Hi All,

I'm in the process of moving to Shanghai and am a little stressed about finding an apartment. As a matter of fact, the relocation company that my company hired to move me said that they didn't deal with apartments in the price range that I'm looking (too low).

I work for a large multi-national firm but am on what is called the "International Local Hire" package, not a driver-cook- subsidized-housing expat package.

I work pretty far west in the Shanghai Mart near Hongqiao Lu and Yan'an Lu West. I'd like to be relatively close to work but not isolated in Hongqiao.

I was hoping to find a one bedroom apartment for ~3000RMB (~$350USD), give or take, and be closer to the city center. Am I asking too much?

I've been here for a week and really haven't seen much because of work. I was at Xiangyang Market yesterday and that area looks pretty good. I have a friend who lives near Fuxing Lu and Fenyang Lu and that area also looks pretty good. I think that might be as far east as I want to go because of the commute.

I don't have extravagant needs. I've lived in buildings that were 70-80 years old. Just looking for a one-bedroom, walk-in kitchen, consistent hot water, some closet space, etc.

Anyway, I know this is a long message and I apologize but I was wondering if anyone had any advice about how and where I might find an apartment in that price range. I'm not even sure how to go about finding a real estate agent that will help me with this and won't look at me and think that I'm willing to pay $2000USD/mo.

Any advice would be VERY MUCH appreciated.

Thanks so much.

Howard

I have had several people tell me that the there are lots of great places in that range. You just have find the right agent and you have to willing to spend the time to look around to find a decent deal. Agents that focus on the expat market don't like to spend the time on low budget units because they do not make any money. Try posting something in the housing forum and see what comes up.. also several agents post there.

I pay 2600rmb for my one bedroom apartment of 68m, on changshou road, and jiaozhou road. It's quite nice and new (about 3 years) and only takes abou 20 min. by bike to where you work. Yes, you can probably find something in your range within your range, but it takes lots of time. I had looked at more than 30 units until I was satisfied with this one. May be you can ask someone who can speak chinese (shanghainese dialect will be even better) to help you, it will be a lot easier

I find this to be a very interesting post because an adequate apartment within my budget (4500rmb) will be my top concern while I go over there to live 3-6 months from now. Living within my budget will be especially important as I don't plan to be employed and just spend my time writing and possibly planning to start a business, living off savings.

Yes, I know apartments in awesome locations can be had for your 3000rmb budget. I have a good friend who lives in Shanghai now and stays in a 15 year old brownstone high rise right behind Shanghai Center and a block away from Plaza 66. At 3100 for a 1 br, it's a great location for the money, but of course he had to make some sacrifices--the building smells and is run down and his furnishings are crap. Without running the heater & A/C units, the concrete walls means he gets either very hot or cold depending on the season. So he is always using heat in the winter & AC in the summer to stay comfortable. It's not a western place as many Chinese live there, but seems like a mixture. I think if he lived further out he would have a pretty nice place for the 3100, but he wants the awesome location and was willing to make those sacrifices. I think if you were to go up to the 4150 (US 500) you would get a lot more for the money in a central location, but you can get something very serviceable for your 3000rmb budget.

Thank you all for the information. I appreciate it so much!!

I think that there are good apartments to be had for this price but, like you all have said, the issue is being able to find them. The people in my office have offered to help but #1 - I may be paying more than them and I don't want to make them feel badly and #2 - they don't have cars and I don't know how we would get to the places to look.

I think my concern is being able to see a lot of places. I will be traveling for the next 2 weeks and when I return, I will only have 10 days to find an apartment. I don't have a car and therefore am not sure how to get to all of these buildings. Knockknock_ca how were you able to visit 30 apartments and how long did you look?? Did you have an agent and if so, can you recommend one?

Are the agents willing to drive you around town? How does that work?

Thank you again, and yes, Michael, I will post this message on the housing forum.

Thanks,

Howard

I biked or took metro to see all the places, but as I just restrict to a certain district, so it's not that difficult. To find an agent, first you have to decide the area that you are looking for, and find the agent around that area. I did not use the expensive international or expat realtors, but the local small agents, usually they will just restricted to the area around their office. Actually 10 days is enough for you to find a suitable place. At first, I started looking 1 month before my previous contract expired, but I found that the landlords don't want to hold the apratment for you for that long. They want to rent out immediately. So I stopped looking for a while and began the apartment hunting about 10 days before I had to move out from my previous place.

When you find an agent, tell them your requirement as precise as possible. When the agent tell you that they found something within your budget, you have to asked them the details, like on what floor, with or without elevator, surface area of the living room and bedroom, how old is the building etc.

Good luck!