Thursday, August 25, 2005

Apartment hunt

So I am looking for a new home... and let me tell you, it’s a pain in the ass. The prices are too high and they’re not stopping, the selection sucks and I’m a picky little biatch – I do not settle for just something – I want the whole shebang (for an at least affordable price). And why should I settle, it’s my first real home we’re talking about! My expectations are high, but reasonable – for instance I don’t mind a bit of work for my own place if it need renovations, but it has to have soul and a good feeling about it – I need to WANT to live there...

Let me tell you about a couple of deal breakers I’ve come across. There are the flats, which are ruined by renovations – somebody has gone through the trouble of making it look “beautiful”... according to their own taste. Sometimes it means that old and high ceilings are hidden behind a suspended ceiling (...iiiiik) or that an old stove is covered with cyproc (like... why??). Then there was a perfectly nice place with reasonable price but since I know the owners they were honest enough to tell me that the downside of that flat is the neighbour – a woman with moustache and cats who tells you to be quiet if you happen to cough too loud... i thought women with beards only live in circus...

This is the sad reality, but I am not giving up just yet. At least I have N helping me. When we go to see some apartment, she’s the husband who asks all the right questions, leaving me the time to snoop around in the darker corners:)


"Sometimes I get the feeling the whole world is against me, but deep down I know that's not true. Some smaller countries are neutral." Robert Orben

3 comments:

Nele said...

I, as the "husband" and partner in crime have to tell you all - the apartment market sucks. The one thing I do not understand is, where are all these people looking for homes coming from - are some parts of the town or some small towns going to be empty? Cause the competition is fierce and there are simply too many people looking for apartments...

Anonymous said...

Familiar topic...it's a nightmare to get a place in London - fancy paying close to 6 million krooni (yes, yes!!) for a one-bedroom appartement in the suburbs (forget the central London).

Mrs said...

Mmm, compared to London we must be happy here in Belgium. 2-bedroom houses in good condition are "just" around 1872000 krooni :p