Does the real estate market say how racists we are?

Last updated on September 20, 2019

House-hunting could be a nightmare. There is a full set of criteria that must be taken into consideration when it comes to find the house of your dreams. First you need to select the type of house you are looking for. How many bedrooms? Do you  need two bathrooms? The kitchen needs to be separated from the living room? Or a kitchenette there in the corner is more than enough? When you finally come to a decision there is the most important criteria that starts whispering to your brain…you can’t afford it…with your budget I don’t think you are going to be able to purchase that penthouse…Boom! Your budget brought you back to reality. You need to start over and this time the first filter you set is the “max price” one. You tent to be a little bit over your budget, you never know, maybe the current owner will be open to a discussion…And there it is. A list of apartaments you can actually afford. That’s you. That’s what your value on the real estate market is. What you can afford says a lot about your social status. You are not rich enough for a second bathroom or a spacious chef’s kitchen. Forget the view and a walk-in closet. But wait a minute…that flat down there…scroll further down…Nice pictures! It says that there’s a second en suite bathroom, let me just click on the link…nice!

“Spacious three bedroom two bath home that has been architecturally redesigned down to the last detail”.

Wow. I am going to be the one with the three bedroom two bath home, wooden floor and the eat-in kitchen features a wine cooler! This is actually cooler than my cousin’s house!

Well but wait a minute…isn’t that just too good to be true? Is it a scam? The agency that posted the add seems to be a respected one…oh crap! Is it really there? I mean, in that area?

The apartment you were looking for, the one that would be perfect for you is just a few hundred meters from the neighbourhood you really like. Those few hundred meters separate the up-and-coming district everybody is talking about and…well… a not-so-nice area of the city. They say it’s dangerous to live there.  I wouldn’t live there…It’s kind of a multiethnic district. But c’mon the apartment looks good…is it really that the reason why it is not as expensive as the other ones?

House hunting could be a nightmare. When you finally get to a decision it seems that it is not just a budget problem. The real estate market has defined certain standards that affect the price per square meter. It is not just about the view or the fully renovated kitchen. The neighbourhood is the first criteria that brings up and down the value of a real estate investment. Location- location-location! This is the motto of the market and apparently there is a bit of racism in everyone of us, would you ever buy a house in a district that the real estate market does not like?