The last week we’ve been house hunting Cairo style – take 2.
This is one of the high priorities on each day’s “to do” list. This time we’re looking for a house, or rather an apartment, to buy. There are in Cairo, like anywhere else, “used” houses and new houses. We haven’t looked yet at existing houses but rather new houses and once again I’m way out of my depth – every aspect of this process has elements that amaze and astound me, and not always in a good way.
The most difficult part for me of the conduct of any sort of business or transaction is that women are excluded from the process. At first I thought it was just because I couldn’t speak the language, but I am learning that it is because often, in many ways, it’s considered not really my affair. This may be one of the hardest things for me to get used to in Egypt. Mohamed tries to include me as often as possible and at times apologises for “talking to the man”. At other times (and I’m not sure what the difference is) he simply goes with the other man to talk and I actually have to ask what’s going on. But he’s thorough in his discussions and finds out far more than I would think to ask. I really have to make the language one of my priorities, at least then even if I wasn’t officially included I would understand what was going on.
However, in saying that about women and “business”, Mohamed has decided that I will have an office and desk (or maybe we will share one) at the company, even though all the business will be conducted in Arabic and often he won’t be there. I can work on whatever I like while I’m there and will have internet access he says. I will also work for the company finding and creating tour business. Also designing a website I think and maybe other things. And when we are discussing offices and things, he always insists that we must make the decision together. He always remembers if I talk about something being difficult for me and later he will do or say something to show that he understands and will try to improve or change it. So I think, given Mohamed’s cultural environment and upbringing, he’s doing pretty well. He does work hard to make me feel happy and is always delighted if I say I am happy.
A week on….
Finally, we’ve found a house and made a deposit! I can’t tell you what a big step this seems to be for both of us, remembering that I have also never owned a brand new house, always bought from another owner. There’s a huge amount of work ahead to get it ready to live in but Mohamed thinks maybe 2 - 3 months.
We did decide on a place previously, in a new area with a view of the pyramids unable to be built out under current law, top floor and including the roof, new 7 star hotel (yes 7) going in about 600 metres away so property values would be sure to increase and the price was excellent for what we were getting. The house was large with 4 bedrooms and a study and felt really good as soon as we went inside. However, as we began to negotiate (or should I say as Masry began talking to “the man”) the price began to go up and up, then there was talk of not being able to take the roof and finally, the house was withdrawn as the man’s wife said they needed to keep it for themselves!
This highlights for me another one of the big things in Egypt, certainly in property dealings – if you can, have the cash in hand and close the deal immediately! This seems to be the only way to guarantee that people won’t continuously change their minds. We had exactly the same experience with the office – the price went up and up and finally the owner changed his mind and decided not to sell. And some places we went back to see again we discovered the price had risen. I am quite convinced that if you were buying unfinished new property you could turn a profit in Egypt with your money barely coming out of the bank.
Dubai may have 50% (or was it 25%?, whatever) of the world’s cranes working on buildings there and China may have most of the rest, but in Egypt the building rate is stupendous also, it’s just done without cranes – all by hand. There are new and partially completed buildings and new suburbs everywhere.
We looked at quite a few other apartments in the same new estate (between Pyramid Heights and Dreamland) without seeing anything that grabbed us. And we did look at one property right near the pyramids very close to what would have been the office. We call it the dog house. (All the houses have these sort of names given I don’t know the names of any of “the men” and their names are quite likely to all be Mohamed anyway, so we have the Friday house, the dog house etc. The 4 bedroom plus roof house was the dream house). But it was very expensive for what it was both size wise and finish wise. It was on the first floor and did have a garden at the back. However, I found it hard to get past the smell of dog (one large and one small). After not a lot of discussion we decided that the dog house was not for us, even if it did have the advantage of being able to walk to work, shops etc. So back to looking at new buildings.
Looking at apartments in new buildings requires stamina and caution and great imagination. Basically you are just walking freely into a building site, over piles of sand and rubbish in all the rooms, up stairways cluttered with debris and not a rail or a light in sight, sometimes out onto unfinished floors completely open, some even without walls. Sometimes there’s a man to accompany you and sometimes not. And sometimes you get to visit the apartment that’s been used as the site’s toilet area so then you really have to watch your step (not a porta loo in sight and the letters OH & S would probably stand for Omar, Hassan and Sherif). The walls are just one brick thickness, there’s no floor except the base with pipes laid all over it etc., no windows, no doors, plumbing and electricity all exposed. For an Australian, it’s a mind boggling experience. My conversation was usually limited to “What, up here?” or “You mean, follow you there? Are you positive?” or “We can just walk in?”
Still, the plumber working in the building block in which we saw the dream house called again and told us that the house on the top floor but the other side of the building was also for sale, with the roof. Not quite as large (3 bedrooms, no study and one less bathroom) but more finished, all the electricity in and working and ceilings and walls finished to undercoat and the roof completed (with a very large pergola) except for the kitchen and bathroom up there. And cheaper too by a fair margin. So we went back and saw it three times, each time with the plumber talking non-stop and once to measure it up so we could get an idea of how much to finish it off, especially for all the ceramic tiles.
Yesterday we met with the owner and paid a deposit and we now have a very rough hand-written paper on a sheet torn out of a notebook (a “small paper”) to say that we have paid a deposit and now have two weeks to pay the rest of the price. Already the man has rung twice to see if we have changed our minds. I suspect he has another buyer at a higher price. The paper is interesting: if you don’t pay when you say you will you lose everything you have already paid – he will know nothing about your money. But although the man wanted cash (of course) he has agreed to wait those two weeks for us to pay the rest. However, if I lose the paper then he also knows nothing about my money! Once we pay the rest we will get a “big paper” that is lodged with the government to assign new ownership.
So the new house has 3 bedrooms, one with ensuite and balcony, another big bathroom, very large entranceway and what the Egyptians call reception, or hall, and what Australians call the lounge or living room. It is L-shaped with a balcony and the short leg of the L will accommodate a large dining table and also the office/study. There’s another separate toilet off the reception. There’s also quite a decent sized kitchen. No laundry – originally it was designed with the washing machine in the ensuite but it’s going in the kitchen. There’s 250 sq. metres of roof area with another kitchen and bathroom area, mostly covered by pergolas. Oh yes, and there’s the view of the pyramids. Total cost for everything, including all new furniture and appliances, will be around that of a small two-bedroom unit at home (Sunshine Coast) without a water view, maybe a little less.
So the house is settled in that respect and now the hard work starts. The kitchen design man has been to visit and measure and I have some definite ideas on how I want the bathrooms laid out at least (which will require some extra plumbing for the separate showers). I’m already just about “ceramicked out” and there’s still a LONG way to go.
And somehow, with an office still to acquire, I suspect I’ll be stepping carefully through a few more building sites yet.
Lyndall
No comments:
Post a Comment