How to Deal with Chinese Real Estate Agents
I’ve been helping my foreign friends with apartment hunting and negotiating with agents and landlords for a while now. Agents act as a kind of matchmaker, introducing prospective tenants to landlords. If you’re looking to view a large number of places in a short amount of time, they can sometimes be helpful. However, a bad agent may also waste your time by showing you low-quality apartments which they are desperately trying to find some sucker to rent.
While most ofthe agents just want to make money legitimately, there are also a lot of con artists out there. Here are a few tips to help you out.
Avoiding hassle
1) Be informed. Some agents will target foreigners specifically.They are likely to offer you prices that are slightly higher than the going rate. While it’s convenient to use an agent who you are able to communicate with, there’s no reason why you should be paying the rent at a foreigner price – bargain hard! Consult with a Chinese friend who knows about the area before you accept the price. Don’t allow yourself to be tricked.
2) Be very clear with the agent about what you want to see – which area, how manybedrooms, size, your budget (always give a lower amount) and so on. If they don't speak Chinese, get Ringy to help you.
Remember, agents have lists of properties that they are trying to rent out. Some can be easily rented, others are difficult to move. They usually do it in these two ways:
1） They either show you the best option in their hand first to impress you and then the second and the third one would look completely ridiculous and seem like a waste of time so you'll go back to the first one. In this case, be careful of the price of the first one.
2） They repeatedly take you to poorly decorated, old properties and at the end of the day you are exhausted and almost close to giving up. They will show you a relatively better one, like magic, hoping you will take it at a higher price: "Since this one looks good and we are both tired, I will give you the most reasonable price... and let's do it quickly. How about 10000 per month for this 60 square meters shoe box?"
Make clear that this is not what you are looking for and that you do not want to see another place like this. If they repeatedly show you sub-par properties, move on.
3) Never pay an agent for simply showing you a property. They have not earned their money until they have rented the property, with a signed contract to prove it.
Things an agent CANNOT do
- Take responsibility for any problems which develop or are discovered after you have rented the property. They will neither help you nor lobby the landlord on your behalf. It’s entirely up to you to deal with these issues directly with the landlord.
- Alter or decorate a property for you. Any such changes are entirely the landlord’s decision.
- Sign a contract on your behalf. You must do this yourself.
Here are some Chinese phrases that could be helpful in communicating with the agents:
1. How much?
duō shǎo qián？
多 少 钱？
How much is the rent?
fáng zū duō shǎo qián ？
房 租 多 少 钱？
How much is the deposit?
yā jīn duō shǎo qián ？
押 金 多 少 钱？
2. Three months of rents and one month of deposit
yā yī fù sān
押 一 付 三
Two months of rents and one month of deposit
yā yī fù èr
押 一 付 二
3. Rent the whole apartment
zhěng zū
整 租
rent a single room with others
hé zū
合 租
4. Too expensive/ Too far away/ Too small
tài guì tài yuǎn tài xiǎo
太 贵 太 远 太 小
5. Two bedrooms/ One bedroom
liǎng shì hù / yī shì hù
两 室 户 / 一 室 户
6. Invoice/ Receipt
fā piào/ shōu jù
发 票 收 据
7. Property Management
wù yè
物 业
If you find it too hard to let the agents understand you, send Ringy messages, tell Ringy your situation, our Ringy interpreters will be responding instantly!
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