Looking to rent an apartment, 40k per month. The agent insists that a Taiwanese co-signs the contract. I understand that this co-signer would be liable in my place if I would disappear.
Is this common and/or reasonable?
Can only go by personal experience, I’ve lived in 4 places and have been able to put the lease in my name only every time. That said, the owner can require a local guarantor and it’s not unheard of.
I refuse guarantors on principle as it implies that you are not considered an equal partner in the contract and only a Taiwanese can be trusted. Before I got the apartment I am in now, a landladys daughter said they would rent to me only if a Taiwanese cosigned so I just called another landlady in the same building , a much nicer apartment on a higher floor and no cosigner needed, just a 2 month standard deposit. There are so many apartments for rent that I just try another one.
In addition guarantors put a huge duty on the one cosigning especially if the landlord starts claiming damages, they have two people to chase after legally.
But of course it’s up to you
Seriously? That is insane. What are you renting, a mansion???
No, it is not common nor reasonable. It is one of the major pains in the butt when renting in Japan, and even there, they have apartments that do not ask this of foreigners. In Taiwan, it is the opposite. Usually, one pays a deposit of 2 months as “insurance” for the owner.
Yep, 40k is insane, is this like top luxury, cleaning and cooking service included, top of the line service apartments or something? 100 ping? two parking spots? Xinyi area? Are utilitie sincluded? If not, as k for a copy of apst receipts, soemtimes those bills can be insane. How about maintenance fees? A place like that you may end up paying average 3000 ntd per month.
Are you sure you are dealing with the owner? Scams abound. Ask them if any relation to Chang Shu-ching. If they react, RUN AWAY! Call the police from a secure location.
40K is not insane for a modern apartment and it won’t get you anything like 100ping or even a parking spot in XinYi. Even newer apartments in Xindian with a single parking spot, ~50 ping (including common areas and parking spot) are 30~40K not including management fees which are typically another 3.5K+ depending on the apartment size. Times are changing! Here’s a few from one of the newer builds in XinDian, went to see a few of them last year, no way would I want to live there but each to his own…
Those prices are still insane,. Are they furnished? Yushan Yuan is one of the biggest scams in the area. I would expect that from the one next to Carrefour -the one with the round thinghie- which has sauna and luxury stuff and ecological gardens and guards and stuff. Otherwise, thsoe prices are armed robbery if you ask me.
I pay 36K to live in Daan in an old 40 ping 4th and 5th floor apartment. It has a rooftop so I can BBQ and no one bothers me. To get something more modern, i’d have to pay more and probably couldn’t get away with BBQ outside.
I also wouldn’t sign a lease that required a Taiwanese guarantor. You are entering a relationship with the landlord and if this is his opinion of foreigners, then I’d walk away. There are plenty of other options.
An average of 1k per ping in Taipei city is sort of acceptable, especially in highly coveted areas like Daan -a block away from the park I suppose? or Xinyi or anything a stone’s throw from te MRT. But to normalize those prices throughtout the board -Yuan Shan Yuan is a good 10 minute hike to Chichang MRT or take their mini bus, for example. But it is brand new well marketed, if a little … quirky.
With today’s salaries, those price sfor rent are unsustainable. Yuan Shan Yuan is typical for investment, not living, future mosquito hall stuff.
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I guess everything is relative…40k is pretty average for a new place of reasonable size (2 bedroom 30-40 ping) in Taipei. The prices don’t fall much for new buildings in New Taipei. I don’t think the market here is normalized at all. Most of these places are owned by rich locals who don’t really need the rent money as it only covers a small fraction of the mortgage (if they even have a mortgage). They just want to have someone in the unit, something about ghost take overs and such. Even at 1k per ping (or more), the rent to purchase ratio is one of the best in the world.
Just moved out of a new place near Wanhua (bad choice) very convenient to Ximen and the owners have raised the rent by 10k for the unlucky sucker who’s moving in behind me.
Thanks for the concerns and comments. The question for common and reasonable was directed at the “guarantor required” thing though, not at the price - sorry I didn’t make this clear ^^
After talking to several Taiwanese coworkers and friends, this guarantor thingy seems not uncommon for apartments that are well above 10K/month, not aimed especially at foreigners. Those of them that had to do this simply had their parents sign it. I’ll try to get my company that I worked for the last >15 years to help instead of asking anyone else, hope that works out.
Anyway, I know it’s not cheap at all (40K more than where I live now haha), but as far as I can tell it’s what you commonly have to pay nowadays for such a place: A block from Nangang Software Park MRT (so very near both brown and blue line), 3 bedrooms, in a new building, management fee and parking space included, fully and very well furnitured, nice kitchen with oven, and the owner even speaks way better English than me (OK that’s not too hard). Gas/water/electricity/internet not included, neither are a maid or other special services.
Most apartments in and around that area that I checked were around this price range, very few lower, many much higher. And yes, lots of scams on 591, utterly useless and clueless agents in that area like Century 21, and also many utterly unreasonably priced places. Bonus: there are some construction sites just started or about to start in that area, and you might end up right next to it if you don’t know where they are. I would have thought having a police high-rise building starting to get constructed less than 5 meters from the bedroom window for the next two years, including construction on the weekend, somehow would be reflected in the rent… but no, seems like some owners/agents are rather waiting for someone deaf and blind to come along and rent 
Not in my humble 20 year experience. May I say I think that Taiwanese will protect Taiwanese? Of course they will say you need a guarantor. I just really do not like this issue of a guarantor. That is what they are getting 80k out of you for already, as per the Law.
Just as a comment, price seems quite right for what you are getting, newly built, furnished and all, especially the management fee and parking -these last can be 3 to 5k each easily. So the place is about 30k by itself -3 bedrooms, just peachy! Yes, you were savvy regarding new construction and other “amenities”.
I’ve lived here for 5 years in 4 different apartments and never had a guarantor sign. When I rented my first apartment, the landlord did complain to my agent in Chinese that I should have a Taiwanese with me to sign. Before my agent could reply, I told the landlord in Chinese that if he didn’t want to rent to me, let me know, and I’d restart my apartment search.
One thing here is that if you plan to file taxes in Taiwan and deduct the rent, the landlords here expect you to tell them in advance. It’s illegal for them not to pay taxes on their rental income, but unfortunately, it is common here. And the locals accept that this tax evasion is OK which is why it will continue. I’ve only had one honest landlord who was an officer at a bank. He did everything by the book. Too bad that apartment is in Tainan or I’d still be there.
I think the OPs apartment sounds luxurious. It would be impossible to get something like that in Da’an.