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Posts: 186

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Q: Renting an apartment in Guangzhou?

1. Is it better if I look online by myself or should I just step into one of those

real estate offices along the road?

 

2. If I need a few things in the apartment (like a bigger table and a sofa-bed),

will landlords here generally provide me with those?

 

3. Should I ask a Chinese friend to come along when signing the contract?

(My Chinese is so-so, and I don't want to sign anything I don't fully understand).

 

 

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

Edit:

 

4. Is it even possible to rent an apartment for one month? (price range 2000-3000 RMB)

I went to 7 offices (around and near my uni) and all gave me the same answer: only long term

leasing.

11 years 21 weeks ago in  Housing - China

 
Answers (7)
Comments (3)
Posts: 2409

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Looking online will give you a good idea about what you can expect in any particular building.  But quite often, the online ads are fake or out of date.  They are only there to get you to call the realtor.

 

Rule #1: Never pay your realtor anything.  They get paid from the landlord (1 month of your rent is normal), not you.

 

Real estate offices often only have listing for apartments in a few nearby buildings.  So you will most likely need to go to several offices to get to see apartments in other buildings/areas.  

 

In my experience it is best to do some footwork and determine which buildings you are interested in seeing, then find nearby realtor offices that can show you places in those exact buildings.

 

If you need an official receipt for your rent, you will need to tell the realtor that before you start looking, because often it is not available or the realtor doesn't know how to get them.

 

And if you want modifications to your apartment, be sure to tell the realtor so they can talk to the landlord before it gets to the contract stage.  It will save you time in the long run.

 

And yes, bring a local friend especially in Guangzhou.  There is a possibility that the realtor and landlord will talk in Cantonese and it would be good to have someone who speaks that nearby to let you know if anything shady is going on.

 

Good luck in your search.

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11 years 21 weeks ago
 
Posts: 3025

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I can tell you how I have done it each time I needed a place to rent, maybe it could work for you too.

 

1.- I do not patronize rental real estate agencies, they get a fix commission out of each monthly payment, so they are working for the landlord, not really for you, besides they do charge you at least 50 Rmb per apartment shown.  I decide which area I wish to live on, and then visit Admin offices of apartment complexes in that area, seeking apartments for rent.  So, I deal directly with landlord, and manage to negotiate rental fee that way.

 

2,- You will get whatever is at the apartment you select, anything special normally will have to be provided by you, and better have owner remove the furniture you do not want prior to moving in or signing lease (handing out money), or you will "store it" for the owner if not.

 

3.- It will be a must, and better be a really trusted Chinese friend, otherwise you will get the shaft somewhere in the contract.  Even better, have two Chinese friends translate the contract for you separately.  You may get a surprise that way.  And with landlord I will play it dumb, like you do not understand a word, may pick up useful information that way.  I had one landlord offer my GF a bribe to induce me to accept a few clauses I did not want on it, like the landlord will keep the deposit money at the end of contract, etc.

Xpat.John:

It seems that we have had some different experiences in renting apartments.  But, this is China, so anything and everything is possible.

11 years 21 weeks ago
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mike695ca:

you got charged 50 kuai per house you looked at??? you got screwed dude. Also, Ive been here 5 years, had a few apartments. They have all been willing to add or subtract any reasonable request.  If the tv is crap but everything else is perfect, are you willing to spend an extra hundred or 2 a month?? things like that. Many will change the toilet if they dont have a western one, but many wont.  JUst ask as many questions as you can. Either way your gonna have to use the agencies anyways. You can get lucky using websites to contact the landlord directly, but usualy they are just realters posing to attract clients anyways.  You can definitly get short term apartments for a month in Guangzhou. I got one when i first moved here to give me ample time to find a place. It was great but small. Obviously more expensive then long term... Check out hotel/serviced apartments. Not realtors... The front desk ca n help you. Almost all should have month long rentals. Just stay away from Oct. and April.... and youll be fine. Good luck!

11 years 20 weeks ago
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HappyExPat:

Read again what I posted, I do not use real estate agents, they charge for showing you rental units, and since their commission is based on rental price agreed, not willing to negotiate. So, i was not screwed by anyone. i got a 224 sq meter two level 4 bedroom apartment, 2 full baths, for 2500 Rmb per month by myself, and a 3 year lease with no rental increases. And right by the Yongjiang river

11 years 20 weeks ago
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11 years 21 weeks ago
 
Posts: 614

Shifu

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1. yes ,it's better to look online first ,you can call them and ask them whether it's still available or not once you find the ones you like.Then go and have a look .

2. It depends,but if you are willing to pay a bit more money, the landlord should agree. or you can looking for apartments in Zhu jiang new town,there is a chance you can get a sofa bed,but big table,I am confused.

3.Yes ,you should definitely ask one of your Chinese  friend to go with you just in case you can not read all in Chinese or other problems you may have . whenever we move to a new apartment,I always do the house hunting as I am a Chinese and easy to communicate with them,of course ,I always take some pictures of the apartment I like  and show it to my husband, we pick the house together.it's usually end at the last minuter the landlord finds out my husband is a westerner.LOL

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11 years 21 weeks ago
 
Posts: 253

Shifu

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I followed HappyExpat's advice during my search for an apartment in GZ.  I tried the realtors, but they kept finding me garbage, or seemed very shady.  My guess is 80% of the realtor ads are fake, so only use them to get a sense where some of the available apartments might be, but don't expect to get to see the clean, newly remodeled room you viewed online.  Make a list of locations and your needs, grab a trusted Chinese friend (preferably a Cantonese speaking friend) and follow Happy's advice of looking for the offices for the building, or a security guard.  All security guards got connections to the landlords.  There was one incident where there was 5 or 6 people following me and my gf and the realtor around to the building, almost stalking us.  When we got inside, they tried to block our way leaving the apartment, in an attempt to coerce us into signing.  We got our asses out of there quickly.

 

One last piece of advice, if using the online website, switch the setting from showing all ads for apartments to show only personal ads.  That way websites like 58.com become more like Craig's List, and cuts out 95% of the agencies from the list.  I found my place from a personal listing.  These are hard ones to beat, apartments get posted and taken in a matter of minutes in Guangzhou, but it worked well in my case.

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11 years 21 weeks ago
 
Posts: 2578

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find a realtor that speaks your language .. they are out there

don't expect any verbal agreements to happen  ,(i.e. furniture or appliances after the fact)

for one month ... go to the massage place/hostel and stay there for a month for about 100rmb/night

 

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11 years 20 weeks ago
 
Posts: 107

Governor

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If only a place to live, you can find a ordinary hotel, rent for a month, definitely you can get some discount...

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11 years 16 weeks ago
 
Posts: 9631

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Have a chinese friend go and look for you. Prices go up when they see a western face, this goes for both the owners and the estate agents. 

 

Also be aware that the "westerners are all rich" prejudice is prevalent here, so an estate agent might not show you the cheaper apartments. Cheap does not have to be bad, although it can be very bad

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11 years 16 weeks ago
 
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