Home Sweet Home: Off-Campus Living

Rooms for rent. Houses for rent. Bachelor apartments. One-bedrooms and four-bedrooms. Then there are leases, landlords and rent cheques ... Ah, the life of a student away from home.

Thinking about moving out of residence or your parents' home? There's a lot you can learn about living off-campus before you make the move.

Have a plan

You might be a master of procrastination and still manage to ace those midterms, but no amount of cramming or genius is going to guarantee you a great place to live. You need to plan ahead.

People have been known to score awesome apartments at the last minute, but you are more likely to end up paying a lot of money for something just this side of condemned.

Also think about who you want to live with. Do you want roommates? If so, how many?

Shop around

Once you've identified your roommates, organize your priorities into search criteria, such as:

Rent - what's the maximum amount you're willing to pay?
Type of place - do you want a high-rise apartment or a house? Hardwood or carpet? Basement or main floor?
Location - does it make sense to commute for cheaper rent? Or do you want to be able to roll out of bed five minutes before class no matter what the cost?
Laundry - do you want on-site facilities or can you deal with the laundromat?

After you know what you want, you can check out rental listings by:

Trying your school's student services/housing website where you can usually sort by rent, number of rooms or location
Buying a paper and scanning the classifieds
Taking a stroll through the neighbourhood(s) where you would like to live - "For Rent" signs appear everywhere in student areas from May to September and you'll get a better handle on what's out there

Inspection time

Be realistic. You probably can't afford a palace but you can land a clean, dry, warm place to live - and then some. If you start early enough, you shouldn't have to settle for something that doesn't meet your standards.

Here are a few things to consider when looking at a place for the first time:

Do the appliances work? Are they included in your lease?
How's the water pressure? (Check all the taps and the toilet)
Are you responsible for heat, electricity and/or hot water?
Are the windows and doors well-sealed? (This can dramatically affect your heating costs)
Who is responsible for maintenance, snow removal and lawn care?
Are there at least two outlets in every room? Do they all work?
Talk to the current tenants about their experience, if possible

Sealing the deal

Depending on your landlord, you may have to fill out an application to secure your apartment.

Each potential occupant will also have to provide personal references and financial information. This assures your landlord that the rent will be paid - and that you won't destroy the place.

When the application is approved, it's time to look at the lease. You are entering into a contract with the landlord, so make sure you understand your rights and obligations.

Here's what a typical lease should include:

Monthly rental amount
The term of your commitment (e.g. 12 months)
Whether or not you provided a deposit
Under what conditions and when that deposit will be returned
Your landlord's agreement to pay the utilities (heat, electricity, etc.) if that's the case

Learn More

You should receive a copy of the lease and all of your roommates should have signed that lease. This ensures you are all responsible for the rent and any damage.

Hint: Setting up a separate bank account for your rent money can provide peace of mind. Put enough funds in there at the beginning of each semester to cover your cheques and you won't have to worry about the dreaded "bounce" ... or an unhappy landlord.

You're in

When the decorating is done and you're relaxing in your very own living room, it might seem strangely quiet.

Even with roommates, people often feel isolated and restless after the non-stop action of residence life. If you're looking to recreate the comfort of constant companions, the following ideas will make your home your castle:

Throw a cocktail party - Make it semi-formal and send out invites and tell people to bring something to eat or drink
Have themed potlucks - You might want to specify what each person brings so you don't end up with a table of nachos
Have a movie marathon - Think The Office, Sex and the City, Star Wars, Alien, Halloween, The Omen - and lots of junk food

Resources

Learn more about your rights and responsibilities as a renter in the province where you'll be going to school:

Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
New Brunswick
Newfoundland & Labrador
Nova Scotia
Ontario
Prince Edward Island
Quebec
Saskatchewan

The information in this article is general only; it is not intended as specific investment, financial, accounting, legal or tax advice for any individual.