Here in the silent heart, my choices make no sense to me, there seems to be something beyond me that I cannot answer, something that I should have been speaking to instead of worrying.
What are Halifax landlords thinking? The rental costs of a one bedroom apartment on the Peninsula are on average ridiculous. People can’t afford them, and landlords are having trouble renting them. Why you might ask? Let me break it down for you.
I am a young professional and I make a good salary, about $53,000 a year. After I pay taxes, pension, et cetera, my take home is $2,750 a month. Rent for a decent one bedroom costs about $1,000-$1,200. Now, given that most of these don’t include utilities that averages to about $1,200-$1,500 housing costs in total. Landlords will charge me extra for parking too. Total dumps in unsafe neighbourhoods rent for around $800-$1,000. Don’t even get me started on housing for the working poor.
The rule of thumb is that one shouldn’t pay any more than 30 percent of their net income for housing costs. At these rates you have an aspiring middle class YUPPIE like me (your target market) putting 45-50 percent of my monthly income towards housing. That’s not going to happen. Because I’m a well-educated yuppie and I can do the math. Landlords: you aren’t the only people interested in making a profit and having a savings account. Stop being so greedy.
Most of these apartments aren’t even nice. Having a clean and updated space does not make it “luxury” or “executive”—it just makes the living space what most people would expect.
My POINT is—if you are wondering why your luxury flat isn’t renting for $1,200 it’s because the people who could actually afford the rent are saving to buy their own house—or already own one.
This yuppie has gone co-op. —Co-op Baby
This article appears in Nov 1-7, 2012.
i pay 750 plus electric for a lovely lovely lovely one bedroom on creighton street. makes me wonder what you’re looking for. it took me 4 days to find what i wanted.
get a roommate or relationship. Personally i’m glad i found the woman that i want to spend the rest of my life with in school because this is a 2 income city. knocking down that 1250 i pay for a 2 bed 2 bath a month to 625 a piece is much more reasonable.
Yeah, but then you have to put up with sharing your space.
I have a pretty good deal in fairview… but I live in a shithole that’s probably going to collapse in the next 5 years… oh, but it’s ok, the landlords just installed some trim in thee hallways.
I concur in that if you’re planning on living alone in this city, your belt is going to be very tight.
i hear that bitch we paiding 750 for shit. got my boy on the couch giving me cash its fucking tough out. fucking gresy ass landlords i fucking hit one to. im with you get a fiend to move in that shit helps lot. fcuking rent bullshit
This is the result of supply and demand, when demand outstrips the supply. Thank your friendly neighborhood anti-development anti-capatalists. I think they outnumber the rats in this town.
“Everything is worth what the market will pay for it”
Problem is, our market includes a lot of students with rich parentswho think nothing of costs like that.
if you dont like the rent , buy your own property in halifax for over 300000 and then rent it out for less than 750. let me know how that works out for you…
my daughter has a top floor walk-up 2 bedroom for under 800 in clayton park. the apt is nice, has a dishwasher, the building is clean, well managed, close to bus and shopping ( a no-car household )
a lousy 50k income doesn’t get you harbourfront, granite/stainless yuppie lifestyle. if you were buying a place, your cap would be 150K. a starter.
congrats on the 53K, but really, that’s just above starter salary. (25 K is low income) co-op is great but no equity. lower your ‘luxury’ expectations and buy something. in 10 years you’ll be much much happier.
nukka? you a priest? i mean, how do you control the fiend on the couch? pentagrams? garlic? is he house trained?
I pay $700 for a two bedroom in a great area electric included.
if you want to live a high class lifestyle, then you have to pay for it. what does a single person need a big fucking place for? live within your means, not your dreams. unless you make at least 100 grand a year, then move into cheaper dig. there are some decent places in metro, that doesn’t have a live in dope dealer.
unless you plan on renting out extra bedrooms, stick to what you really only need. some people can be such fucking idiots. i have been here in my place almost 9 years, it’s comfortable, clean, free of bugs and dealers, and the rent is good. the owner is very quick to fix or replace anything that needs be, and is nice as hell. i plan to stay til i croak, and he knows it.
i should also mention o.p., that the costs of owning and maintaining units can be extremely pricy. you have your taxes, utilities, fuel, insurance, and of course your general upkeep. which can run into quite a chunk of change these days. the guy that owns the place i live in just got done paying his taxes the other day. he owns 4 buildings and the taxes were over 25 grand, for 6 months.
in those 4 units, he has a total of 36 apartments to let. out of those he is currently renting out 24. that’s where you get a lot of costs.and as i said, you want class, you gotta pay for it.
well that shouldn’t be too long…
“there are some decent places in metro, that doesn’t have a live in dope dealer.”
What’s the advantage in that?
Now they have to go out in the elements to get their weed….
http://www.thecoastclassifieds.ca/viewlist…
Check out those people Zed, they sound pretty professional and will probably deliver.
http://www.thecoastclassifieds.ca/listing/…
LAWL I get such a kick out of the Coast ads!
to heck with the drugs…look! they have low cost brain surgery
whoda thunk it?
and i want one of those well tamed teacup yorkies, them’s dangerous beasts.
I want to troll the shit out of those Indian surgeons. Maybe ask them if they’re willing to purchase a body I found ‘just laying around’ for the organs or something. Yikes, I’ve been watching too many horror movies, my apologies.
one can NEVER watch too many horror movies. (as she listens to a romero in the background)
This bitch started off so nice and poetic then got bogged down in a vacuous number crunching that went on forever. As I say in all these “Halifax is too expensive” bitches, move outside the city limits and rideshare your way in.
Downtown living is expensive, period. Suck it up or move to dartmouth, where a 1 bedroom will cost you half what you’re paying. For someone so educated, you sure love to throw your money away – but that shouldve been obvious if you’re trying to be a yuppie in Hfx. Move out of the maritimes or get used to being the low branch in the tree
53K is starter salary? Shit I must be doing this wrong.
i don’t understand. My salary on my past job was less than yours. So was my rent.
There are ample nice apartments around here for 700-1000 a month.
I lived on this quite comfortably.
Furthermore if i made as much as you do, i could EASILY afford 1000-1200 in rent a month.
No friend.. the word you’re looking for isn’t yuppie. It’s hipster.
OP said he was a ‘professional’ so if one takes him at his word, then $53K would be starter.
seriously Halifax? $1000-1200 a month? come on who do you think you are?
Toronto?
Thankfully I’m in East Dartmouth, in a cozy 1bdrm, $575+ Hydro ($50) its in an ok area, fairly quiet, nice people, somewhat decent bus service, & its an ADULTS ONLY building, no students, no bratty kids..
my Husband & myself like it a lot..
Where the hell are you looking? There are places for 800 that aren’t shitholes in DT Halifax. Widen your search or be more modest in your choices.
South end is for rich students and old money. North end has them too but at least it’s cheaper to live here.
OP I’m basically a property manager in the building I’m at hit me up there’s a 2 bedroom available, you get a roomie it’s way cheaper than what you said that is laughable..
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****EXTRA,EXTRA READ ALL ABOUT IT******
RENT IN CITY’S DOWNTOWN SKYROCKETING…..
OP,did you think landlords will lower rent ,,what with the shipbuilding land of milk and honey around the corner???
(pssst,,, OP ,,,,thats the way it is in most downtown areas of cities)