We are looking for an apartment and have an agency who has found a place for us. When we first discussed, the agent told us that the standard commission is 1/2 month rental from the renters paid at contract signing.
We asked about him renewals and after speaking in Mandarin to the other agent with him, he said there shouldn’t be any fee for renewal. As we approach a contract, they have now asked for the 1/2 month AND 1/4 month for any renewals. The agent emphasized that they will be “acting as a bridge between us and the landlord” for the year.
Is it normal market practice for renters to pay a fee (1/4 in this case) upon renewing a lease?
It depends … my housing agent charges me 10% of rental fees for renewal as administrative fees which I think it’s reasonable. If they harge me full fees, I would rather move out to find a new place.
in my experience, the landlord or property owner has always paid the fees. Maybe it’s different in Taipei, or perhaps it’s that you are unable to search, communicate and negotiate on your own. I’m surprised to find you are paying this fee, so I’m interested in what other people have experienced.
If you like the apartment they found for you and you consider it reasonable, then you won’t mind paying the fee.
No. First signing, half month. Thereafter, the agent’s responsibility ends. Although, if you think you need an intermediary between you and the landlord, I could see how they might charge for such a service. But I would get what services they intend to provide in writing.
I used a rental agent once years ago. I remember paying 1/2 month directly to her, so I think that sounds legitimate. My rental agent was really great, so to me was definitely worth the money. She was there to interpret when we signed contracts and she also set up my phone and cable for me. In fact, I was working the day these people came, so she came over to the apartment and waited for them to let them in. I didn’t resign though (ended up moving to a different city), but I probably wouldn’t have had an objection to paying her again if I had, although there was never mention of an additional fee.
Long story short, I would only agree to pay if I felt I was actually getting service that warranted the fee. If your rental agent plans to get you in and then you never hear from him/her again, then I would have a problem paying 1/4 for a renewal. In all honesty though, if you decide to resign, you could probably do it directly with the landlord and not tell the rental agency. How would they know?
thanks all! One other follow-up question…are the commissions usually charged on the management fee as well? The agent says the commission in our case is 50% of the rent including the management fee. Our management fee is quite high (15% of the rent) so it makes a difference. Is that standard?
Okay, so i have a 1 yr contract due to end in November. I liked the place at first, however it has turned out to be a bit of a nightmare… bad design cheap fittings etc. I have paid a bond (2 months rent so 2x $18,000) do they have a right to keep any or all of this if i break the contract… i have read the lease agreement and nothing is written there…but you know how these things go sometimes…any personal experiences to help me out.
thanks guys
fyi i haven’t broken anything, and everything is pristine so no reason for bond hold back on that account.
I guess it depends on the landlord. I had a similar situation before. I just told them and they gave me half of the bond back which I thought was reasonable.
From what I understand, half the deposit back if you break the contract is standard here. Every contract I’ve signed has had that written in the contract. (And normally they are those standard ones you can buy at a book store or whatever, so yours is probably the same)
We are looking to rent an apartment. When we were quoted the rental price, it was quoted as an all-in price, which turned out to include rent and management fee as we work out final details.
For ease of illustration, say we were quoted 46,000. We now understand that rent is 40,000 and management fee is 6,000. We understand it is typical for the agent’s commission to 50% of first months rent.
Question for those that have rented before: Is it 50% of just the rent or does it also include 50% of the management fee as well?
