Hi there, I am new here, brief intro, I was born in Shanghai, moved to New York at an early age and lived here all my life, now 20 years later I am going back to Shanghai, plan to live there 1/2 time out of a year, because... well it's pretty nice place to live I guess.

I am looking to rent a place for the 1st year, starting this fall. I have looked thru craigslist, I have checked out some realtor websites, also some Chinese websites. I get this feeling that, they do not really have solid info on actual units, they are all just advertising in general, barely anyone has actual photos of actual apts.

What's the deal here?
Do all the agents access the same source? Just like in USA the MLS agents all share the same listings? if so then it doesn't matter who I go to?
Is there any "for rent by owner source" that I can check out?
Are the agents there honest and reputable?

I go to Shanghai every year so I know the city pretty well. I have a good idea where I want to stay, either the Shimao or the Lakeville Regency, I am looking for 2 beds around 1500 sqft, is 20k rmb per moth doable?

Thanks in advance, any help is greatly appreciated.

Craigs list is generally not recommended, as spammed by agents, many with photos and information that does not exist, or might have a bunch of years ago.

You are better with an experienced agent, who can help with negotiation, and who knows the options well.

Shimao seems very popular and you should shoot in way under 20K. Renters market.
1500 ft. is about 150 sq. metres right?

If you pm. me your email, will send some useful information on renting, as well as contact for honest helpful agent.

John.

1500 ft. is about 150 sq. metres right?

139.3546 square meters

Check for agents offices around the properties....Best bet is to get one familiar with the particular property you are interested in.

You probably want to look for a 185 m2 apartment. In China, they quote space based on "construction size." If you want to compare the space you get quoted in China to how you're quoted in the States (more or less actual size), take 25% off the space you're quoted in China.

So 139.35 m2 (1,500 ft2) of actual space would equal about 185 m2 of construction size.

I'd personally go for Lakeville over Shimao because of the Puxi vs. Pudong factor, but that's just a matter of personal taste.

LoveBoxStorage wrote:You probably want to look for a 185 m2 apartment. In China, they quote space based on "construction size." If you want to compare the space you get quoted in China to how you're quoted in the States (more or less actual size), take 25% off the space you're quoted in China.

So 139.35 m2 (1,500 ft2) of actual space would equal about 185 m2 of construction size.

I'd personally go for Lakeville over Shimao because of the Puxi vs. Pudong factor, but that's just a matter of personal taste.

Yeah I knew in China they refer to the gross area, but I didn't know the margin is 25%, that's alot, thx for the heads-up.
Lakeville Regency is right by XingTianDi, right?

p1atl10 wrote:
Check for agents offices around the properties....Best bet is to get one familiar with the particular property you are interested in.

John plz email me at ctel94@aol.com.
much appreciated.

@fWerrF:

Check your mail.
Cheers.
John.

fWerrF wrote:What's the deal here?
Do all the agents access the same source? Just like in USA the MLS agents all share the same listings? if so then it doesn't matter who I go to?
Is there any "for rent by owner source" that I can check out?
Are the agents there honest and reputable?

Here's a little insight into the real estate world here fWerrF.

Firstly, there is very little organisation and structure like in the USA amd other countries like MLS because local real estate in China is in fact a mere 10 or so years old. There is also not the legal and technical infrastructure in place to support such a system as yet.

So, whilst Shanghai is a huge city some support systems here behave more like a village (or a jungle) and if an owner wants to rent out their property then they would usually just waddle off to their local real estate agency and put their property on their books. The larger agencies do have their own networked databases but this as far as it goes. There is a bit of co-operation but not alot as most are reluctant to share commissions.

Local agencies will have the basic info of a property for rent on their database but not much detail as this is not their main "bread and butter". This is made from sales.

As pointed out by the veteran folk above (sorry I don't mean age - I mean experience guys ) Craigslist is a real minefield nowadays and it really would be best advised to stick to either a referred real estate agent or a local one around the apartment block/s you are looking at.

fWerrF wrote:I go to Shanghai every year so I know the city pretty well. I have a good idea where I want to stay, either the Shimao or the Lakeville Regency, I am looking for 2 beds around 1500 sqft, is 20k rmb per moth doable?

This budget is a lot more doable at Shimao where there are quite a few empty places and rather desperate landlords. Many Lakeville Regency landlords are pretty cashed up and not as keen to haggle as the Shimao Landlords.

Hope this helps you out a bit. Have a look at our Advice on Leasing for a few more tips or mail me at manager@shanghaiprops.com.

All the best,

Adrienne

Yeah, I think Adrienne's description of a jungle, with regard to real estate here is dead right.

Where I come from there is a Real Estate Institute, that sets the rules, commissions and code of ethical behaviour. They will investigate any complaints about unethical behaviour, and boy, are they tough. Any transgression by an agency can see the sudden loss of a license.

It sure is in its infancy here, but hey, it makes life interesting.
It makes it hard for the renters or buyers out there, because they will hear so many different opinions, and "facts" on all aspects. It gets pretty confusing.
Hopefully, the years ahead might see a lessening of the jungle.

A: Have sent O/P your contact details.
J. (vet.)