THE 10-MINUTE VIEWING

Once upon a time, a new broker had a residential lot listed in Tagaytay.

Another broker called and said she had a buyer interested in viewing the property. They agreed to meet on a Saturday at 9:00 AM.

Knowing traffic to Tagaytay could be unpredictable, the broker left early and arrived at 7:30 AM. He messaged that he was already there and that they could take their time.

Apparently, "take your time" meant arriving at 12:30 PM.

Fortunately, he had Mobile Legends on his phone. Five hours of waiting became slightly more tolerable, and he joked to himself that perhaps this was simply part of the hustle of being a broker.

When the buyer and the other broker finally arrived, they exchanged greetings, walked around the vacant lot, asked a handful of questions, stood there for about ten minutes...

...and that was it.

The broker shrugged it off. It wasn't the first time the profession demanded patience.

He started the drive back to Manila. A few minutes later, the air conditioner began blowing hot air. Then the check engine light came on.

He managed to pull into a gasoline station before the engine completely overheated.

His first instinct was to call a towing company from Manila. They advised against it—it would take several hours for a truck to reach Tagaytay, and the towing fee would be substantial. So instead, he contacted a towing company from Batangas.

Even then, the wait was long. They arrived at around 5:00 PM.

When the tow truck finally arrived, his car was loaded onto a flatbed, and they made the long trip back to the dealership's service center in BGC—only to arrive long after it had closed for the day.

The towing bill alone came to Php10,000.

The next day, the repair estimate arrived. It was well into six figures. The whole cooling system had failed and needed replacement.

All for a property viewing that lasted ten minutes.