5 Things to Consider Before Renting a Place
Photo from Dillon Kydd on Unsplash
Welcome to Limitless!
1. Proximity to your workplace or/and school
Are you willing to make the commute if the house is far from these places? Do you have a car? How many minutes car ride is it? How many minutes is your limit? Same with bus, the transit system is really not the best in Ottawa😭😂, so are you willing to make that bus commute plus some extra minutes? Sometimes, you might just need to add some extra money if you think you can’t manage the less affordable option that is farther.
2. Do you want to live alone or with roommates?
I feel this depends majorly on the size of your pocket. Renting a good one bedroom/bachelor apartment costs a minimum of about $1300. You could find a basement apartment for about $1000. Some apartments don’t come furnished and some are not all-inclusive. So, consider furnishing and utilities cost when deciding. The question really is can you afford living alone?
If you are a student (international students especially), living with roommates is the best bet because it is the most cost-efficient living arrangement. It would save you money. I know in Ottawa, you can find a good room for as low as $700. Some of them also come furnished.
Also, if you are an international student thinking of moving to Canada or any other country, let me give you unsolicited advice, lol. The very best bet is living with a roommate because by the time you convert the price of a one bed/ bachelor in CAD to Naira, you’d be flabbergasted😂. You already know dollar rates these days aren’t smiling.
With no doubt, I understand that some single adults who are well-to-do live with roommates because they can’t deal with the loneliness and quietness of living alone.
3. Lease type
Are you looking for a month-to-month or yearly lease? This basically means ‘how long are you committed to stay there for?’. If you get a yearly lease, that means you are required to rent the place for the amount of years on the contract. This lease can be renewed in most places.
On the other hand, month-to-month is more flexible. You are not bound to stay there for a certain period of time. You can leave whenever you want, but you still have to give the landlord notice- two weeks, a month or the time required in your contract.
4. The building management or house owner
This might sound really picky, but it is so important to avoid stories that touch. You want to make sure the superintendents of the building or owner are pleasant, respectful and efficient people.
There are some red flags you shouldn’t ignore when you meet the owners or superintendent of the place you’re about to rent, e.g rolling their eyes at your question, snapping at you, evading some questions. Best believe, these might be the people who would make living for you unbearable. They might not attend to you if you have any issue, respond really late or lie about everything. So, be careful.
Also, make sure you ask as many questions as possible. Trust me, it will save you unnecessary stress.
5. Living arrangement
If you would be living with roommates, you want to ask if smoking is allowed, if pets are allowed, if visitors are allowed and for how long, if it’s female only or a male only accommodation, if it is furnished, the number of bathrooms. You also want to ask if you’d be living with the owner or not. Living with the owner of a house could be really bothersome, based on my experience and some other stories I’ve heard.
I wish you the best of luck in your house-hunting!
Of course this list isn’t exhaustive, so what other tips did I miss? Add them in the comment section, it could be of great help to someone.
Should we do a post on best apps/websites for house-hunting?🤪
Thank you for reading! Till we meet again!❤️
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