Page 16 - Trending Magazine 2018 Spring

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“ Generally speaking,
student’s don’t have a

lot of money either.
We’re working
part-time, minimum
wage jobs to get
ourselves through. ”

Loft have since been disbanded as student homes.
The Corner House has since been bought by the
university, along with the Yellow House and another
home right next door to it.
As Ziprick gets ready to graduate this year, she hopes
to keep the legacy of music student living alive, given
how important it was to her education for the past
three years.
From birthdays, to potlucks and the odd Christmas,
the place has truly become a second home for her.
Aren Teerhuis, left, and Megan Pokrant sit on the iconic purple
chairs of the Brandon University School of Music building. “As long as there’s some music students living in here
I would be happy with that,” she said.

The growing population of both Brandon University and Chris Reid, a housing resource worker at 7th Street
the city-at-large has traditionally put pressure on Health Access Centre, has lived in Brandon since 2000
affordable housing, which remains low in stock but high and said the vacancy rate has always been low.
demand. “I don’t know when there was a good vacancy rate,” she said.
Combined with a historically low vacancy rate, the impact Whether you’re a young person or an adult with kids,
has left some students without a home to live in by the finding affordable housing is hard, Reid said.
start of each school year. Reid sees the search for housing like finding a job, and
Stephanie Lockerby, program manager for the Canadian through her work, she does what she can to help people
Mental Health Association in Brandon, says anywhere navigate that market.
from five to 10 students are left living in shelters for the “When you’re going to rent an apartment, you’re going into
first few weeks of school because they haven’t found a a legal agreement with someone. You’re asking them to let
place to live. you use a valuable piece of their property. So you as
Cases usually appear sometime between the end of someone looking for a place to live has to establish that
August and the beginning of September, and most involve sense of trust and demonstrate that you’re going to be
out-of-town students. responsible.”
“Everybody is chasing after the same housing stock,” Although there isn’t any clear-cut solution to the housing
Lockerby said. “There will be 20 different people going problem, Reid said students should work on building a good
after the same apartments.” tenancy history and start looking for housing as early as
Students will come to Brandon, unaware of what the July, because their list of choices gets smaller and smaller
market looks like, and wind up in a shelter or couch the closer they get to the start of school.
surfing. But renting remains the only option for most students,
“When they get to this point, I find that the students are Lockerby said, which keeps the cycle going.
very overwhelmed and deflated,” Lockerby said, given “There’s such a misconception that homelessness only
their high hopes of moving to Brandon for something affects those that are struggling with addiction or a severe
meaningful such as an education. mental illness,” she said.
“I just find that by the time they come to us, at that point, “There is that misconception because homelessness can
they’re quite devastated because they just didn’t know affect anybody who is losing a job, where rent is very
that this was what was going to happen.” challenging and the vacancy rate is low.”
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