Our Swanked Out Pad!!

Alright, I know you've all been waiting on the edge of your seats to see which place we picked, so I won't drag it out. As of Jan 21, we have been living in the 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom flat on Clarendon Road!

After we viewed it, Danny and I were both really excited and knew that if we could get the price down, this was the one we wanted. So we talked to the landlord (a very genuine, nice man) and he agreed to lower the price to £600 per month for us! What a steal! He explained that he had just acquired this property and had  planned on fixing it up to have it ready for the 2014-2015 letting season, so our only condition was that we have to be a bit flexible for a some refurbishments he wants to do along the way. He assured us it was only a few surficial changes, mostly just some redecorating. In our eyes, this was almost a plus! So far we have received brand new double beds in all of the rooms and a brand new kettle, microwave and toaster. He plans on doing some painting later on, but since we have three rooms we can just rotate through the rooms as he paints. All in all, Danny and I agreed that this trade off was well worth it for the location and amenities of the flat.

Some of the things that I love about the flat so far:
1. Three bathrooms, no waiting! Although the bathrooms are tiny, they're functional, clean and ...there's three of them! This means we can both get ready in the morning and each have our own place to store our toiletries. My only complaint would be that the showers are a bit small. I have yet to figure out a graceful way to shave my legs.

We have three of these! All the same layout.

2. Open plan kitchen/living/dining! In the pictures, the kitchen/living/dining room might look small, but it's more than enough room with only 2 of us knocking about. We can each be slicing and dicing stuff for meals at the same time and not run into each other. Also, it has a washer/dryer and a full sized fridge. This was a big plus because a lot of the places we viewed only had mini fridges below the counter. The living room couches are a bit on the small side, but we can still lounge comfortably and transition back and forth to the kitchen for biscuits and tea when we please ... aka all the time. So far our dining room table is more of a desk with all our utility bills and information, but we can still have a nice sit down meal and work on homework here. Also I just noticed looking through these pictures that our walls are a little bare, but so far that hasn't mattered because the view out our window is surprisingly lovely.

The galley-style kitchen with new, matching appliances and lots of cabinet space.

 
3. Two windows in each room!  Although there's not a lot of natural light here in Leeds, it is nice to have the option to let it in should the occasion arise. In each bedroom and the living room there are two wonderful, big windows. It can be quite nice when the sun does shine and you can let a breeze in to air out the place. Maybe more importantly, they also help the University's free WiFi flow in. So far Danny and I are getting great reception in both our bedrooms at our desks. This is a big help for the budget. Also, although the rooms are smaller, the tall sets of windows help the rooms feel bigger.

Blatantly posing in our living room.

4. Brand new double beds! We spent our first night on an awful mattress left here by the previous landlord. I was ever so happy when the delivery trucks arrived the next day. We did have to help assemble them and help haul the old ones down the three flights of stairs, but they are super comfy, so it was well worth it. Also there are three of them so we can have lots of visitors!!! (hint hint)

Bedroom  1 (Danny's Room).

5. Handy storage units!  Although they feel a bit dorm-room ish, they are quite well designed and provide loads of storage. Each getting our own unit, Danny and I can easily fit our stuff into these. I'm not using half the drawers provided. It makes cleaning up a snap, but is bad because it makes me think, "Yeah, I could buy some more clothes to fill that up." Then I remember I have to fit it all back into the suitcases I brought with me. (Side note: the shopping here in Leeds is fantastic and it will be hard not to indulge). The desk space works well and will be heavily used for studying in the next few months.

Bedroom 2 (Cailey's Room).

6. We have a gear room! Currently it's more of a meat locker because we have the heat permanently turned off in there, but all in all, quite pleased with it. We get to proudly display/store all our climbing and hiking gear we brought with us. Our big backpacks, suitcases, hiking boots, climbing ropes, helmets, etc. All the bulky items that we're not using on a daily basis.

Bedroom 3 (Gear Room).

By all accounts, we really lucked out with this place. It has more space than we need, is super close to Uni (15 min walk to all our classes) and is super close to downtown (20 min walk to city centre). Without a car, being close to all our key amenities is worth it's weight in gold. We're still finding out about all the quirks about the place, but I'm already falling in love and it will be hard to move out at the end of June. Until then though, we will navigate the nuances of living together and keep some clean linens handy for all those wishing to pop by!

-Cailey