Things to Look Out for While Choosing a Home in Shanghai
Over and above the things you would normally look for i.e How you “feel”, do you like the furnishings etc. The legal and financial aspects should be captured in a Contract which varies.
Some Factoids
v Shanghai homes do not have the global high standards for construction quality.
v Shanghai homes are not trusted for emergencies. Think lower floors.
v Shanghai homes have crappy, boxy, post-modern, candy furniture OR over-the-top Chinese furniture OR gross mirrors on walls. Some landlords think this is good style. Mostly it is not
v Shanghai homes will face behemoth construction sites – question is how far is the site.
Access
- If you don't have car – Access to a Subway lines – Line 1 and Line 2 are the broadest.
Neighborhood
- Wet market for vegetables
- Supermarket i.e City Market, Carrefour are the common ones
- Expat oriented clinics/Hospitals i.e Parkway Health, United Health
- Cafe’s , restaurants
- General ‘walkability’
Immediate Environment
- Look out for current and impending construction. The noise WILL BE bad!
- Type of residents – many mainlanders or Taiwanese, or many expats.
- Do you get natural light during the day? Due to stratospheric buildings, sunshine is a rare commodity in winters.
- How are the gym facilities? Do you have a must i.e indoor pool (many dont have). Is the gym open to public (not preferred)? How much does it cost (3000 RMB per year per person is standard, anything more should mean stellar facilities. If it is free, this is usually a distress sign and there would be something wrong with the apartment!)
Utilities
- Type of air conditioning is a very important criterion as most Shanghai homes have very poor insulation and get very cold in winters and warm in summers. So ask these questions – Is it Central (higher bills but more effective) or individual control (less effective but cheaper). Floor heating vs air conditioner (less effective).
- Your flat must have separate meters for gas and water.
Appliances
- Must have good quality: washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, fridge, microwave, oven, 3-4 burner gas stoves, oven, water purifier, TV, DVD, Music system i.e speakers.
- Refrigerator – Ensure decent size. This is very small in many homes.
- Insist on 42 inch flat screen good branded TV (all will agree)
- Must have all English-language channels on TV taken from a satellite dish to feed off signals from Philippines or Hong Kong (Most will agree). Satellite dishes are illegal in China but this is a wink-wink but why should you be the one to take the trouble etc…
Furniture
- Will the landlord work with you to purchase furniture as per your choice (typical budget is 1 month per year of lease)? (some do agree but do ask)
- Extra storage space ie shelves/furniture. (some do not agree but do ask)
- Remove furniture if desired.(smaller ones can be removed with no problem)
- Do you need nails to hang art. (most will not agree but do ask)
- Must have mosquito net window screens
Over and above the things you would normally look for i.e How you “feel”, do you like the furnishings etc. The legal and financial aspects should be captured in a Contract which varies.
Some Factoids
v Shanghai homes do not have the global high standards for construction quality.
v Shanghai homes are not trusted for emergencies. Think lower floors.
v Shanghai homes have crappy, boxy, post-modern, candy furniture OR over-the-top Chinese furniture OR gross mirrors on walls. Some landlords think this is good style. Mostly it is not
v Shanghai homes will face behemoth construction sites – question is how far is the site.
Access
- If you don't have car – Access to a Subway lines – Line 1 and Line 2 are the broadest.
Neighborhood
- Wet market for vegetables
- Supermarket i.e City Market, Carrefour are the common ones
- Expat oriented clinics/Hospitals i.e Parkway Health, United Health
- Cafe’s , restaurants
- General ‘walkability’
Immediate Environment
- Look out for current and impending construction. The noise WILL BE bad!
- Type of residents – many mainlanders or Taiwanese, or many expats.
- Do you get natural light during the day? Due to stratospheric buildings, sunshine is a rare commodity in winters.
- How are the gym facilities? Do you have a must i.e indoor pool (many dont have). Is the gym open to public (not preferred)? How much does it cost (3000 RMB per year per person is standard, anything more should mean stellar facilities. If it is free, this is usually a distress sign and there would be something wrong with the apartment!)
Utilities
- Type of air conditioning is a very important criterion as most Shanghai homes have very poor insulation and get very cold in winters and warm in summers. So ask these questions – Is it Central (higher bills but more effective) or individual control (less effective but cheaper). Floor heating vs air conditioner (less effective).
- Your flat must have separate meters for gas and water.
Appliances
- Must have good quality: washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, fridge, microwave, oven, 3-4 burner gas stoves, oven, water purifier, TV, DVD, Music system i.e speakers.
- Refrigerator – Ensure decent size. This is very small in many homes.
- Insist on 42 inch flat screen good branded TV (all will agree)
- Must have all English-language channels on TV taken from a satellite dish to feed off signals from Philippines or Hong Kong (Most will agree). Satellite dishes are illegal in China but this is a wink-wink but why should you be the one to take the trouble etc…
Furniture
- Will the landlord work with you to purchase furniture as per your choice (typical budget is 1 month per year of lease)? (some do agree but do ask)
- Extra storage space ie shelves/furniture. (some do not agree but do ask)
- Remove furniture if desired.(smaller ones can be removed with no problem)
- Do you need nails to hang art. (most will not agree but do ask)
- Must have mosquito net window screens
