A
When you rent, the deposit amount, when it is returned and the cases in which it can be deducted must be written into the contract
Value for cost Standard
In plain termsHow much the deposit is, when it is returned and in what cases it can be deducted must be written into the contract before you sign. A reason for deducting that is not written in the contract cannot be used by the landlord to deduct from your deposit when you move out.
- Cost
- No money. Ten extra minutes when you sign the contract. The hard part is raising it in front of the landlord
No money
Done in passing
Some willpower
Benefit size medium
- Benefit
- The administrative regulation is clear: “Where the lessor collects a deposit, the amount of the deposit, the time of its return, the circumstances in which the deposit may be deducted and other such matters shall be agreed in the housing lease contract. Except in the circumstances agreed in the housing lease contract, the lessor shall not deduct the deposit without a legitimate reason.” Three things go into the contract: how much the deposit is, when it is returned and in what cases it can be deducted. The landlord cannot use a reason that is not written in the contract to deduct your money
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- On the day you move out, take photos and video together with the landlord. Photograph the readings on the water, electricity and gas meters, and photograph the walls and floors too. If your deposit is deducted without a reason, first complain to the housing lease administration department. If the amount is small, use small-claims litigation; see Section 8
A
If your water and power are cut off, the locks are changed or people come to your door to threaten you out, call the police first and keep evidence: the regulation forbids using these methods to force you to move out
Value for cost High
In plain termsThe landlord cannot force you to end the lease or move out by cutting off water and power, changing the locks or coming to your door to threaten you; the regulation expressly forbids it. If this happens to you, call the police first. The record of the police call-out is your evidence later when you claim compensation for your losses. Don't take matters into your own hands and confront the other side.
- Cost
- No money. Make one call to the police, which you can do on the spot
No money
Done in passing
No willpower
Benefit size medium
- Benefit
- The administrative regulation is clear: “The lessor shall not use violence, threats or other unlawful means to force the lessee to terminate the housing lease contract or to vacate the leased housing.” To vacate means to make you move out. If you run into this kind of situation, call the police first and keep the evidence. Don't take matters into your own hands to confront them
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- The point of calling the police is to leave a record of the police call-out; later, when you claim compensation for your losses, that record is the evidence. At the same time, notify the housing lease administration department
A
Agents may not collect or pay rent and deposits on anyone's behalf; pay the money directly to the landlord
Value for cost High
In plain termsUnder the rules, rent and deposits may not be collected or paid by the agent on anyone's behalf; pay the money directly to the landlord. Every time the money passes through the agent's hands, there is one more chance for it to run off with the money. If it really does run off, the rent you paid is lost, and the landlord will evict you as well. Before you pay, check whether the payee is the name on the property ownership certificate.
- Cost
- No money. Checking the payee before you pay takes a few minutes. The hard part is standing firm when the agent tells you to transfer the money to it
No money
Done in passing
Some willpower
Benefit size large
- Benefit
- The administrative regulation lists “collecting or paying housing rent and deposits on behalf of others” as a prohibited act for real estate brokerage agencies: the agent cannot collect your rent and deposit for the landlord. Every time the money passes through the agent's hands, there is one more chance for it to run off with the money
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- Before you pay, check whether the payee is the name on the property ownership certificate. If it is not the owner, ask for a clear explanation and keep a written authorization. The agent may only charge an intermediary service fee for bringing the two sides together
A
Before renting a long-term rental apartment, check its fund supervision account; don't pay a full year at once just because it's cheaper
Value for cost High
In plain termsPaying a full year at once gets you only a small discount. Once the company collapses, your deposit and the remaining ten-odd months of rent are gone together. It is worse if you are tied into a rent loan: the apartment company runs off, and you still repay the loan month by month until it is paid off. Before signing, first check whether it has publicly disclosed a fund supervision account.
- Cost
- No money. One check takes ten-odd minutes
No money
A few hours
Some willpower
Benefit size large
- Benefit
- The administrative regulation requires housing rental enterprises in the sublease business to “set up a housing rental fund supervision account and disclose it to the public.” Being in the sublease business means the enterprise leases the whole home from the landlord and then sublets it to you. The small discount you get from paying a year at once does not make up for the risk of losing both the deposit and the remaining rent if the enterprise runs off. If you have also signed a rent loan, the risk is greater
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- When you sign, check carefully whether a loan is bundled in. If an installment app pays the apartment company a full year's money at once and you repay the loan month by month, then if the apartment company runs off you still have to keep repaying. Don't sign this kind of contract
A
If the home is sold during your lease, the lease stays in effect and you don't have to move
Value for cost High
In plain termsIf the home is sold during your lease, your lease still stands. The new landlord must let you live there until the end of the term under the original contract. You don't have to move, and you don't have to renegotiate the price. The precondition is that you are already lawfully living there; keep all the evidence: the contract, transfer records and when you moved in.
- Cost
- No money
No money
Done in passing
No willpower
Benefit size medium
- Benefit
- The Civil Code (民法典) has a rule called “sale does not break a lease.” The text of the article says: where the ownership of the leased property changes during the lease term, this does not affect the validity of the lease contract. This means that if the home changes owners during the lease, a lease that has already been signed still stands. The new landlord must let you live there until the end of the term under the original contract
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- The precondition is that you have already lawfully moved in; the article's wording is lawful possession and use. Keep the evidence of the contract, transfer records and when you moved in
C
Before signing a lease, check the property ownership certificate and whether the home is mortgaged; make every payment by transfer and note what it is for
Value for cost High
In plain termsThe two most common ways to lose everything: one is paying the rent to someone who is not the owner; the other is that the home was mortgaged to a bank long ago and later gets seized. Before you sign, go to the real estate registration center once and check the ownership and any mortgage. Pay all money by transfer, with the note “rent for such-and-such property for such-and-such month”; if there is a dispute, this is direct evidence.
- Cost
- No money. One check takes half an hour
No money
Done in passing
Some willpower
Benefit size large
- Benefit
- The two most common ways to lose everything: one is paying the rent to someone who is not the owner; the other is that the home was mortgaged to a bank long ago and later gets seized. When you transfer money, add the note “rent for such-and-such property for such-and-such month”; if there is a dispute, this is direct evidence
- Evidence grade
- C
- Notes
- You can check ownership information at the local real estate registration center. When signing, have the landlord come in person; if they cannot come in person, get a power of attorney. If a sublandlord is subletting to you, there must be written consent from the original landlord
- Sources
- 作者经验，无直接文献；证据留存与转账备注同理见第 8 节关于彩礼和借条的两条
A
When buying a resale home, if the agent collects the purchase money for you, it must go through the special deposit account for transaction funds that the agent opened at a bank
Value for cost High
In plain termsThe purchase money runs from several hundred thousand to several million, the largest single sum of anything in this book. If the agent collects the purchase money, under the rules it must go through the special account the agent opened at a bank; it cannot be transferred by WeChat to an individual broker. Also, when two agencies handle one deal together, they can charge only one commission, and arranging a loan or handling the transfer of ownership for you requires a separate contract, with the fees made clear in advance.
- Cost
- No money. The hard part is insisting on the special account; you may have to argue with the agent a bit
No money
Done in passing
Some willpower
Benefit size large
- Benefit
- The departmental rule is clear: where it is agreed that a real estate brokerage agency will collect and pay transaction funds on the parties' behalf, the funds shall be transferred through the special deposit account for client transaction settlement funds that the agency opened at a bank. This means the purchase money goes into a supervised special account, not the agency's own account and not a broker's personal account
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- The purchase money runs from several hundred thousand to several million, the largest single sum of anything in this book; don't transfer it by WeChat to a broker. There are also two common ways of charging you extra. First, two agencies jointly handle the same deal; in this case only one commission can be charged. Second, arranging a loan or handling the transfer of ownership for you; these are separate services, which require a separate contract and advance notice of the fees. Make all payments by transfer and note what they are for; see Item 6 (check the ownership certificate and mortgage before signing).
- Sources
- 住房城乡建设部、国家发展改革委、人力资源社会保障部 (2011). 房地产经纪管理办法（令第 8 号，2016 年第 29 号令修改）第二十四条：「房地产交易当事人约定由房地产经纪机构代收代付交易资金的，应当通过房地产经纪机构在银行开设的客户交易结算资金专用存款账户划转交易资金。」第十八条「房地产经纪服务实行明码标价制度……在经营场所醒目位置标明房地产经纪服务项目、服务内容、收费标准」；第十九条「两家或者两家以上房地产经纪机构合作开展同一宗房地产经纪业务的，只能按照一宗业务收取佣金，不得向委托人增加收费」；第十七条代办贷款、代办房地产登记等其他服务「应当向委托人说明服务内容、收费标准等情况，经委托人同意后，另行签订合同」. http://www.gov.cn/gongbao/content/2011/content_1918920.htm
A
Don't rent a partitioned room: the smallest unit you can rent out is a room as originally designed, and kitchens, bathrooms and balconies may not be lived in
Value for cost High
In plain termsUnder the rules, the smallest unit that can be rented out is a room as originally designed. Kitchens, bathrooms, balconies and basement storage rooms may not be lived in. Once housing like this is cracked down on, you may have to move out. Also, during the lease the landlord cannot raise the rent just on their own say-so.
- Cost
- No money. The price is that on the same budget you live either a bit farther away or in a bit less space
No money
Done in passing
No willpower
Benefit size medium
- Benefit
- The departmental rule is clear: the smallest unit for renting is a room as originally designed, and a room may not be partitioned into several rooms rented out separately. The building floor area rented per person may not be below the minimum standard set locally. Kitchens, bathrooms, balconies and basement storage rooms may not be rented out for people to live in. During the lease, the lessor also may not unilaterally and arbitrarily raise the rent
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- When an illegal partition is cracked down on, it is the tenants who move out, and the deposit and rent already paid often cannot be recovered. Safety is worse too: partition walls often block escape routes, and many people living in one home share a single electrical line. When viewing a place, look at three things: whether the walls were built later, whether the room has a window, and whether the electricity meter can carry that many people.
A
If you have an urban household registration (hukou) and want to move to the countryside, only rent a farmhouse; don't buy homestead land or a house built on homestead land
Value for cost High
In plain termsPeople with an urban household registration (hukou) may not buy homestead land, farmers' houses or “minor-property-right housing” in the countryside; national documents expressly forbid it. Even if someone in the village says “just write up a contract and it's fine,” it doesn't work: the money goes out, and the house still cannot become yours. If you want to live long-term in the countryside, sign a lease for at most 20 years at a time, and renew when it ends.
- Cost
- No money. The price is that the house is not yours; a lease runs at most 20 years at a time, and when it ends you have to negotiate with the landlord again
No money
Done in passing
Some willpower
Benefit size large
- Benefit
- A document from the General Office of the State Council is clear: “Urban residents shall not purchase homestead land, farmers' residences or ‘minor-property-right housing’ in rural areas.” The same document also provides that after farmers sell or rent out their housing, a new application from them for homestead land will not be approved. In 2019, a document from the Office of the Central Rural Work Leading Group and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said it again: “Urban residents are strictly prohibited from purchasing homestead land in rural areas.” The same document set out the lawful route: urban residents may rent farmhouses to live in or to run a business, the term of the lease contract may not exceed twenty years, and when it ends the two parties may make a new agreement
- Evidence grade
- A
- Notes
- Homestead land is land the village allocates to its own villagers to build houses on, and it can be allocated only to people from that village. When renting a farmhouse, sign a written contract with the farming household renting it out, stating the lease term, the rent, whether you may renovate or rebuild, and how the renovation money is settled when the lease ends. The document provides that the lease term may not exceed 20 years, so don't sign contracts for a “50-year lease” or a “70-year lease,” and still less pay many years' rent in a lump sum. The document also prohibits going to the countryside to build villas, large walled compounds and private clubhouses on homestead land; don't put up money to “build jointly” with villagers.
