Flat Hunting in Sydney

After three weeks of sleeping in a bunk bed and sharing a room with seven other people, I knew it was time to move out of the hostel. Rates for the peak season had begun to skyrocket and there were loads of extra hidden fees such as wifi and the laundry machines. Luckily one of my roommates, Vicky, who had been a resident of Room 206 for nearly three months was more than keen to find an apartment with me. 

We began our search on Gumtree, Australia's answer to Craigslist. Fully furnished apartments are few and far between in Sydney, but we phoned and emailed contacts all day until we had 4-5 viewings scheduled. Our goal was to move out of the CBD and somewhere closer to the beach for summertime.  

Apartment hunting in Sydney seems to be much different than it is back home in Texas. Or perhaps it's just different because I'm searching in a big city. Agents don't lure you into a home that smells of freshly baked cookies, letting you ask questions about the plumbing and the condition of the house. Our real estate agent, Ronan, drove us to two apartments, herding us through the rooms like sheep for a whirlwind tour of the place. His comments about how the flat had three more viewings that evening and that if we wanted it, we should turn in an application and bond deposit by 9 am the next morning, made our decision a simple and rash one. There was no time to pretend we didn't like something about the place or act hesitant in hopes of getting a lower price. We sat on the steps outside filling out an application as two more girls showed up to view it. I dashed through the questions with sloppy handwriting and felt a bit queasy when I had to skip the employment section. "It's okay," I told myself. "This will motivate me to find a job." Ronan walked out of the building with the two girls and we told him we'd take it, practically throwing the applications at him. Vicky looked proud as he went to tell the other girls that it was no longer available. "Hah, we won."

The victory of beating the other girls to the flat was tainted by the daunting task awaiting me the next morning. I had to be in the property office at 9 am with four weeks rent in hand. Somehow this little expense was never mentioned to me in all my preparations for this working holiday. A $1000 bond is not pocket change, especially for the unemployed. I knew Sydney was going to be expensive, but I never could have imagined how quickly I'd run out of money.

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Even though it was a rushed decision and and a stressful process, I'm glad to have a place to call home here in Randwick. With only a 40 minute walk to the beach and a 20 minute bus ride to the city, I feel like I have the best of both worlds.