Hanging out the wash

Hanging out the wash
10/06/2005 The Sun Sujartha Kumarasamy

IMAGINE this. You have purchased a unit in what you hope to be a pretty impressive condominium development. The facilities are worthy of a club, the lawns are manicured, and even the security guard is alert and reassuringly suspicious of non-residents.

You spend a bomb renovating and then furnishing your home-in-the-sky until it looks like it’s ready for a magazine photo shoot. All is near perfect, except that some of your neighbours think it’s all right to have their balcony, and sometimes the common corridor, resemble a dhobi wallah on washing day.

Billowing in the breeze for all to see are bedsheets, comforters, underwear, pants, shirts and dresses. If they have children, you might even spot a forlorn teddy bear hung out to dry. An image that does not exactly lend itself to the “classy” vision the developer painted when you bought the place.

Everyone does it

“This laundry thing is a nightmare!” says real estate agent James Quah. He has been in the business for about 15 years, and says there have been several occasions where deals slipped through his fingers after prospective clients saw the facade of the units.

“Even if they were pleased with the layout of the place and location, the viewing exercise ended abruptly when they saw how some residents hung out their clothes. Although some brushed it off as part of ‘Malaysian culture’, others were doubtful about the condo management, and even of the profile of the residents there.”

He says this is a common problem in properties costing between RM200,000 and RM300,000. “You rarely see this [laundry aired in full view] in higher-end condos. For apartments that are priced lower than RM150,000, the problem is even worse. But nobody complains about this since everybody does it and it’s already a culture!”

Quah thinks that hanging clothes in a way that it can be seen externally affects the view of a building’s facade, and thus lowers its value. “The management should be stricter about this, and exercise more responsibility to make sure that residents do not go overboard in using visible areas to dry laundry like comforters, floor rugs… even underpants and panties!”

Prestige and value

So, does such a practice affect the values of the entire condominium development? CS Yong of YCS Realty thinks it affects the impression one gets of the condo, but certainly does not deter anyone from buying a unit. “The prestige of the property will defi nitely be affected by the ‘multi-coloured fl ags’ hung over the balcony for drying. Surprisingly, most local buyers do not seem to be bothered by those unsightly views. Maybe they intend to do the same!” However, he contends that it will adversely affect the property value.

Yong thinks residents should not engage in such practices, but he isn’t too quick to assign blame. After all, he says, if the area meant for drying clothes suffers from poor ventilation and is always in the shadow, how can residents dry their clothes properly? On the other hand, the attitude of residents plays a part. “They still think and behave as if they are residing in a landed property.”

On what developers can do, Yong has this to offer. “I know of one project where the developers will bundle in a dryer where they do not offer a well-ventilated drying area for the owner. There is, however, a good chance that these dryers will never be used, even if given to residents. Think about the electricity consumption bill — some 1,000W to 2,000W can add up to quite a lot of additional expense per month!”

Real estate agent Felicia Hew, who specialises in high-end condos, says the laundry problem does not crop up in such properties. “Of course, a few residents will use the balcony to dry their clothes, but they will install special iron railings and do it within their balcony space. It’s not like they extend bamboo sticks out from the condos.”

Hew understands that sometimes, property managers are powerless against residents who blatantly hang out their laundry to dry. “Some managers do receive complaints from other residents who are disturbed by what they see. They can only send a letter to the offending party to advise them, but nothing else. It really makes the place so ugly, but I think it’s a Malaysian thing.”

Tidak apa attitude

Real estate agency principal Firdaus Musa of Firdaus & Associates Property Professionals Sdn Bhd agrees. “It may be unsightly but being Malaysian, we tend to take a tidak apa attitude.” Firdaus says he has never encountered any clients who are perturbed by the laundry practices of their would-be neighbours, but then again “…the better condos have laundry facilities and most residents there don’t do their own laundry but will send out their laundry. The only problem is basically in the low- to medium-cost apartments, but then, the problem does not affect property values”.

He adds that it is common to see laundry in the form of large comforters, bedsheets and blankets, even underwear flapping over the balcony railings. “Buyers of high-end units might have a word or two to say about this but most usually just shrug off the issue. Their main concerns are the facilities, location, security and, for some, they want developments that are peaceful and quiet.”

Eddie Low, manager of Jurukor Hartanah, which oversees the Desa View condos in Taman Melawati, tells theSun that it’s a big problem there. “I think it’s because this has already become a habit,” he says. “Yes, some say installing dryers will help solve this but you have to ask, what kind of dryers? In Europe, it’s cheap to operate their huge dryers. Here, most people feel that since they are drying clothes in their own units, what’s the problem?”

Free sunshine

It’s not fair to fault the developers or property managers, says assistant general manager Raymond Ng. Ng works for Saujana Triangle Sdn Bhd, a member of MK Land group of companies that develops and maintains the condos in Damansara Perdana. “It’s the residents themselves who must shoulder the blame.”

He goes on to explain that when building plans are submitted to the local authorities, the developer must indicate a space dedicated to a laundry room. “This is not a new thing, it’s been around for years!” The laundry room can either be run by a business operator, or the residents can use it on a pay-per-use basis. The problem is that the majority of residents do not want to use such services. “Their perception is, since the sun is free, why should I pay for laundry services?” explains Ng.

He also thinks it’s inappropriate for real estate agents and property managers to put the blame on developers. “They don’t know what they are talking about.” he exclaims. “How do you explain some owners extending their kitchen area all the way to the yard for extra space?”

Ng says that the condos in Damansara Perdana have a dry yard for residents to hang their laundry. He agrees that hanging clothes out to dry does affect the property value, especially when hung out like flags. So, why doesn’t MK Land counter the problem by outfitting their condos with dryers? Ng has his own theory why this would not work. “First, the sun is free. Why would anyone add to his or her electricity bills? I think it’s a culture issue too. The aroma of ‘sun-dried’ laundry is different…” Ng feels that for expensive branded clothes that risk fading under the sun’s rays, residents would hand wash and let it drip dry rather than use a dryer.

Eyesore

Does the practice of drying clothes on the balcony affect values of the property? Most definitely, YTL Land & Development Bhd project manager Kon Chee Onn says. “The facade of the building is the first area potential purchasers will see before deciding whether to purchase a unit in the development. The first impression is enough to gauge what kind of residents make up the neighbourhood - whether they are house-proud or not. Just take a look around the many high-rise residential blocks. Some places have clothes hung everywhere, and this can turn out to be an eyesore.

According to Kon, the reality is that condo living is a rather new concept to most Malaysians. “We are still not mature yet to live under one roof.” Kon says people need to be educated about the values of community living, which include plenty of endurance, tolerance and consideration.

Kon cites an example from across the border. “Singaporeans also started their apartment living [in Housing Development Board fl ats] by hanging clothes out with bamboo poles. Today, they have stopped the practice and invented gadgets to hang wet clothes, which do not affect the building facade.”

What else can be done? Kon offers: “Personally, I would like developers to strike a deal with their in-house laundrette operator to lower the charges and in return, compensate the operator with a lower rental. I am sure more people can afford to use the launderette service if a fair deal is struck and thus help solve the problem of hanging clothes indiscriminately.”

Design issues

Condominium projects by YTL Land & Development Bhd include a drying yard or utility area, its project manager Kon Chee Onn explains. “The yard area has always been designed at corners which will not affect the facade of the building, that is, tucked in from the main external wall but able to receive indirect sunlight or wind for drying clothes.”

But, he adds, it is difficult to convince condo purchasers that the yard is meant to be a drying area. “It’s because of our Asian lifestyle and upbringing, I suppose.” How? “Firstly, we are used to having a wet kitchen in landed properties where most cooking is done, especially heavy Asian-style cooking. In the past, we didn’t have to rely on cooker hoods to ventilate the smoke and smell as there was natural ventilation. When people move into condos, most convert the ‘drying area’ into a wet kitchen.”

Kon says this is done mainly for practical reasons. Since the yard is separated from the inner sections of the condo, and it tends to be windy on higher floors, it’s practical for residents to cook in the yard to keep the smell from permeating into the apartment.

“Secondly, Asians always want our clothes to dry in direct sunlight, so that they will have a fresh smell. As the drying yard does not normally face the sun directly, condo residents tend to dry their clothes on windows or the balcony, which enjoy direct sunlight.” Plus, he says, the yard is usually too small to be used as a drying area, being about only 60 sq ft in size.

For medium- and low-to-medium cost apartments, a lot of clothes can be seen hung out to dry, says Mohd Wazir Haji Abul Ghani, press officer for Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor. “In our earlier developments around Pantai and Kerinchi areas, the residents would install wire structures in front of the corridor and use that to dry their clothes. In our newer projects, we have designed the layout of each apartment to feature a small yard that residents can use for the same purpose, so the place looks better.”

Real estate agency principal Firdaus Musa of Firdaus & Associates Property Professionals Sdn Bhd agrees. He says most developers have now designated a semi-open or yard area for drying laundry. “A good design of a yard can be seen as being tucked in a corner so as not to be too obvious from the outside. This means the view may not be unsightly."

Eddie Low, manager of Jurukor Hartanah, which overseas the Desa View condos in Taman Melawati, says in the past, apartments and condos were built without yards, so it was common to do your drying in the balcony. Now, it exists in most developments and even local authorities try to ensure that the structures are aesthetically pleasing.

Another property manager, who declined to be identified, had this analogy to offer: “The space to do laundry is like a parking lot. If there’s a legal parking lot, people will use it. Otherwise, they’ll simply park anywhere. Same when it comes to finding space to dry clothes. If there is no suitable area, the residents will find the best way to solve their problem. That’s why, it’s important for developers and architects to plan a proper place for residents to dry their clothes. Without this, the condo facade will look bad.”