by: bradkynoch
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HIGHLIGHTS
Rent:
Standard: $900/mo (or $975 for a couple)
Optional: $700/mo (or $775 for a couple) if you babysit one evening/night per week
Includes:
All utilities, huge partly-furnished master bedroom, Roku 3 with Netflix, semi-private full bathroom, private kitchenette, and share our huge house with full kitchen, large dining room, huge living room, single garage, shed, lush yard, BBQ, picnic table, canoe, kayak, sports equipment, and parking, all within a 20-sec barefoot walk to the beach and 5-min walk downtown!
Term:
Open sublet/rental agreement, meaning no lease term (i.e., You’re not locked into a minimum term), so you can leave with 2 months notice, but we definitely PREFER a longer-term renter!
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YOU
We’re looking for a considerate person or couple to be our roommate(s). You must be financially secure, clean, tidy, responsible, considerate, understanding, open-minded, and love kids! Absolutely NO SMOKERS (including 420) OR PETS.
We’re OK with you hosting evening activities at home, as long as you’re respectful of our family’s safety, privacy, and sleep. That said, on occasion, we can arrange to be away if you’re planning a larger gathering. :)
OUR FAMILY
We’re a solid married couple, late 30s/early 40s, amazing parents, multilingual (English/French and she speaks Spanish), intelligent, creative, funny, entrepreneurial, free-thinking, open-minded, and queer-friendly. She works part of the day from her home office.
Our kids are 5 and 7, bilingual, silly, smart, charming, and well-rounded. Babysitters often say they wish all kids were that fun and well behaved. :) They’re awake roughly 6:00am–8:00pm and gone to school weekdays 8:00am–3:30pm.
LOCATION
Lakeside
ALMOST beachfront… We’re next to the neighbour’s waterfront mansion, so we’re only a 20-second barefoot walk to the public beach access! Need we say more?! It’s so close you can take your meal with you, leave your towel at home, run back for your sunglasses, walk down with the canoe/kayak, etc. Seriously, this is the dream life in the Okanagan!
The beach is quite big (unlike other beach accesses), popular with respectful locals (no rowdies), has nice sand, a soft sandy bottom, and a gentle slope that goes out hundreds of meters. It’s open 6am-10pm daily.
Central
Just south of downtown Kelowna in the beautiful Abbott Street neighbourhood with a mix of older homes, heritage homes, modern homes, and spectacular mansions/estates. Huge trees line all the streets, and yards are beautifully landscaped. The Abbott Street recreational pathway is clean and well-kept for cyclists, in-line skaters, and skateboarders, along-side a separate sidewalk for pedestrians and dog-walkers. It’s actively used by commuters and locals, and is wonderful for romantic or family strolls.
We’re a 5-min walk to City Park, which runs along the water on the way downtown, starting when you pass through the tunnel under Harvey Ave (Highway 97). City Park is huge, with sports fields, huge trees for shade, picnic spots, benches, playground, large splash pad, skate park, beach volleyball, basketball courts, beaches, change rooms, bathrooms, and a couple food trucks during the summer. We’re also a 5-min walk downtown along Abbott Street or a 10-min walk all the way to Bernard Street.
Typical travel times
* City Park: 5-min walk
* Downtown: 5-min walk along Abbott or 10–15 min walk through City Park
* Pandosy Food Basket convenience store: 10-min walk
* Safeway downtown: 20-min walk or 10-min bike
* Lakeview Market or Save-On-Foods (Lakeshore): 10-min bike
* Okanagan College: 12-min bike
* Landmark Business Park / Centre for Arts & Technology: 12-min bike
* Wal-Mart / Greyhound bus terminal: 15-min drive
* Wal-Mart / Superstore in West Kelowna: 15–20 min drive
* Airport: 20–25 min drive
* UBC Okanagan: 20–25 min drive or 45–55 min bus
UTILITIES (INCLUDED)
* Electricity (incl. central air conditioning), natural gas, water
* 30 Mbps internet with WiFi, voice-over-IP household phone, unlimited Canada & USA long distance
* Roku 3 media-streaming box (https://roku.com/products/roku-3) for your bedroom, with free use of our Netflix account
HOUSE
* Pet-free (not allowed under rental agreement)
* Smoke-free (strictly non-smokers only!)
* We rent from the landlords, so the house is subject to the their upkeep, but is in good condition inside
* Safety gear: smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, fire extinguisher (kitchen), fire escape ladders (each bedroom), First Aid kit
YOUR MASTER BEDROOM
* Huge, carpeted master bedroom (18' x 14' = ~250 sq.ft.), upstairs
* Double bed on frame with foam-core futon mattress
* Bedside table, small desk
* Dresser, large closet (6’ x 2.5’)
* (Does not include lounge chair and foot stool shown in photos)
* Two sets of sheets and pillowcases, comforter
* West-facing window that opens, horizontal blinds, heavy curtains, ceiling fan
* Plenty of extra room for your own sofa, coffee table, entertainment stand, and TV for a small in-suite living room! Alternatively, you could move the kitchenette inside your bedroom. you decide!
YOUR BATHROOM
* Semi-private** full bathroom, upstairs
* Tub with shower, toilet, sink, medicine cabinet, vanity cupboard
* East-facing window that opens
** Exclusively yours during the day; we only use it in the middle of the night :)
YOUR KITCHENETTE & SHARED KITCHEN
KITCHENETTE upstairs is exclusively for your use but is in an open (non-private) area:
* Tall table/counter (4.5’W x 3’D x 3’H) for food prep and eating
* Two tall stools w backs
* Mini fridge (no freezer, but you can use chest freezer in garage)
* Microwave, toaster, panini/sandwich press
* Coffee maker, kettle, teapot
* Two full meal settings (plates, bowls, mugs, glasses, wine glasses, utensils)
* Large bowls, cooking utensils
* Cutting boards and knives
* Dishcloths and tea towels
* Sealable containers for leftovers or meals-to-go
* Serving platters to carry meals outside or eat in bed :)
* Next to bathroom sink for washing fruit & veggies
* Basin to transfer dishes to/from main kitchen for washing
* Enough space in your huge bedroom to move the kitchenette in-suite, if you want!
KITCHEN on main floor is shared with us:
* Split-door fridge, stove, oven, microwave, T-fal Actifry (http://tfalactifry.com), dishwasher (yay!), chest freezer (in garage)
* Toaster, coffee maker, kettle
* Everything else in a normal kitchen
* Eat-in counter and table can seat a total of 6 comfortably
* Picnic table on patio seats 6 comfortably
* Propane BBQ
YARD, GARAGE, AND PARKING
* Large fenced-in yard, grass all around, tall trees, lots of shade
* Underground sprinklers are also great for cooling the yard to eat outside on hot days!
* Shaded hammock
* Propane BBQ, picnic table, large cantilever umbrella for rain or shade
* Garage and shed storage for your bike(s) and gear
* Water toys: canoe, 12’ lake kayak, adult PFDs
* Sports equipment: tennis, badminton, frisbee, volleyball, soccer
* Free parking in large driveway that fits four vehicles (we only have one car)
TO APPLY
1) Call us to discuss by phone and book an in-person meeting
2) After the meeting/interview, if you’re interested in lower rent for babysitting, book a paid babysitting gig to try things out!
3) If we’re proceeding, send us a current criminal record check ($26 from http://mybackcheck.com) and three references: a recent roommate, recent landlord, and long-term babysitting client (if you want the lower rate with babysitting)
4) If we’re still proceeding, send proof of your financial situation to our property manager and they’ll evaluate your credit rating and expected cash flow (they did the same with us)
5) If we’re still proceeding and your finances are approved, you’ll either sign a sublet agreement directly with us or add your name to our rental agreement with the landlord. Either way, it would be an open rental agreement with no lease term (landlord’s preference).