1st Time Expats Moving to HK in Oct

[Bearcub]

Hang on...... yes, most leases are for 2 years, but they are what are called locally 12 + 2, which means that after 12 months either party can give the other 2 months notice. Therefore you're not stuck in an apartment for 24 months, only 14!

[EmmaB]

Thanks for all the help it is incrediably reassuring to know there are people out there who are willing to help, especially when you don't know a soul yet!

This 12+2 and 24 month lease issue is really causing me concern and we are being told that the corporate landlords will not accept the 12+2 only private ones.

we don't have any kids so their welfare doesn't further complicate things.

I am swaying more to the serviced apartments.

Thanks again to everyone!

Emma

[KnowItAll]

>> This 12+2 and 24 month lease issue is really causing me concern and we are being told that the corporate landlords will not accept the 12+2 only private ones.

There are VERY few corporate owned apartments. Most (80-90%) apartments will be individually owned.

[EmmaB]

this confuses me even more as our reloaction agent seems to only be showing us corporate ones, are these more expensive or do the agents get a better rate or soemthing???

[PDLM]

Letting agents generally get one month's rent - half from the tenant and half from the landlord. This is not a good situation for the tenant since the agent is effectively and agent for the landlord since it is in their interest to keep the rent as high as possible.

All the apartments I have ever looked at have been essentially privately owned, although for tax reasons most are legally owned by companies that are formed by individuals for the purposes of investing in property.

I very strongly recommend finding a serviced apartment for a month or two when you arrive (or even just getting your employer to pay for a hotel for a few weeks - the cost is not dissimilar to a serviced apartment) and not commiting to a lease until you have found your feet here, and reached a good understanding with a real estate agent.

[larac]

There are so many real estate agents here, I wouldn't get restricted to just using the one your company may have assigned to you. In my experience if you physically go to the area you want to live in there will be a couple of roads with about a dozen agents all next to each other even several outlets of the same agency ie: in mid-levels Caine Road and Robinson Road are like this. I went to several and had them all showing me stuff and calling me - it was quite intense for about 2 weeks but I had the time - finding a place to live was my job for those couple of weeks and doing this was worth it because they all had different places to show - some were more on my wavelength than others and some had better English than others so after about 3 days I really felt like I knew the ins and outs of the local market and what to look out for. I had to keep good track of the places I saw because it all gets a bit confusing and sometimes several agents will have the same apartment or building to show you. Everyone I saw offered the 2 year lease that you could give 2 months notice on after 12 months (so its a 14 month minimum). All of them wanted half a months commission from me, some were more open to negotiation, all of them were obviously working for the landlord and seeking the highest rent possible with the quickest start date. One thing we did do though to get the most out of our agent was to get him to arrange all the gas, water and power connections (we still paid the bills but he did all the organising). Good Luck

[EmmaB]

Thanks for all of your input!

The decision is finally made and due to the helpful comments and support from the forum the serviced apartments won . We will look around once we have arrived, what are you up to by way of socials in the beginning of October!!

Emma

[cb1118]

try the service apartment by New World Hotel
(called New World Apartment)
very close to the Subway *MTR* and downtown area