I\’ve searched high and low for the almost perfect apartment.  I\’m a little spoiled where i\’m at right now being so close to a metro which I obviously prefer however I am willing to make some minor sacrifices.  Such as taking the bus or not being 100% central within reason.  Bear in mind I don\’t have a car so these things are nice to have in a relatively convient area.  The first place I went and checked out was OK, however I felt it wasn\’t near anything.  Then today my geographically challenged ass found out different (DUH!) so hopefully it\’s not too late to apply and hopefully I can score a 4.5 (2 bdrm) since they\’re quite reasonable at $555.00/month.  I looked at the one bedroom which was decent and it\’s cheaper then here!

Anyway, I took an application and kept looking just the same.  Holy shit, the dissapointment was UN-real!  I like most people have a budget of course and for the sake of having an extra bedroom to use as a guest room/office I was more then willing to spend a little more money.  False advertising should not be allowed when it comes to trying to rent your space!  IE: it\’s on the corner of such and such (ideal street) and then you call them and find out it\’s in a totally different part of town!

Then I looked at a place that\’s relatively close to a metro which is ideal, until I actually seen the place!  Strangest layouts I have ever encountered!  I seen two, both were in the $600.00 price range and included nothing (appliances, heat/hot water/hydro) was to be paid by the tenant.  Which would have been kind of OK except that 1. I don\’t own any appliances and aren\’t in the market to purchase any either.

One place had a fuse box (WTF!?!) I\’ve heard those aren\’t allowed in apartments anymore due to being a fire hazard and the current tenant told me that his hydro bill was $150/month!  Holy shit!  I pay $45.00 all year round pretty much.  Granted I don\’t cook here much or have a washer/dryer but still… Not only that it was totally open.  There was a claim of a closed room but I don\’t recall seeing one (?) so it was totally open concept and the floor was really soft in some places, so that wasn\’t ideal either.  Not only that ALL the flooring was this old, gross vinyl tile (ICK!)

The second one was not bad, although a tad large for my tastes.  Perhaps if the layout was different I would like it more.  It was also on the top floor, needed some major work and included nothing and had washer dryer hook-ups which is great if you have the money to buy them.  Yeah you can buy them second hand but then those usually don\’t come delivered and don\’t have warranties which bothers me.  Not only that, my sisters dryer caught on fire and almost wiped out my entire family so not down with buying used appliances!  So that in turn would end up costing me a small fortune.  I don\’t mind painting, sprucing a place up a little but that would cost more then I have.

I seen another one the other day which I really liked except for the floors.  Again with the ugly tile and carpet throughout.  I HATE carpet!  It\’s usually utilitarian and ugly, it was poorly laid and harbors dust, dirt and other icky things which I don\’t care for.  It was also in the basement which is kind of meh.  That could be changed though, that wasn\’t too big of a deal to me.  So we met and I called him back to confirm the place, leave a deposit and what have you and he just called to say that the woman who\’s using it as a cheap crash pad is keeping it. It was also kind of pricey at $580/month which included nothing.  I would have dealt with it because I LOVE that part of town.  Alas it was not meant to be apparently!

So today I go and see a place and it\’s *almost* perfect.  I loved the layout, the location was great, it included everything including a gas stove (total win) and the fridge, had a balcony, lots of windows and storage.  I could totally overlook the pink tub, toilet and sink.  Also the shitty paint job since I have every intention of changing it up anyway.  The landlord himself however?

Total ass-hat douche bag.

He focused far too much on the fact that I wouldn\’t give him my SIN, actually in fact got rather whiny about it.  Said that major rental agencies would refuse to give you the apartment if you don\’t give them that information and so forth.

Bullshit.

According to the office of the privacy commission of Canada you have to give written consent in order to access that information.  You also have the right to file a complaint with them if your rights have been denied or you have been refused a service because you refuse to disclose that information.  He (Wally) tried to tell me that it was my right NOT to disclose such information, it raised a red flag.  WTF?!?  A person\’s SIN number is a nine digit number that pretty much discloses your entire life.  I am ONLY required to disclose this information to my employers and the government and that\’s it!  I know for a fact that you can do a credit check WITHOUT having that particular information.  He tried to tell me that hydro Quebec required it and I called him on his bullshit.  I didn\’t have to give them my SIN number in order to get an account with them.  Yes most places do require a piece of ID, however I am not comfortable handing out my personal information to some random dude!

Anyway needless to say he got really whiny and rather pain in the ass like over deferential things that Do. Not. Concern. Him. Period.  Overall, he acted like a greedy, petulant child and pretty much knew that he blew it.  Which likely pissed him off but I\’m not an idiot and I am a responsible adult and I\’m also willing to compromise here and there but there are some things I will not budge on, simple as that.

So I\’m resorting back to the place I first looked at in the hopes that I can nab a 4.5 instead of the 3.5 going to give them a call in the morning and see.  I thought it was in a different part of town, but after being out on the hunt today, it\’s actually not as bad as I thought.  So worth a shot just the same!  That place had pretty much everything that I wanted as well, so here\’s to hoping!