Remember that I have resigned? Yea, I resigned with several back up plans in mind. I have planned out what to do until the end of the year, at least. I have planned so much that I thought I was safe. But the universe decides to add more spice to my life.

Living in an Apartment

Living on my own in an apartment has always been on my bucket list.

Currently, and not for long, I am living in a superb apartment. A 1+1 BR with size 37m2. Near the malls. Near the public transportation. A homey place. An environment that I liked. And, the best part was, it was cheap. FYI, I live alone without any flatmates.

I had researched on the perfect apartment since 3 months before moving here. Surveyed a ton of places. Contacted tons of agents. Made a spreadsheet tracker on the size, layout, IPL, wifi, and all possible recurring costs. Before finally landing my choice here, in this apartment. The moment I surveyed the place, I fell in love, and I immediately paid the Down Payment to secure the place so it wouldn't go to anyone else.

To maximize my experience, I had drawn a floor plan and designed the place the way an interior designer without any experience or budget would. But at least I would know how my standing desk would fit the unit. Or what are the things provided here and how much expected spendings would I need to spend after renting here.

Months before the lease ends, as written on the contract, I contacted my agent. I plan to extend my lease here. I had kept the place clean and maintained and I was planning to extend it by 6 months as there's a high chance I will move out soon, depending on where I plan to go next. But the agent said that landlord does not accept 6 months leases. Okay. Another year it is. No worries. I was expecting a price increase. I had saved enough to have a buffer cushion for this.

My Landlord Rejected My Rent Renewal

About one and a half months before the lease ends, I was expecting the agent would contact me for a lease renewal. After I agreed to the full-year extension, things went completely quiet. No contract, no updates. When I followed up, apparently my landlord had,.. retracted the offer and kicking me out.

Less than two months. Right before my trip to Sweden. Last year, I was looking for an apartment from 3 months before, and now I have to deal all of this within one month, right after Sweden.

The agent said that the landlord is planning to use the apartment. Only to have me see the exact listing ad on a rent website with a... ~25% increase in rent. The agent had defended that it was an old listing. But hey, I can't really verify either.

The thing is, rents on my apartment and nearby apartments have risen 30-40% compared to last year. I still had the spreadsheet from last year when I first searched for my apartment.

The worst part of looking for an apartment here is that, agents often list outdated listings to lure in potential renters only to say that the listing was sold and offer them a less interesting listing. It was tiring to have tons of agents on my WhatsApp occasionally posting me listings that are not as good as the ones they had listed online. And I need to contact all of them directly to know if a listing online is really available.

I had an option to move to a "Kos" (boarding houses/small independently managed apartments). But, after looking again, a Kosan doesn't really fit my lifestyle, and they tend to be a lot more expensive than renting an apartment. Well, this is why I am in an apartment. Oh, apartments tend to have a better management than a Kosan.

Where Should I Go Now?

No, I haven't found anywhere now. I've reached out to a lot of agents, no, nothing clicks. I even had lowered my expectations and increased my budget, but nothing clicks, as of this writing.

Though, I still have several backup plans if I can't find anything good.Rest assured. I won't be homeless. But still, I still want to live in an apartment. My home is my foundation.

A foundation. I had relied on this space to be the one steady constant while the rest of my life was shifting.

Oh gosh, at least, the good thing is, this all happened when I don't have any other ongoing commitments (e.g full-time job). I would crash.

Now what? Where should I go after this? The time is ticking.