Housing/transport

[Guest mg83]

Hey,

I'm moving from Edmonton and I need a place to live. Can anyone suggest an area that would be close to the Med School, rent is less than like $1000, and is on a good bus route. I have a car but i'm thinking that getting a parking pass at this stage of the game is going to be impossible. Actually, anyone know how to get a parking pass? Any help would be great.

[Guest Lurkergonepublic]

I can't help you with housing, but I've been parking near enough the med school to get to work in the building for 4 years and have never had a parking pass, or paid for parking. PM me if you want some tips for the area!

 

(I do sometimes bus, bike or get dropped off, so if your driving every day you might want to get on the parking waitlist. I think there's often been trading of passes that goes around, but they've been cracking down a lot on that recently)

[Guest fizzicyst]

There should be a bunch of info with your letter including people to contact in various neighbourhoods around school.

 

You will get a parking pass for clerkship but before that it gets pricey... some people (ahem Win2002)... have strange free parking strategies you might want to try.

 

Our class is spread all over the city but there are places close enough to walk. $1000 should get you a basement in walking distance or short bus ride at the very least. Foothills village is a short stumble and there are always people in there looking for roommates.

 

That said, I'd recommend coming down fairly soon and looking around as the rental market is pretty tight.

 

Good luck!

[Guest cpltanto]

Not that I'd really want to...but as a last resort, are there options for living in rez? or is that on the main campus only and thus more inconvenient to get to hospital/med campus?

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi,

 

As far as I'm aware there are no UofC residences dedicated for medical students. Since most of our first and second years are spent at the Med. Sci. buildings, which is beside the Foothills Medical Centre and not on the main UofC campus, it might be more efficient for you to find accommodations nearby.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest jgray2]

if you want to skip the parking waitlist, just go sign up for a visitor's monthly parking pass for 95$. although if you come at just the right time, you can score free parking at the hospital. but i personally would *never* dream of taking advantage of that. nosiree. lalalalalala.

[Guest MDintraining]

I might consider buying a condo/home in Calgary given the booming real estate market. I know one resident who moved here last July. The value of his home has gone up so much that he has already covered all of his medical student loans! Just wondering if other medical students are considering buying at this time? Don't know much about the whole mortgage/first time home buying myself. Would it be worth it if you were only in Calgary for 3 years?

[Guest Stalin]

You may want to consider buying a condo, assuming you are willing to pay about 300K for a condo, depending on where you want to live. The Calgary real estate market, as I'm sure you are aware, is insane, with homes going up 35 percent over the past year.

 

I guess one would have to be prophetic to know if the market will continue going up for 3 more years. My brother lived in Edmonton, bought a condo, and the capital gain paid for his entire tuition and cost of living so it was a good move. Then again that was a few years ago, when the real estate market began to rise.

 

For more information on the Calgary real estate market, or if you just want to hear some unsolicited views, check out my buddy's blog:

 

 

calgary-housing-bubble.blogspot.com/

 

He believes the bubble will burst in the Calgary real estate market, based on a number of factors: rise in interest rates and a US recession.

 

I ended up renting a place... but it was more out of convenience than anything else.

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hey there,

 

Another example of the Calgary real estate boom: a good friend of mine bought a nice condo in Mission in February 2005 (just over a year ago) and is now laughing. He bought it for around $480K and it's now worth at least $600K, but probably more given the location and cache of the building. Very nice timing and choice.

 

As to whether the boom will continue, or at least, for how long it will continue, there was a good article in yesterday's Financial Post on the subject. The article surrounded commercial real estate in Calgary and occupation rates relative to oil prices. There was an interesting little graph printed that demonstrated a clear inverse relationship between the price of oil per barrel over the past few decades and the occupancy rate of Calgary commercial real estate. Essentially, as the price of oil increases (and as it becomes more profitable to extract the black stuff from the Oil Sands) the hotter the Calgary oil industry becomes, thus the greater need to find commercial real estate to house all the engineers, land men, etc. One of my Calgary pals is VP at Encana (Canada's largest company with respect to revenues and one of the larger energy companies in the globe) and he noted that Encana have broken ground on at least two big towers in the Calgary core. They are planning on expanding operations there and either moving or hiring new folks to fill those buildings as it had become far too expensive for the leases at their current location on 4th St. So if you're wondering about Calgary housing patterns in the near future, a good leading indicator for the real estate activity might be the price of oil. Keep checking to see where the oil prices are going as the real estate in Calgary will probably run in the same direction.

 

Also, if you're thinking of buying some real estate, try to do what my good pal did: buy the best property that you can afford in the best location. There's a good real estate tenet that involves the idea of buying the smallest house/condo in the nicest neighbourhood/building. I've used this in the past and ended up buying three condos, which were some of the smallest in their respective buildings, but whose values were buffered from real estate pricing changes by the high quality of the buildings. Also, if you can add some desired features to your place along the way, e.g., hardwood floors or fitted closets, you may find that your resale price and resultant profit will be just that bit higher.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest Stalin]

Just a few comments:

 

As per your friend with the 600K condo, all of Calgary's real estate has gone up considerably, though Mission is a great area. If your friend were to sell and move somewhere in Calgary, they would find that their 120K capital gain won't give them 120K in value, rather they won't be able to find another place to live and they will have to pay the same or more for an equivalent property.

 

I did hear the Encana is building 2 towers in Calgary- there are something like 10 commercial towers also being built within the next few years. This brings back memories to the late 1970's, when oil prices began surge because of OPEC and Iran, and Calgary too felt a boom, with real estate prices surging. But if you know someone that lived in Calgary in 1982? oil prices crashed, real estate crashed, oil companies slashed divisions... I believe that we may see the same sort of crash in Calgary.. And for the lucky med student who wants to buy a 300K condo as an investment, look to Edmonton as a case in point... real estate values between 1982 and 2000 changed very little in dollar values, failing to consider inflation.

 

This being said, I'm sure I'll be a sucker and end up buying a condo... who knows.. Kirsteen check out my friend's blog... all he talks about is real estate.. you two I'm sure would lock horns.. write him!!!!

 

Cheers

[Guest mg83]

I'm planning on buying a condo also but i'm have problems looking on-line since i have no idea where any of the neighbourhoods are. That's the one thing i hate about calgary....most of the streets have names instead of numbers....its driving me nuts to look >: Can anyone suggest a good place/building. I think i want to live SW calgary...preferably near public transport.

[Guest Stalin]

If you want to see what is on the market.. check out http://www.mls.ca... you are going to find there is very little on the market...

 

Some good areas are Mission (downtown) ... lower mount royal.. there are some condos for sale right by the med school- well they are converted rental apartments.. look nice.. about 300k...

 

You got to be careful where you move. If you are into hookers and drug dealers I can also recommend living along 1st street and other parts downtown...

 

A friend of mine has had a problem in his bullding, really nice condo's, but a pimp bought a few units and has used his the parking lot along with a few suites for his business- I mean everyone has to earn a living... just a thought.

[Guest MDintraining]

Here is the map of all the neighbourhoods in Calgary:

 

www.foundlocally.com/Calg...WNeigh.htm

 

It is divided into the four main quadrants: NW,SW, NE, SE. The med school is south of University Heights.

 

If you want neighbourhood descriptions, go to:

 

calgary.foundlocally.com/...h-Info.htm

 

I personally would find it frustrating to live too far from the med school, as traffic can be pretty congested at times. As the saying goes: The fastest route between two places in Calgary is under construction.

 

PS It is an interesting discussion going on about real estate and oil. Actually good to know, because once you start working with Calgary docs, it tends to come up in conversations. I've found many doctors talking about how they don't feel like they have as much prestige now in Calgary. High school drop outs can make $120 000 per year in the oil fields. Also, their old friends in undergrad who became engineers are making a lot more money than they are (and the ones who told me this are established specialists!) So compared to other places, doctors here are not the only ones in the upper income brackets. It is a hot topic in the doctors lounges between patients.

 

MD

[Guest marbledust]

Can anyone suggest a good place/building. I think i want to live SW calgary...preferably near public transport.

 

I am a fan of the SW too, although I have lived in the NW for varous periods of time. The only drawback to the SW neighbourhoods that are within quick reach of the medical school is that there is no C-Train access, although I think the train might service some of the SW areas in the "deep" south. I don't know as all the new areas are like a different city that I never visit. And I never take the train either

 

How close do you want to be? Off the top of my head some nice SW areas that are not too bad in terms of the bus (less than 30 minutes, and involve maybe only 1 transfer) are Killarney, Rosscarrack, Glenmorgan, Lakeview, Marda Loop. I am sure there are some more others could add to the list.

 

I don't know how much luck you would have finding a place in these areas since, as already mentioned, vacancies are at an all time low, plus the three main post-secondary schools in Calgary are fairly close together. As a result, many of neighbourhoods are popular among students from all three schools. I helped a friend look for a place within reasonable distance to the university last weekend and it is very grim out there . She is probably going to have to stay where she is and pay hyper-inflated rent because we just couldn't find anything. I am not trying to discourage or scare anybody, but start looking right now so that you find something and don't risk getting squashed by the insanity of the Calgary rental (and sale) market.

 

There is nothing more horrible than moving to a new, unfamiliar city, so if anybody has any further questions or need help, post a message

 

 

 

 

You will probably want

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hey there,

 

If you have a car, Mission is a great area to live in Calgary. Upon moving to Calgayr I stayed in Bankview, which was an 8 minute drive to school. I now live in Mission and it takes about 10-13 minutes to drive to school (quite a difference compared to some of the Toronto commutes that occurred in a past life). Some additional attributes of Mission: you're close to the Elbow River and its bike/running path; it is a neighbourhood with all the amenities, e.g., Safeway, coffee shops (Starbucks included) restaus, bars; it's safe; it's close to downtown yet relatively serene; it provides a nice getaway from school. (I know some folks who live across from the hospital and regret it at times, i.e., in that they feel that they rarely have a break from school.)

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest mg83]

thankx for the replies...that map was really great. I'm going to make an appt. with a realtor i think so that i dont' have to go around by myself. Well here's hoping i find something nice. thankx again

[Guest marbledust]

I've found many doctors talking about how they don't feel like they have as much prestige now in Calgary.

 

 

Lol...that is just really pathetic. Heaven forbid somebody with "less" education have more prestige than a doctor. My reply would be "suck it up buttercup." Well, it would be if I was brave enough to say such a thing to an attending physician at this point in my career.

 

Of course complaining about something like that is liable to make the doctor in question lose even more of that precious prestige--especially in a place like Calgary.

 

Stuff like that makes me embarrased to tell people I am in medicine. I know such attitudes are, admitedly, not confined to medicine. I mean, who cares that oil professionals are currently "king" in Calgary and make more money. My thinking is if somebody's skill set is in demand, them all the power to them to make the big money--whether they are engineers, plumbers, or doctors. Why would somebody--ie allegedly busy doctors--worry about such trival things? Makes me wonder....

 

Something interesting related to this is that places like Safeway and Starbucks are paying unheard of wages to kids bagging groceries or making lattes because of the labour shortage in the city. What last year would have been minimum wages jobs are now sometimes paying double.

 

:hat

[Guest mg83]

I noticed that the LRT has a stop marked "University"...i'm assuming that this is the main campus. My question is how far this station is from Foothills Hospital...how far of a walk is it? My next qustion is which bus (what #) stops in front of the hospital? Any help would be great.

 

Someone also mentioned something about getting on a waitlist for parking. What's that all about? Would it be a good idea to buy parking on the main campus and just walk to the Med school?

[Guest mg83]

Hey lurker check your PM box

[Guest Stalin]

There are a number of ways to get to Foothills from the north and south of the city, which include numerous bus routes..

 

In terms of using the c-train... At a stop called lions gate there is the foothills hospital bus, which comes every ten minutes, I believe, and takes you write Foothills (#91)

 

There is also the 419, which looks slow and goes several places in downtown.

 

From the south along crowchild trail ( a busy street...like the DVP of Calgary- for those of you from TO) you can take the 20..

 

There are many buses heading to the hospital..

 

In terms of parking... parking at the main u of c campus and walking to foothills is far...

[Guest marbledust]

There are many buses heading to the hospital..

 

That is true, however for somebody new to the city and completely unfamiliar with how to get around, things to consider include:

1) How long/how many transfers am I going to have to make to get to the hospital from where I live? Some of the bus routes from the hospital are very problematic when it comes to this, depending on where you are going/coming from.

 

2) How often do the buses from the hospital and in my neighbourhood run in off-peak hours and on weekends? It's a bit of a problem if you can leave the hospital by bus, only to find that the connecting bus to your neighbourhood doesn't run very often (or at all) during evenings and weekends.

 

Some areas of the city, particularly parts of the SW quadrant have a serious lack of public transport--nobody wants to end up taking 2-3 buses and a train to get to the hospital--although I certainly know people who do.

 

The Calgary Transit office is quite helpful. If anybody unfamiliar with the city needs to depend on public transit, they are a good place to call. They can give you information of bus routes, wait-times, transferring, etc. in any neighbour. It might help with the decision of what neighbourhoods would be best to live in.

[Guest Jochi1543]

I thought I'd add that Calgary Herald classifieds have lots of ads for apartments that go right away. I've also been trying to find a place from out of the country to start on June 1st, and every time I call on the same day that an ad is posted, the place is already rented! I've finally decided to just move, stay at a motel for a day or two and spend those few first days entirely on last-minute apartment hunting.

[Guest Lurkergonepublic]

On the bus question - the 20 runs both north and south quite a ways from the hospital. However - the biggest problem I have had with Calgary buses is that if your route crosses a few schools (as the north 20 does), then you risk having your bus be overloaded with kids, and not even stopping to pick up new passangers. I would estimate that I bus to work an average of twice a week, and this usually happens to me (my bus won't stop to get me because it is too full) 5 or 6 times a year. Not a reliable method unless you leave much earlier than you need to.

[Guest marbledust]

Good point lurker. lol I forgot about that. When I worked downtown I took the #6 from Bankview and that was forever happening to me--usually once or twice a week. I would get so irrate because sometimes 3 or 4 buses would just drive by me, and sometimes it wasn't always full of students but with sometimes just with people going downtown to work. So yeah, I would have to leave usually an hour earlier than I really needed to, just to ensure I could get downtown on time.

 

I think in general the transit system in Calgary is quite user unfriendly. :rolleyes

[Guest Jochi1543]

Hey, for those looking for housing: even Calgary women's shelters are booked months ahead. Yeah, I even called those out of desperation. :x

 

I don't know about you, but unless I hear back from this one more person who might have a place available on July 1st, it sounds like I'll be moving somewhere other than Calgary.:rolleyes

 

 

EDIT: Ok, I'm moving to Lethbridge, lol.8o :lol