My first apartment hunting experience was when I was months away from becoming a wife. While we were at the peak of our wedding preparations, I was also thinking a lot about where we would live, because I do not want to stay at my husband’s studio apartment long-term. So, I started my search online, scanning through Facebook groups and carousell.ph—a well-known property-for-rent site in the Philippines.
I first narrowed my search to my neighborhood and saw a property just a few blocks away from my dorm. So, I decided to walk there and just get a feel, from the outside looking in, for what it’s like to live there. What attracted me to that apartment unit was its windows. I could already imagine my mornings, drinking a mug of hot chocolate, basking in the sunshine while listening to the birds sing. The apartment location was also favorable for me because (1) I was already familiar with the safe neighborhood, and (2) it was near shops, public transport, and our workplaces.
While my fiancé at the time was telling me we needed to keep looking for a cheaper alternative, nothing I found online, nor the places I personally visited, had the same spark I felt in that first apartment that caught my eye and heart. Weighing our options, we ended up living in the place I really dreamed of living in the first years of our marriage.
Three years later, we’re back to apartment hunting, but this time, in a country we have never lived in.
This time, we don’t have the option to simply walk around the neighborhood and look for tarps that say ‘Apartment for Rent.’ Instead, we’re left to search through property-for-rent sites such as apartments.com and rentals.ca. And I find myself doing the same thing I did years ago: scanning photos for windows. But now, with an additional look out for in-suite laundry, AC, and a walk-in closet.
What I liked about our apartment hunting this time around is that we could look at so many properties and get a feel of what it’s like to live there without actually going there. We could simply check their accessibility to shops and transport through online maps. Thanks to their 3D virtual tours, we could walk around the units and imagine ourselves in them. And with rich property reviews on Google Maps, we could also assess their property management, including whether there are issues or just plain good reviews.
Another interesting aspect of our latest apartment-hunting experience is the streamlined online application process. While our prior experience in the Philippines was just about talking to the landlord and giving them the first month’s rent and a deposit (a month’s worth or two) before we could secure a lease (and some properties require you to submit 12-months of post-dated checks), Canadian apartments require you to apply for a unit of your choice online. Once the leasing agent deems you eligible to apply, she provides you with the application link, where you must provide personal information, upload proof of income and identity, pay last month’s rent to secure the unit, and upload a voided check for the monthly rent. And then you just have to wait for an email confirming whether your application has been accepted/rejected. Remote, efficient, and a little nerve-wracking, because this time, we can’t walk up to the building and feel it first.
It’s peak season for apartment applications because of the upcoming fall semester. And somewhere out there is the apartment we’ll call home, the window we’ll drink our morning hot chocolates by, and hopefully a new door for something unexpected to walk through.
P.S.: After three days, our apartment application was approved!!
See you soon, London, Ontario! 🇨🇦👋
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