Rent a flat or apartment in Shanghai How

For the new comer in Shanghai, the first thing is to rent a flat or apartment (good to have a shelter!) I have lived in Shanghai for five years and rented two flats so far till I bought my own flat last year. Some useful suggestions drawn on my past experiences:

- If you are completely new in Shanghai, it would be very helpful if one of your friends in Shanghai can provide you short-term accommodation at their home. This allows you a bit time to find a suitable flat and settle some other personal issues because it does take a bit time to find a good one. Or if you couldn't find such one friend, good to find an affordable hotel for transitional stay. I stayed in one of my friends' home for half month before I moved out.

- Better to rent a flat or apartment after you got the job offer. This will help you locate the areas where you would like to rent a flat as Shanghai is such a huge city.

- Rent your first flat near where you work, better within walking distance. Shanghai is huge and traffic can be very crazy during the rush hours. To make your life easier, it is better to rent the first flat in Shanghai near where you work. It saves your time, energy and transportation cost. Moreover, it allows you more time to settle other personal issues and get yourself familiar with this city. If you work in the Shanghai CBD area, it might cost you higher but definitely worth the money to eliminate all the hassles. After living in Shanghai for a while, you certainly can have other choices.

- Ok, the next step is to find an agency that can help you to find a flat. You can either go to the street to try one by one or search the Internet. But most information on the web is not true. So it worth a bit time to search in the street. Some agents could provide English service to find a flat or apartment.

- Usually the agency will ask you some questions: budget, location, one or two bedrooms, share or not, fully furnished or not. Then they will recommend some options which they think meet your requirements.

- Then you need to check those options one by one. Some landlords give the keys to the agency, but some not. So you might not be able to check all on the same day. If you are interested, the agency will call the landlord to make the appointments. Try to make all the appointments on the same day around same time.

- After you make the big decision, you need to negotiate and clarify all the responsibilities. Some issues needs to pay attention to:

Contract time (one month, three month, six month or one year). for the first flat, better sign a shorter one. If you do have to sign a longer one, try to negotiate the price.

Deposit and payment: usually the landlord will ask for one month rent for deposit. In terms of the payment, some ask for two month rent in advance or three month rent in advance.

Clarify the responsibilities. Usually the bill of gas, electricity and water should be paid by you and some other costs like TV subscription fee, property management fee etc.

Price!

- sign the contract: bring your ID to sign the contract. Usually the contract is a template regulated by local government to be filled with details which you negotiated and agreed with the landlord.

- Hand over: after you paid the two or three month rent in advance plus deposit, you will be given the key to the flat and do the hand-over. Check if the facilities in flat are working (TV, Microwave, air conditioner, wash machine etc). Record the number of the gas, electricity, and water. You don't pay for the previous bills!

- The last thing, the agency will charge you 35% of one month rent as their commission. So negotiation on the price is important! Remember price offered by agent or landlord is just offer, and you have right to counter offer. Bargain is the general life rule in Shanghai unless you dislike bargain.

My Shanghai

Born in China, grow up in China, currently in China. I am 100% Chinese.

I am one of the new Shanghainese who are originally from other place in China other than Shanghai but currently living and working in Shanghai.

Having being living in Shanghai for five years, I gradually become one of the new Shanghainese from a complete outsider of Shanghai.

From the hectic start to a normal and routine now, I am a tiny element of this huge and dynamic city. No matter you are a new comer in Shanghai, or like myself, a new Shanghainese, or a person never been to Shanghai, or an original Shanghainese, I believe you will be/are/were there experiencing what I felt/feeling before and now.

So here I am sharing with you my knowledge and experience about Shanghai.

I am also happy to take questions about Shanghai and listen to your myShanghai because Shanghai does offer us a lot to share.

Here is scenic view from the Bund - west side of Huangpu river of Shanghai and one of famous sightseeing place in Shanghai.