Monotony of the Bounty - Kenneth J. Borg

I'm sipping my coffee this sunny morning April 15th, leafing through the first few pages of the Saturday newspaper, when I suddenly stumble upon the usual page of Mepa applications.

The full page list is particularly significant today since I've recently been researching different sources for property statistics which eventually convinced me that the "23% vacant properties" mentioned by various journalists and the Chairman of the Housing Authority was in fact moderate considering the figures were based on the 1995 census, and an average of 6000 more units per year have been built since. In fact last year alone approximately 9000 more units were built.

So, it is now in a different light that I start reading down the column of applicants and the details, addresses and requested permits for each, the greater part of which are alterations to, and permits for extra floors on existing structures, or the division of apartments into smaller individual units.

Since they are large enough to be split into smaller units, or to still accommodate a penthouse notwithstanding the smaller surface area due to the large terraces required, these apartments were usually built over 10 to 15 years ago. So, being older, these apartments were also bought at prices significantly lower, and in many cases have even been paid off, so once the alterations or construction above has been terminated, there is no particular market force spurring the owner to sell or rent the finished property immediately. As there is little or no financial burden posed by such projects, there are no particular deadlines for completion of works, and when ready, the vacant apartments will not hurt the pocket.

It is not my intention to throw a bad light on small contractors, however it is a fact, due to the already discussed lack of pressure, that most of these small contracts are handled in the majority of cases by part timers, or for lack of a better term, by workers tackling several small projects at the same time, since there are also no real restrictions on the amount of time spent on the work site.

The small works being carried out internally within residential buildings and on residents' roof- tops fester on for months on end, and often right through the winter season with all the obvious discomforts, repercussions and grievances suffered by neighbours. Tempers flare, neighbours litigate and in some cases already weak family ties are finally severed while the fragile neighbourhood structure caves in. Gone is the deserved rest after a long day's work, gone is the privacy and quiet for students and people seeking quieter ways of enjoyment and reflection. In come the hammers, chisels, banging and yelling, the rude obscenities echoing across roof tops and down shafts, often in foreign and strange languages. In comes the dust and down come the pieces of debris and stone chippings, clogging shaft drains and dirtying aired laundry.

Worse still is the build-up to actual construction, with apartments left neglected pending the right permit, roofs left unprotected and without membrane in anticipation of further building or a penthouse, and missing apertures letting in the rain which leaks down to underlying floors. The situation is both untenable and also causing a lot of intangible and irreversible damage. For each small development, concentric circles of upheaval and tension can be traced all around, emanating from the building site and effecting all neighbours.

If nothing can be done, or if the authorities are unwilling to tackle the various factors discussed, the least one would hope for is proper enforcement of the time periods involved, and also that apartments and roof tops awaiting permits for further works or major structural alterations are properly maintained and sealed off, perhaps even against a forfeitable deposit.

On a parting note, I would like to point out that as an estate agent, my job is directly dependant on the well being of the property market, and it is a fallacy that this only means a continuous supply of property, irrespective of the environment and upkeep of neighbourhoods. It is akin to a doctor who keeps on pumping food and vitamins into a patient long past the healthy limits. Just as there are feedback mechanisms in the body, resulting in aches due to overeating, there are similar feedback mechanisms in the property market, or any market at that. We are neglecting and whitewashing all over reports of this malaise. We are forgetting words like quality, residences, neighbourhoods and well-being, while we just hammer on about investments, plots, units and riches, or should I say bounty.

In the meantime we live in uncertainty, not knowing what our neighbourhood will look like in 5 years time, or whether our dividing wall will end up in some bottomless pit next door.

There are a number of developments which are pleasing to the eye, enhance the general neighbourhood and blend in with the environment. They also represent a sector which was not present on the Maltese islands before, ie. high-end, up-market properties, both in the larger developments, and in the smaller ones. We do not however need the multitude of monotonous and poorly-finished apartments, in areas where many vacant properties of much higher standards already exist. With a minimal extra outlay, such better quality properties will not only prove to bring in a higher return on resale, but also give the purchaser a much smarter and headache-free residence than many currently being churned out by dilettantes.

Kenneth J. Borg
15th April 2006