1, Location?        2, Size?         3, Decoration?         4, Environment?         5, Community?

 1.  To work ?           2. To school?             3. To subway station?           4. To shops and restaurants?

1. Is the eletricity enough for the property? 

2. Are the windows double glazed? If not, is the heating enough?

3. Is the water pressure enough?                                

4. Are the air-conditioners very noisy?

5. Does the bathroom need re-grouting? 

6. Does the kitchen need refreshing? 

7. Does the indoor wall need repainting?              

7. Do I need an alarm system?

8. Do the locks need to be changed?                          

9. Do carpets need to be cleaned?

1. Can I help choose the furniture that will be provided?  

2. Can I get  an allowance and choose the furniture entirely?

3. Can I ask the landlord to move out some pieces of furniture and buy some others which I like?

4. Can I choose the colour of the curtains?

5. Will curtain netting be provided?

6. Will black-out curtains be provided?

7. Can I help choose the light fittings if they are not  already installed?

1. Is there a microwave?

2. Is there an oven?

3.  Is there a dishwasher?    

4. Is the washing maching with hot water options?

5.  Is there a dryer?

6. Is there a water filter system?                 

7. Is there a water dispenser?

8.  Is there fridge big enough?

1. Is there a lot of renovation going on in the area?

2. Are club facilities included?

3. Am I allowed to have pets?

4. Is there a parking sapce?

Landlord's Responsiblities ( Party A: Landlord    Party B: Tenant )

1. During the Lease Team Party A shall be responsible on a regular basis for maintenance and repairs of the property. Party A shall gurantee the safety house for the use of the property and all the furniture, equipment and eletrical appliance listed in Appendix 4, and shall be responsible for the refit and maintenance of the Property and all the above said furniture, equipment and eletrical appliances. Upon receiving Party B's repair requirement, Party A shall carry out such repair work within five (5) working days, unless awaiting the delivery of spare parts in which case the delivery date becomes the due date. Otherwise Party B has the right  to act freely to find another independent Party to conduct  the maintenance and repairs. Party A should  be responsible for all agreed resonable costs; otherwise Party B can deduct  the said resonsible costs from the following month's rent.

Difficulties with this clause

1) If you can't contact the landlord what do you do ?

2) If the landlord does not agree?

3) If the landlord thinks it is the tenant's  fault?

2. If the Property becomes uninhabitable and Party B is forced to vacate due to the said uninhabitable condition, Party A must provide hotel accommodation which is valued at a minimum of RMB XXX / per day while The Property is being repaired. If the Property is not repaired to a habitable standard within 20 working days, Property B has the right to terminate the lease and Party B will be entitled to full refund of the facilities in the Property including but not limited to flooding, mold. Termites,or of the normal supply of water, eletricity or gas for over 24 hours that affect the normal use of the Property.

Difficulities with this clause

1) Compensation if you have to move

2) What is 'uninhabitable'

Tenant's responsibilities:

1. Not to prematurely terminate this lease, unless a breach has occurred by Party A and has not been resolved within 15 days of written notice having been delivered to Party A. Should Party B terminate the lease prematurely without good clause then Party B shall forfeit the security deposit in full and will still be held accountable for the rent until the actual checkout date, late fees utilities and costs for repairing any damages (except for normal wear and tear) accrued and /or caused by Party B, the occupant or persons authorized by Party B or the occupant to enter the Property.

Reminder-it is not standard to pay rental until the end of the lease term in Shanghai. You should only use lose your deposit if you break the lease early.

2. Party A agree that Party B is allowed hang a resonable amount fo pictures/artwork on the walls, up to XXX pictures/artworks.

Before you accept the keys to your new home make sure that you and the landlord have signed a chek-in triplicate for you, SPC Customer Service Officer and your Landlord, The documentation should clearly state:

1. The furniture list

1) Every item should be documented and if anything is damaged it should be clearly on the form so you are not liable when you check -out.

2) If there are serious scratches or damages that you can accept but do not  want to be liable for, your housing consultant should take photos of these as documantation.

3) If you have been given a budget by the landlord to buy furniture yourself, you will need to arrangea time for invoices to be given to the landlord after you have purchased the furniture, and for a complete furniture list to be created. Normally your housing consultant will assist you with creating this list once you have bought the furniture.

2. A list of the state of the floors,walls and light fixtures

If there are serious scratches or damages that you can accept but do not want to be lialbe for, your housing consultant should take photos of these as documentation.

3. The utility readings, Be aware that in some colonial properties and in some company owned housing complexes you will not have an individual eletricity meter, but you will receive a bill which has been divided according to what you have used. This can get a little complicated and you must ask your housing consultant about this.

1) water           2) gas           3) electricity

As list of the keys you have recevied

The number of remote controls you have received

1) TV, DVD playe, music system              2) Garage door           3) Air-conditioners

Your new telephone ADSL numbers

You will need your computer to set-up your ADSL. As China Telecom usually has to install this, your Customer Service Officer should assistant you to arrange a time.

The contact information of the property management office if there is one of your compound.

If there are still items that are damaged or missing this needs to be documented and the landlord can liaise with you and your Customer Service Office to arrange when these items will be completed. Your Customer Service Office will assist you with resolving any existing problems and following up with the landlord to ensure the agreed time lines are met.

Finally there are some additional issues which will not be documented but you should have solved during the check-in:

1) Find out where to dispose of your rubbish

2) Find out how to get a maid if you need one

3) Find out whom to call in an emergency. (For housing issues this should be SPC if you have been assigned one.)

4) Find out how to order bottled water

5) Find out where is your mail box

Learn how to use:

1) Your washing machines as many of them are in Chinese   

2) The Satellite TV

3) Your air-conditioning remote controls many of them are in Chinese

2 months rental is the standard. Some landlords will ask for more--do not accept!

Your landlord is entitled to some or all of the deposit upon lease termination in order to cover the following costs:

1. Damages incurred to the Property, other than normal wear and tear

2. Outstanding utility bills such as unpaid phone, gas water etc

3. Premature lease termination by tenant

Premature lease termination without good cause will most likely mean that you lose the entire deposit , unless you have a  Diplomatic Clause in your contact. If you have fulfilled your lease obligations, and not damaged the premises or any of the provided furniture/fittings, your are entitled to have the full deposit without interest returned no later than 30 days after you move out.

If you do break your lease early one issue may have is getting an official invoice the security deposit that you lose, Most landlords will not provided this so bear in mind you will probably have to pay 5%of the security deposit to get the official invoice.

Most landlords who want to rent out their property prefer to renovate it themselves, and spend a lot of time and money doing so before they submit it to an agency. This is particularly the norm for the areas which are popular for expat housing such as downtown, Hongqiao and Pudong.

However, the outskirts of Shanghai ("local" districts ) offer limited property which is up to the standard that an expat would expect, and since housing in these areas is very cheap it might be worth to keep an eye out for a place that can be rented for a very low amount and then fix it up yourself.

If you opt for this solution, make sure that you :

1. Get a long-term lease

2. Specify in the contact that you have the landlord's permission to make alterations/additions to the existing layout

3. Add an extra clause in your contact in your contract which states that if the landlord terminates the lease agreement prematurely. You are entitled to have your expenses for the renovation  work covered.