International student pounded the pavement and crashed on a couch on path to coveted room in Thunder Bay

Aakash Chakor figured it wouldn't be hard to find a place to live in Thunder Bay when he arrived in the northwestern Ontario city from Mumbai.

Well, he was wrong.

After coming to Canada on Aug. 21, Chakor and other international students set to study at Lakehead University pounded the pavement day and night trying to find an apartment — or even a room — that would take them.

Chakor had booked a short-term Airbnb rental before landing in Thunder Bay, but with the checkout date quickly approaching and no accommodation in sight, he was getting nervous.

"Not knowing the country, not knowing the city at all, I thought I would get a place in a couple of days," he said. "I had heard that Thunder Bay is a small town, so getting a place would be easier."

Luckily, through a mutual contact, the 23-year-old ended up snagging a spot at a house along the Thunder Bay Transit route with six other people. While he is sharing a bedroom, and had to crash on the couch for two nights between when his Airbnb stay ended and the former tenant moved out, he's just relieved to have a place to live.

Lakehead International's vice-provost, James Aldridge, said the school expects to see more international students than ever this year. The influx is a national trend, with Immigration Minister Marc Miller estimating Canada is on track to host around 900,000 international students this year.

This all comes amid debates at the provincial and federal levels over what to do about the country's housing crisis. Federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser has even suggested a cap on international students to ease pressures on the market.

"I expect we'll end up with somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000 international students here at Lakehead University this fall," Aldridge told CBC News in an interview.

In a followup email Friday, he said Lakehead will welcome about 6,500 students — including more than 1,500 international students — to its Thunder Bay campus this fall. However, a final count of the total number of international students will be done in November, he said.

Chakor, who is completing a two-year master's program in electrical and computer engineering, said he was directed to the Lakehead University Student Union, international department and off-campus website for help finding accommodation.

"They don't directly make any arrangements between landlords and tenants, and they don't inspect any rental units, but they provide a way for international students and local students to be directed to housing opportunities in the community," Aldridge explained.

Chakor had to consider numerous aspects of housing that he wouldn't normally think about in India, like heating systems and whether a basement apartment might get too cold in a Canadian winter.

There are currently 1,120 beds for students in on-campus residences and the school plans to expand that to 1,160 for the 2024-2025 year, director of residence services Shannon Foster said in an email Friday.