ᴀᴘᴀʀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ ʜᴜɴᴛɪɴɢ sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟᴇs.

‎When it comes renting an apartment, it is always a matter of where what. In most areas of my country that I had lived and stayed for a while, it wasn't because I chose to stay there more like there was something I needed to do which would warrant getting an apartment. The reasons are never constant, it is either work, school or some sort of family vacation. Which kind of seem like my purpose determines where I live.
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‎Renting an apartment in my country is like a card game, you have to be focused on every little details of the apartment you are renting to prevent future troubles. I have had my share of house with troubles, believe me it is never something to look forward to.
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‎Most times when people are hunting an apartment, they are usually more focused on the urgency than the qualities of the apartment. As long as the apartment has ticked some boxes, they are good to go.
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‎House agents in my country are very funny people, they act like good Samaritan the moment they find someone searching for a house but it is a conditioned friendship. They don't really care about the troubles the tenant might encounter in the future as long as they get their cut, whatever comes next doesn't matter.
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‎Hunting for an apartment can be exhaustive and fun, it is a matter of experience. One of the few things I have learnt looking for an apartment to rent is that, you should never be pressured by the need to rent an apartment, even if it is urgent, don't let the pressure be readable from your face expression.

‎The need to rent an apartment as fast as possible can pressure people to neglect checking some important details about a house before going for it. It is ok to be pressured but don't let it show, house agents are like hyena, they can smell pressure from afar and the moment they notice, they have a way of using that pressure to their advantage.
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‎Speaking of the things to look out of for while hunting for an apartment, well it depends on a person's taste but there are few basic things that needs to be available. The first thing I look out for is never about the apartment but the neighbourhood. Most times there are more issues with the location of the apartment than the apartment itself.
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‎First thing first, is the neighbourhood free from any form of disaster, either natural or man-made? There are some neighbourhood that are heavily flooded during raining season and you might not know this if you searched for a house during dry season. There are also matters of good drainage system, electricity, theft, cultism, riot, police mayhem, market and good roads. All these boxes must be checked before picking an apartment because the first thing you pick is not an apartment but the neighbourhood.
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‎There is a neighbourhood in Ogun State called Oluwo in Abeokuta. It is an area mostly occupied by students but a lot has changed since people start paying attention to issues in the community but still, some freshers still get trapped there. There are issues of cultism in this neighbourhood and whenever it begins, the residents of this community will have to run away from their houses and reside somewhere else for their own safety.

‎If the neighbourhood is good enough, then I can go ahead and inspect and apartment of my choice. The house structure {Watch out for leaking ceilings}, furniture, wiring, water system, toilet & bathroom, the compound and house mates or neighbour. You see the issue with house mates is very important especially if the house is face me, I face you. I lived in an apartment during my National diploma days, they were 4 category of insane people in that house.
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‎The first category was a couple that enjoys fighting each other every single day, I wondered why they married each other. The second was a guy that plays music 24/7, increasing the volume to the extent it overwhelms everyone in the house. The third category were the club gurus and druggies, they are very nasty people and last category were the "I too know people" these ones will never allow us to agree on a single decision during meetings, they always have so much to say and complain about but when it comes to getting work done, they would disappear.
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‎I always advice people to rent an apartment with rules that suits their personality because there are some neighbours that are capable making a person miserable. I'm just glad I'm out of the apartment hunting game for now but it was kind of adventurous.
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_{This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled For rent in hive learners community.}

‎_{Cover image - 𝖣𝖾𝗌𝗂𝗀𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖼𝖺𝗇𝗏𝖺}
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