[Summary: Microsoft Copilot defines the Tagalog term “ungas” as both an adjective and a noun, and we will cherrypick from both. As an adjective, it can mean among many things “rude,” and as a noun, it can mean among many things a person who “lacks common sense or understanding.” New Zealand has a serious housing problem, and all the numbers you need to know are that one in three Kiwis need to rent (don’t own), and only a fifth of all renters believe their flats are affordable. that’s why a fair number (though not a majority) of landlords can afford to be ungas, sad to say. A Tagalog version appears right below the original post. Thanks for reading!]
PERFECT IS NOT a word we use lightly, but the flat was nearly perfect in almost every way, and Mahal spead mental check marks all over the place on the viewing that day. Brand new renovation (no sign that it was an old house actually), new carpet smell, wooden tile flooring also new, still-in-packaging cooking range and heat pump, double-glazed windows and sliding doors not just in the living room but in the master bedroom as well.
Sigh, we could practically sense behind our backs all the admiring glances of all the other viewers and visitors that the letting manager was guiding around the place. This will be snapped up in a minute and the lease will be signed before the end of the day, Mahal signaled to me telepathically.
Except that it wasn’t, it was on the TradeMe site another few days, and shockingly, the property manager (who was actually the owner, first question mark) called us up to say, congrats, you’ve been chosen! We dropped everything that day to return to the place, hardly believed it was happening, and signed everything in sight. Mahal is a hard customer to please, but she told me Noel, this is the flat we’ve been waiting for, halos lahat ng mga gusto natin andito na (actually mga gusto nya), kung meron ka pang alinlangan mga minor na lang yan, wag na nating palampasin. And so, that was that, bond and deposit paid, and we were the tenants of this guy, for lack of a better name, called Ungasis.
Even during that first visit, which was supposed to be all smiles, there was already one or two red flags that came up, but looking back we were destined to just ignore.
First, how were we chosen and what did we have over the other candidates? We would’ve made the short list for sure, as we were both working, non-smokers, didn’t have any pets, and to be honest, were neither too old nor too young. But so did a lot of other families that must’ve applied for the flat. Later, I was to learn that we had just the right number of occupants for the landlord’s place. Four persons for four rooms. I know, ridiculous, right? More later.
Not even before the end of the first week, settling in, things had already gone to a rocky start. We needed to take off a sliding drawer (non-functioning, for aesthetic purposes only) to connect a washing machine hose. Out of practicality we decided to ask help from the landlord/property manager, not that hard as he also happened to be our next-door neighbor.
No way, he said.
That is not my role was the answer he gave in his email. He could send the tradesman (plumber, carpenter or builder) he regularly worked with, but we would have the pay the guy ourselves. By the hour.
Was he for real??? For a fixture he owned, in his house, that we were using for the first time??? Yes, he was serious and obviously didn’t want to get involved. With an issue in his own house.
But Ungasis was just warming up.
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He took particular issue with our male flatmate who had become friends with us. Why? Because to continue from above, the maximum number in his flat of four rooms was a grand total of four people, including our three-year old Baby Dumpling. No allowance for kids, couples and room-sharers. That meant that one of our two flatmates had to go, along with their share of the rent.
To allow him to stay temporarily, I explained to the landlord that our flatmate (admittedly the fifth out of four allowable occupants) was already seeking new lodgings and was just asking for a little time,
Ungasis’s response: I suppose he can stay, but I need to know exactly how much longer he will be staying, and whether or not he will really honor a hard deadline, in compliance with which he would regularly remind us.
We decided on six weeks, and it was at that point when we realized that Ungasis more than fully deserved the name we had given him. If this blog wasn’t a child-friendly site, I’d have a few more well-deserved but salty aliases for him.
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Perhaps it was fitting that Jon (our guy flattie) was the one who discovered that Ungasis, every few days was pretending to walk by our flat (it’s part of a compound that includes his own house and another, three in all).
This was odd in a couple ways. First, it’s not just awkward but a bad look for landlords to frequent their tenants’ areas if it isn’t for an official visit or scheduled inspection, based on my own experience. It makes the tenant feel that he’s snooping on them and doesn’t make for good relations. Secondly, as our unit sits on the farthest corner of the compund it is impossible to just “pass by” or incidentally walk by, unless one really wanted to have a look at our flat.
Unless of course, you’re Ungasis, who later we realized was checking if we were mowing the irregularly shaped lawn and/or whether our guy flattie had left already. At that point, around two weeks in, we were already avoiding him like bad breath or COVID, or maybe both.
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Six weeks in, and things had gone from worse to worst. Scratches on the paint and dimples caused by bumps from furniture, easily smoothed over (literally) in all our previous flats, were a major no-no from him and he implied it would affect our “standing” with him. He had cited us several times from blocking the “common” driveway, our teeny-tiny Mazda Demio that we just idled 15 minutes or less for groceries or purchases. Yet again, he reminded us about the lawn, which was puzzling as there was no way from his angle he could’ve seen it, unless as above narrated, he just happened” to pass by.
It cost us an arm and a leg, but we needed to move out, five months and the aggravation was beginning to get to Mahal, who went out of her way to avoid Ungasis, a tall order as the latter lived on the front lot that all compound occupants needed to pass through. Salvation came in the form of a flat located even nearer both Mahal’s place of work and daughter Dumpling’s daycare. Again, our application was a long shot, there were lots of interested tenant candidates, but miraculously we were chosen.
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Lots of lessons learned, probably not enough space before you start to get bored with this post. Just to scrape out a nugget of wisdom, and so you won’t make the same mistake we made, here’s what we got out of that painful episode of Flatting 101:
Be very concerned if your potential landlord is also your property manager, and a double red flag if he is thirdly, your neighbor as well. Nowadays, a lot (but not all) landlords use a property manager to oversee the general administration of the flat, rent collection, maintenance etc etc.
For all parties, it is better if the landlord is not physically and emotionally involved in his property. A lot less drama, and a lot more enjoyment out of renting.
Thanks for reading!
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PERPEKTO ay hindi natin madalas na ginagamit na salita, pero ang apartment ay halos perpekto sa halos lahat ng paraan. Si Mahal ay naglagay ng mga mental na tsek sa lahat ng dako noong araw na iyon. Bagong-renovate (walang palatandaan na ito ay dating lumang bahay), amoy bago ang bagong carpet, bagong wooden tile flooring, at bagong range at heat pump na nasa packaging pa. Hindi lang sa living room kundi pati sa master bedroom ay may double-glazed windows at sliding doors.
Nakaramdam kami ng mga tingin mula sa ibang mga viewers at bisita na kasama ng property manager. Akala namin ito’y agad na mabibili at pipirmahan ang lease bago matapos ang araw. Pero hindi, ilang araw pa itong nasa TradeMe site. At gulat na gulat kami nang tawagan kami ng property manager (na siyang may-ari pala) at sabihing, “Congratulations, kayo ang napili!” Agad kaming bumalik sa lugar, hindi makapaniwala na totoo ito, at pirmado ang lahat. Si Mahal ay mahirap pasayahin, pero sinabi niya sa akin, “Noel, ito na ang flat na matagal na nating hinihintay. Halos lahat ng gusto natin ay nandito na (o kung tutuusin, nandito na ang gusto niya). Kung may mga alinlangan ka pa, mga minor na lang ‘yan, huwag na nating palampasin.” At ganoon nga, bigay agad ng bond at deposit, at kami ay naging tenant ng isang taong ito, na itatago natin sa pangalang Ungasis.
Kahit noong unang pagkita, na dapat ay puno ng ngiti, may mga red flag na nakawagaygay. Pero sa pagtingin ko sa nakaraan, tila itinadhana na namin na ito’y balewalain.
Una, paano kami napili at ano ang nagbigay sa amin ng anuman laban sa ibang mga kandidato? Siguradong nasa short list kami dahil pareho kaming may trabaho, hindi naninigarilyo, walang alagang hayop, at totoo lang, hindi kami masyadong matanda o bata. Pero marami pang ibang pamilya ang nag-apply para sa flat. Sa huli, natuklasan ko na kami’y napili dahil tama lang ang bilang ng mga tao para sa bahay ng may-ari. Apat na tao para sa apat na kwarto. Alam mo, nakakatawa, ‘di ba? May iba pa akong sasabihin mamaya.
Hindi pa tapos ang unang linggo, may mga problema na. Kailangan naming baklasin ang isang sliding drawer (hindi functional, pampaganda lang o estetika) para ikonekta ang hose ng washing machine. Sa praktikal na dahilan, nagdesisyon kaming humingi ng tulong sa may-ari/property manager, lalo na’t siya’y kapitbahay namin.
Pero hindi raw puwede.
“Hindi yan ang papel ko,” ang sagot niya sa email. Puwede niyang ipadala ang kanyang trusted tradesman (plumber, carpenter, o builder), pero kami ang magbabayad sa lalaki. Per hour basis.
For real??? Para sa isang gamit nya, sa kanyang bahay, na unang beses naming ginamit? Oo, seryoso siya at wala siyang balak makialam. Kahit may problema sa sariling bahay.
Pero si Ungasis ay nag-uumpisa pa lang.
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Ang sobrang ayaw nya ay sa aming lalaking kasamahan sa apartment na naging kaibigan namin. Bakit kamo? Dahil, tulad ng nabanggit kanina, ang maximum na bilang ng tao sa kanyang apartment na may apat na kwarto ay apat lamang, kasama na ang aming tatlong-taong gulang na si Baby Dumpling. Walang pahintulot para sa mga bata, mag-asawa, o mga nagsha-share ng kwarto. Ibig sabihin, isa sa aming dalawang kasamahan sa apartment ay kinakailangang umalis, kasama ang kanilang bahagi ng upa.
Upang payagan siyang manatili pansamantala, ipinaliwanag ko sa may-ari na ang aming kasamahan sa apartment (bagamat siya ang panglima sa apat na pinapayagang mga residente) ay naghahanap na ng bagong tirahan at humihiling lamang ng kaunting oras,
Ang sagot ni Ungasis: puwede naman siyang manatili, pero kailangan kong malaman kung gaano katagal pa siya magpapakalat, at kung talagang susundin niya ang matigas na takdang oras, na palaging ipinaaalala sa amin.
Napagkasunduan namin ang anim na linggo, at sa puntong iyon ay napagtanto namin na si Ungasis ay higit pa sa karapat-dapat sa pangalan na ibinigay namin sa kanya. Kung hindi lang itong blog na pambata, may ilang walang-hiyang alias pa sana ako para sa kanya. 😤
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Marahil ay angkop na si Jon (ang aming kasamahan sa apartment) ang unang nakadiskubre na si Ungasis, tuwing ilang araw, ay nagpapanggap na dumaan sa harap ng aming apartment (ito’y bahagi ng isang compound na kasama ang kanyang sariling bahay at isa pang bahay, tatlo sa lahat).
Ito ay kakaiba sa dalawang aspeto. Una, hindi lang ito nakakailang kundi masamang tingnan para sa mga may-ari ng apartment na palaging dumadalaw sa mga lugar ng kanilang mga tenant maliban kung ito ay opisyal na pagbisita o iskedyul na inspeksyon, base sa aking sariling karanasan. Ito’y nagpaparamdam sa mga tenant na sila’y minamasdan at hindi nagiging maganda ang relasyon.
Pangalawa, dahil ang aming unit ay nasa pinakamalayong sulok ng compound, hindi lamang basta “dumaan” o napadaan nang hindi sinasadya, maliban na lang kung talagang may interes kang tingnan ang aming apartment.
Maliban na lang, siyempre, kung ikaw ay si Ungasis, na sa huli ay napagtanto namin na sinusubaybayan kung nag-aalaga kami ng hindi regular na hugis na hardin at/o kung umalis na ba ang aming kasamahan sa apartment. Sa puntong iyon, mga dalawang linggo na ang nakalipas, kami ay uma-iwas na sa kanya na parang mabantot na hininga o COVID, o baka pareho pa.
Pagkalipas ng anim na linggo, mas lalo pang lumala ang sitwasyon. Ang mga gasgas sa pintura at mga dimples na dulot ng pagkabangga ng mga kagamitan, na madaling maayos (literal na) sa mga nakaraang apartment namin, ay malaking hindi puwede sa kanya. Ipinahiwatig niya na ito’y makakaapekto sa ating “standing” sa kanya. Maraming beses na tayong pinagsabihan dahil sa pag-block sa “common” driveway ng aming maliit na Mazda Demio, na minsan ay iniiwan lang namin nang 15 minuto o mas kaunti para sa mga groceries o pagbili. At muli, ipinaalala niya sa atin ang hardin, na nakakapagtaka dahil wala siyang paraan para makita ito mula sa kanyang anggulo, maliban na lang kung gaya ng nabanggit kanina, “nagkataon” na dumaan siya.
Ito’y nagkakahalaga ng malaking halaga, pero kinailangan naming umalis. Lima na buwan at ang pagkairita ay unti-unti nang sumasagi kay Mahal, na ginagawa ang lahat para iwasan si Ungasis. Hindi madali ito dahil si Ungasis ay nakatira sa harapang bahagi ng compound na kailangang daanan ng lahat ng mga residente. Ngunit dumating ang kaligtasan sa anyo ng isang apartment na mas malapit sa lugar ng trabaho ni Mahal at sa daycare ng aming anak na si Dumpling. Muling nag-apply kami, kahit malabo, at sa awa ng Diyos, kami’y napili muli.
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Maraming aral ang natutunan, marahil kulang na espasyo bago ka mabagot sa post na ito. Upang kunin ang isang butil ng karunungan, at upang hindi mo gawin ang parehong pagkakamali na ginawa namin, narito ang aming natutunan mula sa masakit na karanasang ito sa Flatting 101:
Mag-ingat kung ang iyong potensyal na may-ari ng bahay ay siya ring property manager, at dalawang malalaking red flag kung siya’y ikatlo, kapitbahay mo rin. Sa kasalukuyan, maraming (pero hindi lahat) na may-ari ng bahay ang gumagamit ng property manager upang pangasiwaan ang pangkalahatang administrasyon ng apartment, koleksyon ng upa, at pagmamantini, at iba pa.
Para sa lahat ng panig, mas mainam kung ang may-ari ng bahay ay hindi personal na nakikialam sa kanyang ari-arian. Mas kaunti ang gulo, at mas marami ang kaligayahan sa pag-uupa.
Salamat sa pagbasa!
it’s a landlords market in big cities like Wellington and Auckland. We rent at their pleasure. Thanks for the comment Judith!
we had a similar situation when we first came to New Zealand some 50+ years ago. We were here for two years only and so looked for a house to lease. All those years ago, there was virtually nothing to lease and we found a house that the owner was unable to sell. Unfortunately, he lived along the street and kept checking whether the lawn had been cut, whether the children’s toys were left on the lawn et cetera et cetera. An impossible situation. We were fortunate that we could buy a and so could leave him with his demands.