If you've been scanning rental listings lately, you might have wondered: " What on earth is a semi-modern building"? It's not really modern, yet it's not really old? If you're from countries with over 200 years of history, you might ask: "Is it from the early 20th century? Maybe from the late 19th"?

If, on the other hand, you envision America as the country of the Future, you might think: "Well, if it's semi-modern by American standards, its probably got sophisticated security access, large elevators, mechanized garbage disposal, energy-saving lighting systems, sound-proof walls and windows, etc…. It just doesn't have the built-in televisions and Internet cabling in all rooms the modern apartment have"… Sorry to disappoint you, but it's neither of those.

We have quite a few semi-modern buildings in Berkeley, Albany and Oakland. They are vintage 70's structures, largely inspired by the shoe-box, with small, rectangular windows, and a unique off-white, grayish or brownish color. Their appeal is mainly that of practicality. Charm is not the issue here. They generally offer parking spots for each tenant and a location close to campus. They can remind one of rabbit cages because of the way UC Berkeley students crowd together to inhabit them at the lowest possible cost- and because of the resulting state of unkempt they tend to present.

The landlords of these semi-modern buildings have a lenient attitude towards their young tenants as they struggle to attain higher wisdom at a leading institution. They turn their head when catching sight of some exotic plants in a closet or out on a deck, and know that a dedicated team of South American maids, followed by painters of the same nationality, will be required to give the place its original luster when its time for new tenants to move in…
That's good to know, isn't it?;-) Click here to see an actual semi-modern building....
Now you're a little less ignorant about semi-modern buildings.

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