From my limited experience, the agents are fine. They deal in upper-end places, so prices are high, but that is not because you are a westerner. They often have a better selection than what you can find yourself. Personally I prefer using Tsui Mama.
Hello
I am very new to this board~
Reading some of the post about bad stories for finding right apartments in Taipei, I felt I can offer some help since my husband is real estate agent. I can help to translate, and help to communicate with landlord as after sale service.
If you guys need help, welcome to email me at sashimieater@hotmail.com
Hey Forumosans
I just arrived in Taipei last Fri evening and will be studying at TaiDa. Currently staying at a hostel while I find a place to live. Unfortunately I don’t know anyone here and my Chinese isn’t that great either, so I’ve stuck to using Tealit and Craigslist to find a place. I did go and register with Tsuei Mama yesterday but may have to return and get them to print listings for me - can’t seem to get any results online 
Just wondering if anyone unfamiliar with the local language has had any experience with only getting a contract in Chinese. Would most landlords be ok for the potential tenant to take the contract away for proofreading? I was thinking it might be good to get someone at the hostel to translate/proofread it for me to make sure everything’s right, but this might seem a bit impolite to the landlord.
Also if anyone knows of any rooms available around the NTU area (or further away but near an MRT), feel free to send me a message. My budget’s approx. NT9000+/-. Thanks! o/
It’s reasonable to let you review the contract and a good idea. If someone refuses, that might be a warning sign. Most landlords just use standard contracts and just write in the terms like the rent and address, so there shouldn’t be too much to review.
Tsuei Mama is easier to use if you go there and get a print out. They know how to search for what you want.
In Dapinglin, there are taofangs at 8K, rooms for less. It’s a few minutes away from NTU, door to door on MRT.
Normally, landlords will give you the standard, bought at local stationery store or 7-11 kind of contract. If they add or remove something, yes, it is acceptable to have someone read it with you. Never go alone to sign a contract.
I’ve been here over a decade and every year I ask my boss to help me with my landlady’s handwritting. She lists everything that belongs to her in the apartment -since my stuff is gaining ground fast.
It is a good idea to make a list or take pictures. Don’t be shy about making a through pre-moving inspection. Tuei Mama will try to lend a hand if there is trouble.
Thanks for your replies. Went back to Tsuei Mama and found out the reason I wasn’t getting any results online was because I didn’t press the ‘Searching’ button on the following page after entering the criteria. I thought that the ‘Searching’ page was the final result :no-no: . I recommend TMM for anyone else looking for a place to live, as the lady I dealt with there was very helpful and friendly, plus she knows English. She only charged me NT50 for my printouts. One difficulty though is that some of the details on the printouts i.e. address, comments, are in Chinese.
Ended up organising a viewing found through TMM, but the place listed was already taken. The room I looked at (and finally ended up with) in Zhongzheng was out of my budget at NT11500/month (including a bathroom and utilities except air-con). However the landlady ended up giving it to me for NT8500/month (hooray!). I didn’t really even bargain; just said NT8500 was what I wanted to spend :discodance:. Biggest room I’ve ever had!
The landlords are an elderly couple that live upstairs and do some tinkering around in the front room. So far it’s been pretty good even though they hardly speak any English. Guess that’s a good thing if I’m studying Chinese! We’ll see how it goes…
if anyone knows any place where I can rent a 1 bedroom apartment with kitchen and allows pet and is about 7,000-10,000ntd, as long as it’s convenient for me to go to Feng Chia University. Please do advice me, thank you! 
G’day everyone, I’m starting a job at Kainan University in a week or two and need to find a place. I have two young children who will need schooling before too long, and would prefer them to go to a school where there might be other foreigner’s kids so that they don’t get treated like rock stars. Any one familiar with Taoyuan got any ideas about schools or districts?
Anyone with any ideas or leads for the last two posters?
Hi
Did you get any answer?? I will be moving to Taoyuan in June this year and I will also like to know of a nice place to live there…
By the way, good luck with your new job!
Claudia
Yangmei area is highly reccommended.
EDIT TO ADD:
Found a Yangmei Taoyuan group on Facebook, with a link to Sunny Hill. 
On a different subject, have any of you guys heard of this before? First time I see it:
Sublet dot com: sublet.com/spider/lesearchsu … _per_page=
[quote=“Icon”]Yangmei area is highly reccommended.
EDIT TO ADD:
Found a Yangmei Taoyuan group on Facebook, with a link to Sunny Hill.
[/quote]
Thanks Icon!!!
No hay por donde.
I am studying Sinology, 2nd grade. This year in August i am going to study for a year at National Taiwan Normal University.I am going to have Taiwan Government Scholarship.I need to ask some questions.
I’ve sent mail to NTNU to ask about housing, and they said NTNU doesn’t offer dormitory to MTC students.I’ve already been accepted to NTNU’s MTC.I don’t know if i could change my school choice now,because i’ve already delivered the pre-admission letter to Taiwan Consulate.Anyway I really want to study at NTNU but i don’t know what to do about housing.I have never been in Taiwan.It’s really hard to find place to live before i see it.So i shall get your advices.I want to know a hostel or something like that close to NTNU.Whether living in a hostel or another place would be better for me?
I’m going to have 25.000NT per month.Is that enough to live in Taipei(food,place etc.)?
The place i’m looking for should be close to NTNU(can go by walking),clean and not small(i’ve checked some hostels and their rooms are very small) When i arrive Taipei,the first day, where should i go?As you can understand, im looking for a long term place.Should i live close to NTNU or is there any better option? If i stay in a place away from NTNU would it be cheaper(with bus,rent etc.). I want to live with 25.000NT for a month if i can
Thanks in advance.
Hi Outseth,
25,000 TWD per month is totally not enough, especially if you consider that out of the scholarship you also need to pay the tuition, which – at Shida – is 25,200 TWD every quarter. So your disposable income will be more like 16,600 TWD per month.
As a consolation, finding a place to live is not difficult (provided you have the money).
[quote=“Outseth”]I am studying Sinology, 2nd grade. This year in August I am going to study for a year at National Taiwan Normal University.I am going to have Taiwan Government Scholarship.I need to ask some questions.
[color=#0000BF]Dear Out,
Welcome to The Island. Please feel free to ask questions, but I may point out the issues you touch on have been covered elsewhere many times. Do a search regarding costs, and living in Shida area. This will give you a lot more info, based on the experiences of many participants of the forum. Use google if you’d like to narrow the search better.[/color]
I’ve sent mail to NTNU to ask about housing, and they said NTNU doesn’t offer dormitory to MTC students.I’ve already been accepted to NTNU’s MTC.I don’t know if i could change my school choice now,because I’ve already delivered the pre-admission letter to Taiwan Consulate.Anyway I really want to study at NTNU but I don’t know what to do about housing.I have never been in Taiwan.It’s really hard to find place to live before i see it.
[color=#0000FF]Taiwan is a welcoming place, with friendly people and renting for a foreigner is not such a hassle as in other places. The problem here is options are aplenty, and you gotta know what you want.
Most people find it hard to get used to small spaces as are available here. The area close to NTNU or Shida as it is locally called, is very expensive. You can search about Da’an area, it is prime real estate, expensive, but with lots of facilities. But space is valuable and hence we live tight.
Dorms are not given as part of the plan. There are private dorms behind the MTC, but those are expensive, shared and have a curfew -11pm. Local dorms… there are 4 people ina very small room… you really do not wanna know the rest.
Sure, there are other options -someone of your advanced level should consider the ICLP or at least NTU, rather than MTC, but ICLP is way over your budget -even though it would be a prime choice for a Sinology student. Anyway, NTU has the Prince dorms, also privately run, and those have their issues too.
Most students rent rooms or share rooms in partments with other students, or get together in groups to rent a whole apartment together. This is more economical, give syou a lot of freedome regarrding comings and goings, and there is far more availability.
That said, you should come early -first come, first served- and the best places go first.
[/color]
So i shall get your advices.I want to know a hostel or something like that close to NTNU.Whether living in a hostel or another place would be better for me?
[color=#0000FF]As it has been said before, stay in a cheap hostel no more than a week, choose a permanent place from the options.
You could pay a lot for a small room within walking distance of the university. You can pay a lot less within MRT/bus commuting distance. Public transportation is efficient and cheap in Taipei. You choose according to what you want to live with.
[/color]
I’m going to have 25.000NT per month.Is that enough to live in Taipei(food,place etc.)?
[color=#0000BF]Budget. Do not spend like crazy and party every night. Then it will be plenty. In my times, we only had 15K.
A place should set you back, at tops, 8 to 10K -with Internet, utilities, etc. I am thinking your own studio apartment here, which would be like top of the line, in the suburbs, 10 minutes away. In Shida that would be 15K or more. Shared room, from 6K up.
Food: breakfast about 70nt, lunch 100 to 200, dinner and snacks variable. Unless you have a kitchennette, love cereal, prefer local food, etc which lower costs.
Leave some budget for entertainment. Should be quite doable on 25K.
[/color]
The place I’m looking for should be close to NTNU(can go by walking),clean and not small(I’ve checked some hostels and their rooms are very small) When i arrive Taipei,the first day, where should i go?
[color=#0000FF]Check in the hostel threads about the most recent recommendations. Yes, rooms are small. No, we do not reccommend on choosing a definite place from abroad. Come, have a look with a local friend, or someone who has been here longer. Do not go alone, not for safety issues, but to have a better perspective as to pricing and conditions.[/color]
As you can understand, im looking for a long term place.Should i live close to NTNU or is there any better option? If i stay in a place away from NTNU would it be cheaper(with bus,rent etc.). I want to live with 25.000NT for a month if i can
Thanks in advance.[/quote]
[color=#0000FF]No hay por donde.[/color]
Okay, I guess I should post here to keep this centralized.
So I’m also going to Taiwan this summer to study at MTC on scholarship. Suggestions?
I prefer to live alone as I have never dormed or lived in an apartment with someone before.
The distance to NTNU doesn’t matter too much but it would be nice if it was close. I don’t mind the commute (I’ve been spending 2 hours a day where I live commuting to my university for classes). Da an would be nice though.
edit: for price I guess no more than $15000/month is preferred…
I don’t really know the area at all and I’m pretty inexperienced when it comes to this kind of stuff. I’m graduating from my high school this June and leaving roughly a week after. Some help would be nice
thanks!
Welcome, Benkei.
Nope, absolutely no. Two hours commute is not OK here. 20 minutes is already too far. LOL.
A nice small studio apartment say, 20 minutes by metro to MTC -count it the 5 to 10 minute walk, if you stop for breakfast- with Internet, TV and air conditioning, can be 8 thousand nts. Wanlong, Jinmei, tapinglin, Chichang stations on the green line, Dingxi on the yellow line. Look on the net, loot at tmm.org website -caters to students- or kijiji.com.tw Ads at school, word of mouth. Take a local/an old hand with you.
Don’t get those on “shida Road” that end up next to the river wall. That is a 20 minute uphill walk in a not so nice neighborhood. Looks OK on Goggle map. Don’t… We told you.
Thanks for the suggestions Icon!
Yeah, in the US everything is so far apart lol. My bus rides everyday end up being an hour one way. 
I have been looking at some places online and have found one for about 12000 twd a month but it is pretty far north (beitou?) Up near guandu MRT/danshui . I guess that is 30 minutes by metro so maybe I should pass on it.
Well it has internet TV and AC and utilities.(hopefully electric as well. I don’t know the size yet but it shouldn’t be that small considering its out of the way a bit.
Haha yeah in the US I’m kind of used to the space so I have some adapting to do cx
i wonder how big is the place i live in using pings lol.
edit : DANG! 168 pings! Its hard to visualize the size of the place in pings… i guess another reference i have is my one of my parents condos which is about 28-30 pings i guess…
So for a quick recap, try to stay out of densely populated places like da an/near all the action because the rents are inflated due to location?
Ill try to check it out with some of my friends first!
Thanks again!
Remember: no commitments on the net, not until you come here. Beitou is a very nice area, but for 12K I’d expect a bit bigger/newer, not a shoebox. TV and Internet are currently part of almost every package, but you can get on your own later if not. Air conditioner, on the other hand, is really a must when you move in.
Not really stay out of Da’an, it is doable with diligence. Just yeah, expect prices and conditions not to be that optimal, but remember: you do not have to take it. And if you make a mistake, it is better to lose a bit of money than to live miserably.