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Creative Solutions: How'd they do it?
4 @3 k9 j2 }8 c6 @Nothing says home like the living room couch+ s7 E; y% J; R1 d/ Q% u; ]
- o0 r/ f/ A! Q$ n& Y5 M6 eAlexandra Zabjek6 Y0 p5 }2 Z5 w# {" x, J$ X% O5 F
The Edmonton Journal O% M: y, ]: C
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Sunday, May 20, 2007( V7 @; V/ F4 x' I' D# D" ?7 O
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) P4 b3 y+ L: S0 O4 d+ G9 x/ SStudent 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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; U/ Z9 p: M, w& J9 n2 pAt Steve Li's one-bedroom apartment near NAIT, the living room is a bedroom for his roommate, Bill Chadwick.
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. r0 i Q, U: z( z/ Y8 sLi 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.+ A7 H) R X5 E% S+ ~5 |' g
: @/ ~2 K% T/ X/ x"I receive approximately $700 per month (in grants) to go to school," says Chadwick, 32. "So when $275 comes into the picture, it works out quite well."! W m; \7 H) S4 ~$ t: m+ f ~
0 Q+ c- _- M* C* `) W1 p3 c9 mAfter spending time couch-surfing with friends, Chadwick says having a "defined space" is great, even if it isn't a proper bedroom.* J* i, a) }3 k' ?9 ^
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Sharing 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.2 p/ }$ R V! w, G8 e. k5 ?
9 ]6 M1 k* \+ y/ n k+ T"The people who can afford to send their kids to Canada to study are quite rich," he says. "(Their) apartments in China are big."; f" W# C+ N% W6 v4 S% m. P
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Splitting the rent on a one-bedroom apartment, however, make things much easier for students with limited budgets.
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"I wouldn't say (it would be completely) unaffordable, but this way it's much more economical," he says., }0 o* W% r1 w
8 [* c, J6 l1 NSOMEONE IN THE BASEMENT TO HELP PAY THE MORTGAGE6 Z" k+ b, \, E: S3 ?5 T+ B
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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.# q! Y9 t1 T: x7 T9 h& F6 j
, |& o9 a/ g% A+ c' N% Q9 J"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."; ~( J, p) {' b4 b
/ f3 C6 j q+ iTheir tenant pays $500 per month for the 750-square-foot suite. The money helps the couple pay down their mortgage more aggressively and provides a cushion in case either loses their job, says Crawshaw.( x( H) q4 `7 p7 d1 N9 q
* A; {7 O9 {1 _6 H" \$ |; ^The arrangement has worked out well, especially because the tenant was already living in the house when they moved in and has proved to be a "fantabulous" tenant who often spends time gardening in the yard or raking leaves, says Crawshaw, 25.9 \5 S/ ^ g! e* y- u& O1 |$ P& b( L5 u
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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.& L8 l5 C" \+ E
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"It would be nice to have more space and to have another bathroom," she says.3 I7 c. U7 ^1 {! w+ E b |5 o
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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."; I. ?/ J: B7 i$ e- i: S$ u% N
© The Edmonton Journal 2007 |
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发表于 2007-5-20 07:27
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