Nov092006

Housing Options

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I really haven’t thought that hard about how I’m going to live when i get to Seattle.

I mean, for the longest time I imagined that I’d be living alone in some big spacious studio apartment. But seriously? It’s financially irresponsible for someone my age and do I really want to be that much of a hermit?

Shut up. Yes, I can be distant at times but I like people, I really do.

Sharehousing

So I guess the best options would be to move in with other people and share a space. There are a lot of questions though:

  • How many other people?
  • How close should I be to work?
  • Can I trust myself around female roommates?
  • Can I bear to live with smokers?
  • Should I deliberately avoid living with people in the same line of work?
  • Do real estate agents help me out with this sort of thing?
  • Are there contracts involved? How long should I sign for if I’ve never done this sort of thing before?
  • How the hell do I know what sort of people I can bear to live with?

Help Pls

Do you have answers or suggestions? I’d love to hear them.

(On a side note, I totally dugg Dennis’ gigantic sharehouse. That was a brilliant space.)

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8 comments »

Dennis

Yeah, I like my place. It’s a good space. :)

It’s pretty cool to have lots of open space. Of course, I’m totally over it now that I’ve been living here for nearly 4 years. :P

I used to live with about 10 other housemates which was kinda fun but it was hard to share the kitchen at dinner time. Bathroom time in the mornings was also oh so precious.

About finding suitable housemates though, I think there are some websites around that can help you find ‘compatible’ housemates.
Mike

DON’T put up with smokers. Sure they be polite and smoke outside. But all the day is stand at the door way, as soon as a breeze wafts by, BAM, you and your unborn fetus have lung cancer.

(seriously though, smokers are smelly people, if you don’t like the smell of cigarettes, don’t live with people who do light up!)
Daniel

Hunt around, unlike me! I got lucky and am with people who, as far as I can tell, never leave their rooms, don’t shower and don’t cook, so there’s no issues with kitchen or bathroom access or with smells. The one guy I do see is pretty cool. Definately don’t share with people in the same line of business, opportunity lost to meet different types of people.
Hui-Ai

My housmate in China was a smoker. But she was really polite about it and always closed herself in the kitchen and smoked directly under the rangehood. It worked pretty well. (I miss her ;_;)
Fay

I havn’t had any experience with living with smokers, but I’ve worked with them, and they are smelly…. You have a month to pick the perfect housemate, so might as well pick someone who is gonna be perfect ^_^
Daniel

Sure, if you want to live in a hotel for a month… I suppose there are worse fates… but seriously, there are some people here who took the “must find the perfect house and housemate” route, and they just ended up getting stressed and not having anywhere to live when term started. Find people you can survive, anything more is a bonus.
Gerardo

I hate to say this since they’re also human beings, but don’t believe everything that a real estate agent tells you. It’s called “puffery”, which is basically bending the truth to close the deal. Especially if you are a light sleeper, make sure that when you need your rest, you absolutely get it, without noise because of thin walls or insufficient sound insulation. Same goes for weather insulation–a high ceiling and large spaces are a good thing but if you have to pay for your own heating and cooling bills, it takes a toll. Be as social as you can, but when you need peace and quiet, make sure that you don’t compromise. It’s much easier to be a nice person and tolerate any situation if you’ve gotten a good night’s sleep.

With that being said, give yourself a couple months in your new surrounding, and see how you yourself are able to adapt to it. Over time, you may be able to tune out many of the things that you couldn’t tolerate at the beginning. Lastly, if you can find a realtor who already lives in a similar environment as what you’re moving into (like a small condo), the better, because they can give you their personal opinions about what to expect.
karan

Adviceness!

  • One. Two at most.
  • Half an hour to an hour, but depends how far work is from city (& hence life)
  • Yes you can. I know you.
  • Unless you’re contemplating smoking
  • Maybe, but can be a good thing
  • Given that you don’t know the city/country at all, Real Estate agents would probably help a lot (caveat: if you find the right one)
  • Yes, contracts are involved. Try to get 6 month if possible, though a year is more usual
  • The people you can cope living with today. Come up with some questions and try them on your current peeps.

I say this stuff because I hunted for housemates when I initially got to Sydney, but my location is way too suburban to get the people I want, and eventually it worked out anyway.

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