Housing in Edmonton - Page 2 - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

KAI · 08-08-2007, 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sparks

Good luck, especially as a first year.

If you're looking at residence, you're probably only going to get into Lister. Not really a bad thing, though - if you aren't from Edmonton, Lister's a great way to meet people.

I am a 3rd year student and i lived at Newton Place last year. The kicker is that we got in last year and we applied in april, this year we applied in January and we are on the waiting list. This is so fustrating!

KAI · 08-09-2007, 10:57 AM

I am going to Edmonton this weekend to check out a few places, most are really expensive but i guess i will just have to bit the bullet.

KAI · 08-10-2007, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

What's your budget? I usually keep an eye on ads and can let you know if I spot anything.

I haven't found anything within my price rang!!!

BlackArcher101 · 08-10-2007, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KAI

I haven't found anything within my price rang!!!

Sorry, neither have I. Most are shared suites.

KAI · 08-10-2007, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

Sorry, neither have I. Most are shared suites.

thanks anyways

KAI · 08-21-2007, 10:56 AM

SO i finally found a place to live in Edmonton. It has been a stressful few weeks but we found a one bedroom apartment about 3 blocks from the university. The guy was asking for 900 a mounth but in order to get it we offered him 975.

I am happy that we found somewhere to live but at the same time I think this alberta boom is not all it's cracked out to be. Sure there are lots of jobs and all that but prices are soo high and only climbing. Eventually this hyper inflated economy is going to crash and we are all going to be screwed. IMO

wooohooo · 08-21-2007, 01:28 PM

Doesn't lister get back to you on like sept. 1 or something? I heard it was pretty stupid...
I live just off whyte (83rd) and 108th street so I guess I was pretty fortunate to find a place there. With the Upass now, the bus/lrt ride won't be anything longer than a 20 minute commute (depending where you live of course).
Living in both Calgary and Edmonton, the market feels very similar... overpriced housing.

BlackArcher101 · 08-21-2007, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KAI

SO i finally found a place to live in Edmonton. It has been a stressful few weeks but we found a one bedroom apartment about 3 blocks from the university. The guy was asking for 900 a mounth but in order to get it we offered him 975.

I am happy that we found somewhere to live but at the same time I think this alberta boom is not all it's cracked out to be. Sure there are lots of jobs and all that but prices are soo high and only climbing. Eventually this hyper inflated economy is going to crash and we are all going to be screwed. IMO

Did you have to sign a 12 month lease as well?

KAI · 08-22-2007, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

Did you have to sign a 12 month lease as well?

No he only wanted a 10 mouth lease.

Sylvanfan · 08-22-2007, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KAI

I am happy that we found somewhere to live but at the same time I think this alberta boom is not all it's cracked out to be. Sure there are lots of jobs and all that but prices are soo high and only climbing. Eventually this hyper inflated economy is going to crash and we are all going to be screwed. IMO

Why is everyone going to be screwed? That statement seems to apply more to you than to the other 3 million Albertans. You're having to pay $975 a month for a place to live because you wanted certain things with the place and you found one. If you were trying to go to school in downtown Toronto, or in Vancouver you would have paid just as much and possible more to live by the campus in a similar accomodation.

KAI · 08-22-2007, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sylvanfan

Why is everyone going to be screwed? That statement seems to apply more to you than to the other 3 million Albertans. You're having to pay $975 a month for a place to live because you wanted certain things with the place and you found one. If you were trying to go to school in downtown Toronto, or in Vancouver you would have paid just as much and possible more to live by the campus in a similar accomodation.

That may be true but my problem with Alberta is that the boom and bust cycles we go through are so extreme. At the begining of this current boom i thouhg wow wages are going through the roof this is great. But in a relative sence i think the i have lost wealth. Living in this province is so expensive and I think that young people tring to make a living and raise a family are going to have a hard time in the next few years.

On the other hand is oil prices go down because of the nature of our economy there will be no jobs and prices will fall but if people aren't making any money they still wont be able to afford anything.

What bothers me is the unstability of our economy and how people that luck out by buying at the right time act like everyone is riding the strong economy and we are all benigiting. No one in this province could have predicted this boom (or at least the extent of it) and if you are benifiting from it it's just plain luck and if your not it's bad luck.

And to be honest you look around Edmonton and see what's out there. sure i might have been able to find something cheaper but any savings i would have made would have been eaten' up in transportaion costs. It is a landlords market and they hold all the power. I had to take what i could get because any place you want to live you have to compete against 20 other people like it was a high end job.

ken0042 · 08-22-2007, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KAI

It is a landlords market and they hold all the power.

I think you just proved SF's point there. You say we will all lose when/if the bust comes. But really what you are saying is you aren't seeing the benefits of the boom as much as others, and you won't see any advantage to the bust.

Whereas a homeowner like me- if I were to sell today I would make a whack of money on my house. I could move back to Manitoba and be mortgage free. But if the value of my house drops $150K, I'm still ahead of what I paid for it 3 years ago.

That, and my mortgage is the same as 3 years ago, but I'm earning 25% more.

Yep, the boom hasn't helped everybody. But it has helped a lot of us.

KAI · 08-22-2007, 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fotze

Students complained about their lot in life when I went to University, they do it today and they will do it in forty years. Let me guess, the Students Union are planning to protest about high tuition prices this year? I think this year, it might actually work.

The thing is today there are a lot more jobs out of graduation than I had. I took the first job offered which precipitated me staying in a dead-end job for 8 years.

Sure students have complained in the past. But todays students are faced with alot more. Standards have risen, tuition is rising, housing prices are rising. The costs facing students is so much higher than it used to be and it gets harder every year.

Current students are lucky that there will be jobs when they graduate but that is only because of the current economic situation. once oil prices fal ( and they eventually will) the job market will be tough for everyone whether they graduated 20 years ago or that year.

Sylvanfan · 08-22-2007, 01:24 PM

I was in school in the mid 90's in BC and the economy there was horrible. When I graduated finding a job was frickin difficult and to get one that paid well....forget it.

If students have it so bad, than why don't you go out and get one of these abundant good paying labour jobs for the next few years wait for the economy to crash and burn than go to school than to get your degree when people abandon their houses and let you live there for $200 a month? I'm guessing it's because you don't want to and that you think you'll be better off going to school now and than finding a job you like.

Back in 1994 or so when I was in school in Kamloops which was far from booming students were still paying $500 to $600 a month in rent to live within walking distance of a University College that had like 6000 students and graduating jobs were maybe paying $13-15 an hour if you could find one which was taking most people over a year to do after graduation. So are things really that much worse today than it was back than?

nieuwy-89 · 08-22-2007, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KAI

Sure students have complained in the past. But todays students are faced with alot more. Standards have risen, tuition is rising, housing prices are rising. The costs facing students is so much higher than it used to be and it gets harder every year.

Current students are lucky that there will be jobs when they graduate but that is only because of the current economic situation. once oil prices fal ( and they eventually will) the job market will be tough for everyone whether they graduated 20 years ago or that year.

Haha. When I went to University getting a summer job that paid more than $10 an hour was difficult. Tuition, books, and living expenses rose every year. And there was no guarantee of a good job at the end of your degree.

To paraphrase the other posters here - stop whining and enjoy the experience! You only get to do it once.

BlackArcher101 · 08-22-2007, 01:51 PM

Frankly, this boom has helped me in only one way. It has allowed me to build up some worth and put away some money. My job before the boom was a call center position at $8/hr. Now it's related to my schooling and it's over $20/hr. I actually left University in order to work full-time and take advantage of the higher income. Any money I save is going into a fund which I will use to go back to University when the boom seems to end. When others are worrying about jobs, I'll be back in school, which is a win-win situation for me.

V · 08-22-2007, 01:54 PM

Yeah, I graduated 6 years ago. I never had a summer job that paid more than 9.50/hr. I was unemployed after graduating for 6 months. I even had to move to Calgary to take that job, as horrible as that seemed at the time. The salary was crappy, the hours were crappy, the boss was a jerk, but it was a job.

I can't believe you're complaining about renting a place for 975 right by the Uni. Just wait til we hit a huge recession right when you graduate. Then not only did you pay an arm and a leg to get that degree, you won't even be able to put it to use when you get out!!!

Sylvanfan · 08-22-2007, 01:54 PM

Yeah, every year students make the claim that it's harder than it's ever been to be a student. Than again if being a student was so easy everyone would want to do it, and that would be pretty useless in the grand scheme. One way or another you'll face some type of challenge or adversity as a student be it housing, finding work, tuition, course loads, getting the right classes or faculty labour disputes. It's that adversity and how you deal with it that will usually prove your mettle more than your studies will in my opinion.

The Yen Man · 08-22-2007, 02:07 PM

Besides, it doesn't matter whether the economy is going through a boom or bust cycle, finding vacancy near universities will always be hard. Why? Because people go to school no matter what. In talking to a realtor, he tells me that's why people pay so much for houses near universities. Because they know it will rent out all the time, even during times of recession. So 975 for a place near the University really doesn't sound that bad to me.

guzzy · 08-22-2007, 02:53 PM

it isn't really a surprise that Edmonton's real estate market is hot. Alberta has been in a boom last I checked. If calgary is smoking hot why wouldn't Edmonton be? Edmonton had a larger increase in real estate value than Calgary did last year. There aren't many deals to be had for rent in this province right now.