house hunting p2

Koresawa-san and I met up with the 2nd real estate agent right after the first. By then it was about 11am but the summer heat was getting a bit unbearable.

I was really surprised to find something that looked so nice on the first attempt. The interior certainly looked much better than its exterior. Apparently the owner had renovated the place, hence the more modern feel.

The kitchen looked well equipped, situated just next to the doorway and faced the balcony. Nice arrangement.

The wash area reminded me of my previous place in Tokyo. Inbuilt with cabinets that can store all your toiletries and necessary items so you don't have a messy bathroom. A big plus!

It's smaller than all 3 by the first agent, at 47.5m². But it's just a right size for me.

Even the room reminded me of my previous Tokyo room. From here, there's another opening to the balcony so if you feel like grabbing some clothes it's easy and it's covered.

The view from the room is also quite good. It even has a view of the garden on the first floor, quite rare for places where space is luxury.

I thought this real estate had better choices than the earlier one. I was getting a little hopeful despite the heat and humidity.

The 2nd apartment was not in slopes of Kitano, but nearer to downtown Sannomiya. In fact, one of my requirements was that it had to be near a train station. This was stated as 3 minutes walk from the JR Sannomiya station.

A little older and not as nice as the earlier one. Just a right size though with everything within reach.

Then later she told us perhaps it wasn't a good location since there were supposedly some yakuza's around that area @.@!

The last apartment for the day was a little further away, stated as 4 minutes away from the station. Having lived in Japan for awhile, I take stated walking distance with a grain of salt, and double that to be realistic.

This was very similar to the previous one, also quite old, but with same type of amenities provided. Both were in downtown, surrounded by more buildings and apartments. Convenient but feels a bit drab to be honest.

Though the nice touch is one of the rooms is Japanese-style with sliding cupboards and tatami mats. Reminds me of Stephen and Masami's previous apartment. This room faces the corridor of the apartment outside, so maybe not such a good idea to open the window!

Since both of these were much nearer to the station, the rent would be quite expensive. Advantage would be less walking and more access to shops and restaurants.

Initial summary : Out of all 6 visited on Friday, I like the 1st one by 2nd agent though its on hilly Kitano. Maybe I should just stick to where I'm staying now! I'll need to ask if I can get something similar which is newer, close to a train station, though smaller. A bonus would be if they can lump the water, electricity, heating, internet, phone, and TV bills together with the rent - I remember having like 4 separate bills to pay back in Niigata!