Can I move out and live with a roommate? (apartments, for rent)

[mtlquebec102]

So, here's the deal. I'm 19 and I would like to move out of my parents' house sometime next year around June-August. I don't have a job yet, but I will be getting one soon. I worked as a dishwasher for 2 years, minimum wage ($8.50 at first, then changed to $9.50).

I'll move out probably when I finish completing what I need to do for a driver's license, which I am doing right now. I won't be buying a car though, so I can save and live better financially when I move out. It'll just be easier. So a good apartment here in Montreal would be about $500-600 for rent, and my portion (since I'm trying to find a roommate) would be about $250-300? Would a full-time minimum wage job be enough? I'm completing a computer graphics course now in vocational school, and just in case I won't get a job in this field right away, I'll try finding some other minimum, or a little higher than minimum-wage job.

So what do you other Montrealers have to say about this? Would it be easy or hard? How much money should I have saved up before moving out? I have alot saved up now from my previous job though.

[jambo101]

It will be tough if you are working full time and going to school full time.
If you are just working and getting around $10 an hour you should be able to afford a 2 bedroom apartment with room mate especially if you focus your apartment hunting in the areas around Pte St Charles,St Henri,Verdun.
And as you wont have a car give high priority to apartments close to the metro..
Leaving the nest is a big step in life but its a step that must be taken sooner or later,enjoy the freedom..

[mtlquebec102]

Originally Posted by jambo101

It will be tough if you are working full time and going to school full time.
If you are just working and getting around $10 an hour you should be able to afford a 2 bedroom apartment with room mate especially if you focus your apartment hunting in the areas around Pte St Charles,St Henri,Verdun.
And as you wont have a car give high priority to apartments close to the metro..
Leaving the nest is a big step in life but its a step that must be taken sooner or later,enjoy the freedom..

Why, do those places have the cheapest rent costs?

[jambo101]

Originally Posted by mtlquebec102

Why, do those places have the cheapest rent costs?

Yes the rents there are cheaper, subway stations and/or buses are close by and you are close to downtown 2-3 subway stops at most or a 30-45 minute walk.
Choose your room mate carefully as you may end up with a slob who does no housework and eats all the food and brings lots of obnoxious friends over all the time to party and get drunk..
In those areas i suggested you could probably afford a 3 and a half room apartment for $400-$600 a month thus avoiding the room mate all together, but you would have to do some looking to get something in that range, a room mate or two may be your only option until the big bucks start rolling in, any chance of Mom and or Dad kicking in a couple of hundred a month to help pay the rent.?
Check the classified ads in the Montreal Gazette or Craigslist or do a Google search for "Apartments to rent Montreal".