hello,

i am planning on living off campus for next year. can somebody tell me what kind of things to look out for when u go around looking for a house?

thank u for the responses.

Originally Posted by epikness

hello,

i am planning on living off campus for next year. can somebody tell me what kind of things to look out for when u go around looking for a house?

thank u for the responses.

Oh man, is this ever the thread for me. I have seen many a dive while house-hunting in Hamilton. I'm sure I'm forgetting some, but these are the things that come to mind.

1) Feces. If the current tenants have a cat, it's one thing. If they don't have an intentional pet...
2) If possible, ask for the contact information for current tenants. If this isn't possible or you feel weird doing that, come back later that day when the landlord isn't there and talk to the tenants. They have no reason to lie to you, and it's a good way to know if your landlord will keep on top of things once you live there. I once went through a house and had a tenant whisper "don't do it" while walking past me.
3) Windows. Chances are, the landlord isn't going to spring for new windows in the year you live there. If you can feel wind coming in through them when they're closed, you're going to have crazy heating bills in the winter. It sounds like a weird thing to check, but it's a big deal.
4) Plumbing issues. Flush the toilet in the bathroom while you're being toured through the house. If it makes crazy-ass noises or doesn't really flush, there's probably a plumbing issue that hasn't been dealt with. Additionally, try checking the water pressure with the sink.
5) Alarms. Make sure there are enough smoke and CO2 detectors in the house.
6) Keep an eye out for signs of bugs. Cockroaches don't typically make themselves visible until night, so open kitchen cupboards or drawers, or look at places that generate a lot of heat - notably, vents. I'm not saying "open all the vents," but glance at them in passing. In one house I saw, a few cockroaches were crawling around on the vent. If you see centipedes... well, that's just part of living in Hamilton student housing.
7) Make sure the landlord intends on changing all locks and deadbolts when the current tenants leave.
8) Consider the neighbourhood. If it's a student neighbourhood, you're fine, but if there seem to be a lot of families with children, note that you'll have to be respectful of them. If you're a drum-playing, stereo-blasting party animal, you'll probably want to look elsewhere in order to not have complaints filed against you. In the same way, if there's a beer pong table set up in the yard next door and you're a light sleeper, you may have problems in the future.
9) Make sure all fixtures work, and if not, that the landlord has a plan to sort them out. Work it into the lease, if possible.
10) Consider what the house may be like in the winter, because for a lot of the time you're living there, there's going to be snow and ice. Do the steps look safe? Does the sidewalk look like it'll be a pain in the ass to shovel (i.e., a corner lot)? Not a big deal to most, but for some people, this is a big downside - especially if you're rarely home and you don't want a fine from the city.
11) Ask the landlord what his views are in terms of problems within the house. If the sink springs a leak one day, will he pay for it, or is it on you? Again, something you'll want to work into the lease.
12) Pay special attention to the room you plan on occupying. The windows in the room of my last house were terribly insulated, and the walls with windows on them were freezing - one day, there was actually frost around my window.
13) Some people like to make sure the outlets work - I don't go that far, but it makes sense.

Huge list - sorry about that.

Make sure your landlord(s) speak English.

Originally Posted by Desda

Make sure your landlord(s) speak English.

I couldn't understand my last landlord at all. He always e-mailed me in symbols, and when I'd call to ask what he meant he'd speak to me in another language.

I think he was trolling me hard.

@ alh24,

dont worry abt it. this is an amazing list...i didnt even think abt these things ...
the one i m looking at these days is $ 330 + utilities...i dont know much of the details but how expensive can typical "utilities" get??

Originally Posted by epikness

@ alh24,

dont worry abt it. this is an amazing list...i didnt even think abt these things ...
the one i m looking at these days is $ 330 + utilities...i dont know much of the details but how expensive can typical "utilities" get??

That's pretty decent. I wouldn't expect to find much for less than $330 plus utilities. Always, always ask for a sample utility bill. My last landlord brought copies of the utilities for the year prior to when I lived there (he paid utilities and then the tenants reimbursed him, so he had all of the utility bills). If you pay them directly, I'd ask the tenants before you what their utilities are like. They can vary from house to house depending on a number of things (how the house is insulated, how many people live there, etc.).

A couple big things you want to look for too, that sort of goes with what alh24 said, is MOUSE TRAPS and BUG TRAPS. That was something I didn't notice in my first place because I didn't look for it... Had I seen them, I would've made sure I looked into the problem, because where there are traps there's possibly a problem, but *sigh* I lived in fear instead...

Another good thing to ask is how often utility bills come. At my place, we had one small bill every month for gas, and then a huge bill for water and electricity every two months. Perhaps this is common knowledge but I didn't know that's how billing worked in Hamilton, so the second month living there I was hit with a wayyyy bigger bill than I had prepared for! Not that utilities were extra expensive, just be careful about when they come so you know.

I also recommend checking for a fire extinguisher, asking about parking (whether you need it or not, because rent may include a parking charge you could be able to waive), laundry fees (if it has the appliances for it), and how often the landlord comes to the house.

Lastly, don't forget to set up a cable for your Internet if it isn't already done, believe it or not some student houses (*cough cough* mine last year *cough*) aren't equipped...

Best of luck!

educate yourself! know what your rights and responsibilities are AND those of your landlord.

i've heard good things about the Mac housing office (have never used it myself).

i really like CLEO (community legal education ontario). it has online booklets that explain everything you need to know and not in legal terms. i highly recommend doing a quick read through them before you sign on the dotted line.

http://www.cleo.on.ca/

Originally Posted by Lauren.xo

Lastly, don't forget to set up a cable for your Internet if it isn't already done, believe it or not some student houses (*cough cough* mine last year *cough*) aren't equipped...

When I was writing a test earlier this year, I overheard a few girls that shared a house talking about how their landlord set up the internet (and I assume cable) but didn't get an unlimited bundle. Because they obviously went over the limit their bill came to something like $200 and they were left in a bit of a dispute between the landlord and their roommates.

Just be cautious, know your rights as the poster above said, and don't be afraid to ask specific questions.

Find out how many rooms/how many people there are living there. You do NOT want to be stuck in a regular-size house full of 10 or 11 people with 1 or 2 bathrooms, and it definately happens.

Originally Posted by Lauren.xo

A couple big things you want to look for too, that sort of goes with what alh24 said, is MOUSE TRAPS and BUG TRAPS. That was something I didn't notice in my first place because I didn't look for it... Had I seen them, I would've made sure I looked into the problem, because where there are traps there's possibly a problem, but *sigh* I lived in fear instead...

Another good thing to ask is how often utility bills come. At my place, we had one small bill every month for gas, and then a huge bill for water and electricity every two months. Perhaps this is common knowledge but I didn't know that's how billing worked in Hamilton, so the second month living there I was hit with a wayyyy bigger bill than I had prepared for! Not that utilities were extra expensive, just be careful about when they come so you know.

I also recommend checking for a fire extinguisher, asking about parking (whether you need it or not, because rent may include a parking charge you could be able to waive), laundry fees (if it has the appliances for it), and how often the landlord comes to the house.

Lastly, don't forget to set up a cable for your Internet if it isn't already done, believe it or not some student houses (*cough cough* mine last year *cough*) aren't equipped...

Best of luck!

Oh gosh, I would have freaked out for the whole year too. There are very few things that gross me out more than bugs... mayonnaise, people pushing their cuticles back, potty humour... that's probably it. My last student house had a lot of spiders, and all of my housemates left before me (I typically enlist their help when I encounter one), so there are a lot of textbooks on the ground with spiders underneath them right now. Probably eight, if I had to guess.

i find most of the places around campus abit too sketchy so i chose to live abit further away from campus with many frequent buses. if u want i can recommend u the place =)

Originally Posted by alh24

Oh gosh, I would have freaked out for the whole year too. There are very few things that gross me out more than bugs... mayonnaise, people pushing their cuticles back, potty humour... that's probably it. My last student house had a lot of spiders, and all of my housemates left before me (I typically enlist their help when I encounter one), so there are a lot of textbooks on the ground with spiders underneath them right now. Probably eight, if I had to guess.

Wow.

The method employed over at my place: wet a couple of balled-up tissue, stand back a safe distance, position, aim, FIRE!

Splat. Particularly effective for spiders above your head.

(Note, this is not me but the person I share with.)

Originally Posted by Faer

Wow.

The method employed over at my place: wet a couple of balled-up tissue, stand back a safe distance, position, aim, FIRE!

Splat. Particularly effective for spiders above your head.

(Note, this is not me but the person I share with.)

I love it. But if you don't hit them, they get scared and run like hell. I used to put a cup over them, but that didn't actually kill them and when you lifted it they ran away. Textbooks have been pretty good for me. It's a big surface area, so even if they start running when you get close, there's a good chance you'll cover them. Small books don't do the trick, because you might miss.

Originally Posted by alh24

I love it. But if you don't hit them, they get scared and run like hell. I used to put a cup over them, but that didn't actually kill them when you lifted it they ran away. Textbooks have been pretty good for me. It's a big surface area, so even if they start running when you get close, there's a good chance you'll cover them. Small books don't do the trick, because you might miss.

I'd never be able to touch the textbook again if I had to use it to splat bugs, even though the thought of my Maths and Physics textbooks on top of spiders is veeeeery reassuring...

But yeah, they have a bad tendency to scatter. D: It's horrible, especially if they drop down from your desk to the floor and then you have to get off your chair at some point and risk squishing it or being bitten...