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Creative Solutions: How'd they do it?7 F, N; v* f5 j6 Z) o
Nothing says home like the living room couch
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4 z% E0 u4 `* {3 ~+ b6 O$ UAlexandra Zabjek$ S: s {' B1 A
The Edmonton Journal D$ Q8 q. ^" R3 a
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Sunday, May 20, 2007( r0 p. h9 H' m F& _
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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.7 R9 p: m) ^7 |3 f7 w9 g6 H0 T
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At Steve Li's one-bedroom apartment near NAIT, the living room is a bedroom for his roommate, Bill Chadwick.
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: G! `* q1 [8 y) O- J" cLi 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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"I receive approximately $700 per month (in grants) to go to school," says Chadwick, 32. "So when $275 comes into the picture, it works out quite well."4 {5 Y8 B6 L/ s# P
/ |# \' P/ A) x5 M. |$ WAfter 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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! } q" Q! x X2 d& _: B! k9 R8 MSharing 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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( y: q0 X+ @2 ?0 z3 h"The people who can afford to send their kids to Canada to study are quite rich," he says. "(Their) apartments in China are big."1 j. Y. V+ @6 q2 Q9 ^
; h6 ^+ ?( A$ x; P/ u1 JSplitting 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.
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SOMEONE IN THE BASEMENT TO HELP PAY THE MORTGAGE
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5 F; c# k& q2 H* v3 y1 gWhen 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. w$ j, p$ [/ B2 a3 q) w$ {) }
, s$ y: W9 ?3 H/ N |: R h# {) E"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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! ~% U/ |6 @; C) OTheir 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. b @4 W- s" j5 ]* g; k
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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.+ _5 F# j/ b6 R& D* n
! S* `! y/ g5 N7 XThe 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./ V! \! ?& Q9 \1 a) i- W* `
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"It would be nice to have more space and to have another bathroom," she says.
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8 [, A% S& d7 Q1 @* A1 \/ Y"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."
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发表于 2007-5-20 07:27
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