I'm insured in my apartment for fire/theft/flood and pretty much anything else for i think 35k worth of stuff and it cost me like 300 a year because i have my car with the same company. I'm currently with desjardins. you and your room mate should look at how much it would cost to replace all your stuff and use that as a basis of what coverage you'll need.
when you call they'll want to know:
- when the building was built,
-type of heating,
-how much jewelry you have (i only declared 1000$, i only have a ring and a necklace), -if you have a dog and if so what kind (if you have a rotty or pitbul dont declare it, they're considered high risk and they will refuse to cover for the dog)
-also if there is a fire hydrant within 300m of your dwelling.