For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities…
The principalities I’m talking about here is that of very high demand and scarce supply of decent places to rent, especially in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area). Brethren, these early months of settling-in are truly a testimony. So, as soon as I found a job, I confirmed my start date for early June. The job location- Brampton is so far away from Stouffville where I currently stay that it wouldn’t make any sense to commute from there. Also, remember my agreement with my hosts is that I move out to my own place as soon as I find a job.
I initially assumed it was going to be easier than finding a job but didn’t really understand the complexities. First off, places are available for rent on the 1st day of every month or the 15th day of every month in some cases. With my job starting this June, I only started looking for a place on Kijiji on the 21st of May, so time was short. Kijiji is an open marketplace where individuals and sometimes agents advertise various items of merchandise for rent, or for sale. The good news here is that there is diversity in the types of merchandise sold, and the spread by location across Toronto. The bad news is that these items are sold very quickly because of the demand. Something you saw a few hours before might be gone by the time you come around to reaching out to the owner. In fact, on Thursday this week, one of my awesome twitter followers sent me a link to a place at 10 am (local time) and by 2 pm same day, the ad had been taken down, because someone else had rented out the place. Another disadvantage of Kijiji is, if you are looking for a place in a high demand area- like Brampton, Mississauga, North York and Downtown Toronto, the demand is so high that sellers set an arbitrary price. You may find a furnished room in Brampton for as high as 900 CAD (261,000 Naira) per month. When I even visited this particular room, the bed looked old & scraggly and everywhere was dusty and moist.
Another friend- T suggested I connect with realtors to help me search for a place. I’m sure T had good intentions but it wasn’t really a good idea for me. Like recruiting agencies, realtors I spoke to also have their prejudices. You would hardly find realtors renting out stand-alone furnished rooms because the commission paid to them by the owner is not high. When the 1st realtor shared this fact, I opted for a two bedroom apartment/basement with a plan to split the rooms with P- a Nigerian girl who just recently landed Toronto. All the places the realtors found for us were either too expensive or the charges were exclusive of monthly utilities (hydro, water, heat or car parking bills). Secondly, they had a long list of requirements. We had to fill in a rental application form, provide a credit report, pay for 1st and last month of rent, submit two credible references, and our individual employment letters. Most of these requirements you wouldn’t typically have if you are a new immigrant who has just moved countries. In fact, I called one Nigerian realtor who as soon as he heard I was a new immigrant, told me he couldn’t find a house for me. That, I had to get someone with a good credit history to sign off on my behalf. My not having any deep ties with anyone here & also not wanting to be forever indebted to anyone, made me ignore his advice & continue looking for rooms online. One landlord told me she’d only rent to people who spoke Punjabi, another one said she would rent to Hindus only, while a third said he didn’t want non-vegetarians in his house. The most creepy of my house-hunting escapades happened when I called a landlord about his ad on Kijiji. We seemed to have a good conversation over the phone, he sent me the full address of his place & confirmed I could come immediately. I pulled up to his house in an Uber ride and could see him looking at me through the transparent glass window of his house. As I walked up the stairs, the man turned around and walked away from the window. I thought he was going to wear a shirt so he could be neatly dressed when he opened the door, but I thought wrong. I knocked on his door for about 2 minutes (there wasn’t a bell) but still no one came. I started getting a sinister vibe of Criminal Minds- the series, so i jejely carried myself away from the house. Before someone wee go and kidnap somebody and chain the person in their basement (God forbid).
After 5 days of intensive searching & spending hard cash on commuting and Uber rides, I finally found a furnished room yesterday on a similar website to Kijiji called View It. The owner of the house is a family guy, a black Jamaican who explained to me that he typically rents out the rooms in his house to other black people to help them settle in. The room is in a big house very close to my office, and there is a bus stop some 500 metres away from the house. This place works perfectly and once I saw it, I paid for the room (1st & last month rent) on the spot! Who no like better thing?! ???? My landlord even dropped me off in Stouffville in the evening on his way to Scarborough for an appointment.
I am thankful. We move!
37 comments
I’m so happy for you o, it’s sad to hear about racial preferences on top rent, same happens here in Naija sha, tribal preferences and all but hey, you have a place now.Yipee.
Yes oh, there are several preferences here and it’s not just race, but gender and food preferences. I experienced these challenges renting in Lagos as a single person too but mehn this one here pass me oh
Hi, I am looking to move to Canada soon too. It has been nice reading your experiences, and I wish you success and wellness in your journey to intergration.
Hopefully I will learn a thing or two from you too when I land. I am like you too, single girl looking for a better live, with no ties at all in Canada.
Take care, and thanks for sharing.
Hi Reasonable doubt, welcome!!! Yes, you should definitely stay in touch. It’s tough in some ways outchea, but some other things are easy.
First to comment! (How else will you know I’m from nairaland?)
I dedicate this FTC plot of land to…. (Just kidding (or not))
Happy you got such a convenient place. All the best!
Hahaha!! Thanks TJ and welcome from the land of Naira ????. Spread the word to your fellow land owners about this blog
They have. That is why we are here.
Great news! Do you know what, there will always be challenges. some will be big and others, small. Our triumph is when we actually overcome. Thank God you’re fully settled in now. You’re on your way to becoming a Canadian citizen.?
Amen dear. Very true. After I paid for the place, I realized I had only been actively looking for a week and a half. It did feel like a month while in the process though ??
Great news…glad u finally settling in well…
I wish you more favour..Sharing your experience is real motivation to me.
I hope to also move soonest
Thank you so much Babs. I really appreciate your kind words. Thanks a lot and welcome soon to Canada ??
This is such an adventure and work… great you found somewhere. Hope you have a great time at work
Yes it is indeed Funmi, especially when you are doing it alone.
Yay! I’m glad you were able to find a place. Congrats!!
Thanks a lot Sinmi. I’m glad myself
Finally caught up on all your post. someone on the land of the naira intimated us about your blog.
its been great reading about your experience.
Cant wait till i make the final leap to the maple land.
Thanks a lot Segun. I’m so glad you enjoyed my posts. Hope you subscribed too? See you soon on this side of town ?
I am just here taking notes. Lol. Thanks for sharing.
Saying hi from Nairaland.
Thanks a lot New mum. Say hi to all our Nairalander pips. Them too much ??
@Newmum, You sef show face? Lolz.
It will end in praise IJN!
You know if you know! lolz.
Thank you for visiting Teecann ???
Congrats on finding a place.
The landlord who wouldn’t rent to non vegetarians, that’s so amusing!
I told my host Z about this particular incident and she actually tried to explain it to me. If a family is vegetarian, and a non vegetarian starts cooking meat in their basement regularly, the family may find the smell offensive.
I’m just glad I was told from the get-go by this family so I didn’t have to bother making the trip
If not for distance I’ll rush down to give you ONE hug, YES! Just one hug. Mehn!!! That resiliency is outta ds world, now some people will comma be telling us one cock and bull story. GOD bless you real good sis. Trust me this ur blog is a SEED, you won’t realize now until you start seeing the FRUITS. Awa na mbo, hope to see you soon GOD willing. Enjoy your new home.
Ese gaaan ni Olaoluwabamidele. Thank you so much. Your comment gives me life. Amen to the seed of today and the fruits of tomorrow. Stay well dear ??
But excuse me o, two hundred and what thousand for rent monthly?? Chineke nna.
Loooooooool, you never start. Shey na you wan move come Canada?
You can’t be looking at the NGN/CAD conversion like that o…you will have heart ache, it guess may be a little frustrating at first when one is still spending part of POF to settling in initially…however, the beautiful thing I believe is that soon as one starts earning CAD within the system, the pricing shock evens out and you are already in too, rolling with the tide. lolz
Very correct Teecann. Indeed earning money locally and building a good credit score is the foundation required for settling into this society
I like how things keep falling in line nicely, even if you had to go through some not-so-nice experiences in the process. More juice for us, lol. Congrats, girl! We keep moving!
Thanks a lot. Yes indeed, the lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places. ???
Congratulations sis…am so happy for u. Got details of ur blog from Nairaland. I had to read all your posts without breaks. May U prosper in Cannyland!
Thanks a lot TyBims
Hi there. Also got to know about your blog from Nairaland group. Like Newmum said, i’m also taking notes seriously as we ‘ll soon join you there by Gods grace. No be small tin. I’ve enjoyed reading your posts. Keep up the good work and all the best.
Thanks a lot Joy and congratulations ahead. Please keep doing your research and you’ll be fine
Try looking for an apartment in the dead of winter, which was what I did in minus 20 degrees weather. I searched for 3 good months, all the while caring for an infant. One day I went to check a place, the sidewalk was so slippery with melting snow, I slipped and fell. I thank God I eventually found a great place in Mississauga. I’m glad you got a nice place too.
I’m so sorry to hear about the difficulty you experienced. I have to move again and I’m not looking forward to the stress of it. Trying to stay positive though. It’s so sad how difficult finding a place is here in Toronto. Thanks for stopping by