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Creative Solutions: How'd they do it?
K T K- a9 a" g1 T$ VNothing says home like the living room couch& w5 }# N4 l' F6 ?0 V8 t+ C
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Alexandra Zabjek k1 M l; T4 U- h
The Edmonton Journal
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, F6 Q( N' v, X4 _Sunday, May 20, 2007" g6 ]# s9 E2 q" Z9 t: o8 f/ ~+ X
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8 D7 G7 Y7 K1 _& Q9 _Student 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.; p8 c& q2 G: Y! g
1 T, F6 F# I& z. Q8 l# I7 F1 _At Steve Li's one-bedroom apartment near NAIT, the living room is a bedroom for his roommate, Bill Chadwick.# ^7 O! _2 U+ w& F: f
0 N5 }: |& f& c! qLi 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.3 x: C. s3 @1 Z% B+ U1 P
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"I receive approximately $700 per month (in grants) to go to school," says Chadwick, 32. "So when $275 comes into the picture, it works out quite well."
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After spending time couch-surfing with friends, Chadwick says having a "defined space" is great, even if it isn't a proper bedroom./ s$ U. Y) z8 q4 f% Z6 C, H3 F
6 |% A; L# z/ nSharing 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.
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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."3 \ |; V# }: u
3 l G0 E5 I+ r/ b( T) MSplitting the rent on a one-bedroom apartment, however, make things much easier for students with limited budgets., u; v0 z. M8 X0 F% N
. J) L" b. A# e"I wouldn't say (it would be completely) unaffordable, but this way it's much more economical," he says.* L5 W% M0 v6 Y& e1 R3 I$ Q. E
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SOMEONE IN THE BASEMENT TO HELP PAY THE MORTGAGE
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6 G: Y1 z( e* N4 D/ OWhen 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.6 Y! F% E3 r$ Y4 K! N+ ^/ W
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"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."6 }! |8 Q' V+ O* I% Z
, @4 q1 _( g! F4 Y. d. j' kTheir tenant pays $500 per month for the 750-square-foot suite. The money helps the couple pay down their mortgage more aggressively and provides a cushion in case either loses their job, says Crawshaw./ W# W3 z- z$ K3 ^6 L
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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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. ^$ ~: A) ~! M. fThe 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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4 H8 h, |/ _9 K. A8 l' j: M6 W0 @4 ["It would be nice to have more space and to have another bathroom," she says.
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3 a+ O+ t& ]2 a$ i"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."
1 v, h- m' K. R* Q) l0 w© The Edmonton Journal 2007 |
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发表于 2007-5-20 07:27
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