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Creative Solutions: How'd they do it?' E4 o2 p8 k" A' m( Z; W
Nothing says home like the living room couch# Q% b7 [' c) _+ D1 ~8 l+ }
# k" U8 |- S% J' cAlexandra Zabjek* Q* Y% D% o; B2 }# w
The Edmonton Journal
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Sunday, May 20, 2007
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0 Q) O0 K& }1 Y7 g1 jStudent 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.3 P: R! H! Y1 T5 F. Q- {( U) M
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At Steve Li's one-bedroom apartment near NAIT, the living room is a bedroom for his roommate, Bill Chadwick. A0 p( {* A! j1 N" V0 Q: X* O
; ?* Q: R7 j' k! ~Li 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.( S1 o% [, O% U" @% c d/ R5 J
7 q) i4 M; K9 `7 o0 G) k/ o" l"I receive approximately $700 per month (in grants) to go to school," says Chadwick, 32. "So when $275 comes into the picture, it works out quite well."
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After spending time couch-surfing with friends, Chadwick says having a "defined space" is great, even if it isn't a proper bedroom.
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" H- |* v2 D" jSharing a one-bedroom apartment is a common arrangement amongst Chinese students studying in Edmonton, says Li, who has been living in Canada for the past seven years. It's a big change for many of these students, he says.1 H6 _0 u* M9 j$ {" P' f- z$ F
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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."; @0 z: i5 F% R/ L3 c8 L
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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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3 z `; o$ k6 `3 n, {6 j"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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9 d x3 [( W/ E% s, }1 _3 U4 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.& Y) t# O: S, b. N4 R6 M
' N' @. f& [; 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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/ }2 t3 U- C' }4 p5 H2 C. qTheir 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.
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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.- k3 w* d; G3 g# m: P
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"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."
$ A! h1 R4 a" T3 j% ^+ l© The Edmonton Journal 2007 |
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