Apartment Watch #2: Decisions, Decisions, What?

So, I have been very busy lately. The last few days have been full of packing, painting, assembling… but I’m getting ahead of myself.

Shortly after I contacted Alex, expressing my interest, Alex and Thomas toured a three-bedroom townhouse near old town Alexandria. I had other engagements, but they took pictures and sent them to me. Both seemed pleased with the general condition of the house. Alex was especially pleased because the house had a six-month lease, and his job is only guaranteed till June. I was not so pleased. Moving is, for lack of a better word, a bitch. I wouldn’t want to do it again six months later. Still I kept an open mind and the three of us kept the town house on our list. After all, a short lease might provide a good testing ground to see if the three of us were good roommates.

Option number two was a more traditional apartment complex, titled Cityside Huntington Metro Apartments. I don’t know how we found this one, but after learning we were going to visit I did some internet research. During this research I learned a horrible truth. Apartment rating sites are pretty much absolutely useless. Sure, you know the apartments that get one star are horrible and those with four are bound to be pretty decent. However, most fall in a middle range that tells you nothing. You’d think looking at specific comments would help a little bit. But no. For every one person who says the complex is ‘located in the seventh ring of hell’, complete with locusts and demon apartment managers, there is the kind soul who says the management is from heaven and no bugs ever doth enter here—“I don’t know what those negative reviewers are talking about”. Yes most rating websites have the same general problem. You can always find at least one reviewer who is always negative and must let their one bad experience ruin potential happiness for others. But apartment reviewers are the worst. The sad truth is that the two or three stars that most apartments inevitably get can warn you just enough to avoid a place that might have been perfect. People’s experiences can’t be so completely and utterly different in the same complex, so why doesn’t everyone just tell the truth? Leave the drama to yourself, help a sister out.

Anyway—one rant later—on one unnaturally windy Saturday, Thomas, Alex and I visited Cityside. An immediately obvious flaw was location. The complex was a 15 minute walk from the metro, but it wouldn’t be a pleasant one. Instead of a nice neighborhood, like the townhouse was located in, our potential backyard at Cityside would be a highway. Long story short, the surrounding area did not give off a great vibe. The vibe inside our potential apartment was not great either, but that was because it was still under construction. The whole complex was in the middle of a remodeling. All of our floors, walls, and cabinets were stripped and I think I counted about five toilets sitting in what would be our living-room. Let’s say looking at the apartment required quite a bit of imagination. The plus side would be that when we moved in the place would be newly finished. Basically, new everything. But like everything the plus would come with a negative—construction going on around us at all time.

Seeing how Alex was going to be kicked out of his free hotel room very soon, we didn’t really have much time to look at other places. Consequently, we decided to head to a small independent coffee shop nearby (*cough* Starbucks *cough* *cough*) to list the pros and cons of the townhouse and the apartment, and hopefully make a decision. In the end, it really came down to a few simple statements.

Everybody: “The townhouse is located in a better neighborhood, but it has a short lease”. “The apartment would be totally new and was considerably cheaper”.

Abby and Thomas: “We like the townhouse better in general, but the short lease really sucks”.

Alex: “Yes, but a short lease works for me”.

In the end, I was pretty okay with either, and so was Alex. Thomas, however, needed more time to decide. He would let Alex know as soon as possible what his decision was.

Two days later I got a text from Alex. Thomas had gotten cold feet, and was backing out of the whole thing. Alex and I were on our own, fluttering in the cold empty wind. What were we to do? Buh duh duhhhhhhn!

To be continued…