g: t8 C+ |( P' D0 j8 y
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Sunday, May 20, 2007
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3 g0 | e' k( b) {" @# ZStudent apartments aren't typically luxurious places, but soaring rents in Edmonton are forcing some students to pare down their living arrangements even more than usual.
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5 M) p; q& a6 t, S; N" t' R" S3 NAt Steve Li's one-bedroom apartment near NAIT, the living room is a bedroom for his roommate, Bill Chadwick.1 u# W8 J9 T3 I5 m, e( @1 \9 Z
: C9 H5 ]' U4 n, LLi and Chadwick, both students, split the $600 rent almost evenly -- Li gets the bedroom for $325 per month, while Chadwick pays $275 per month to put his bed in the living room.
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& B# c# O9 ?8 [9 z5 @: ]! V"I receive approximately $700 per month (in grants) to go to school," says Chadwick, 32. "So when $275 comes into the picture, it works out quite well."- ~7 J2 ]$ x" L$ h, |/ t, D
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After spending time couch-surfing with friends, Chadwick says having a "defined space" is great, even if it isn't a proper bedroom.
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4 ^1 o0 e# ~1 {" B0 DSharing a one-bedroom apartment is a common arrangement amongst Chinese students studying in Edmonton, says Li, who has been living in Canada for the past seven years. It's a big change for many of these students, he says.5 {; h/ |6 U2 N- ]1 K- D$ ~. T
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"The people who can afford to send their kids to Canada to study are quite rich," he says. "(Their) apartments in China are big."
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8 F, q( f' S. u- z& u* p' ySplitting the rent on a one-bedroom apartment, however, make things much easier for students with limited budgets.8 Z6 d9 n7 x$ [3 }9 p" A1 N
( a5 w5 D3 X5 m5 C$ v! |" C$ B"I wouldn't say (it would be completely) unaffordable, but this way it's much more economical," he says.
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% M' T: K4 f X1 r/ S- WSOMEONE IN THE BASEMENT TO HELP PAY THE MORTGAGE! z8 r" m7 C W+ a
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When Caitlin Crawshaw and her girlfriend bought a bungalow in Bonnie Doon last summer, it wasn't just the location that sold them on the 1950s era house. It was also the basement suite.9 O3 {8 ^& V6 c V( j% O1 T g; {
2 {7 T9 _5 S% d! P"It wasn't originally part of our plan," Crawshaw says. "But as soon as we started looking at houses and seeing what the market was, we thought that maybe we should consider it."
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Their tenant pays $500 per month for the 750-square-foot suite. The money helps the couple pay down their mortgage more aggressively and provides a cushion in case either loses their job, says Crawshaw.( J# ^2 A, r" u+ u& G
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The arrangement has worked out well, especially because the tenant was already living in the house when they moved in and has proved to be a "fantabulous" tenant who often spends time gardening in the yard or raking leaves, says Crawshaw, 25.
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The downside, however, is the lack of space. The couple and their two cats share about 750-square-feet on the upper floor of the house.
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9 k2 D" O9 L, L e- z3 ~2 U"It would be nice to have more space and to have another bathroom," she says.
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"But it does work out quite well. I don't regret it. But I don't want to do it for more than five years -- I don't think that anyone does."7 b% K H! u N
© The Edmonton Journal 2007 |
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发表于 2007-5-20 07:27
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