I was reading a New York Times article on what it's like to be an American living in Shanghai. The role the real estate agent took in the whole relocation process really struck me.
And I quote:
The first order of business was to find a place to live. I had researched brokers on the Web and called one when we arrived. She came right over with a van and took us on a tour of the city. Rental brokers in Shanghai, it seems, are your hosts and hostesses. Not only do they find you lodging but they introduce you to the city, serve as advisers and translators, and continue to look after you and your every need for the duration of your lease.
Wow, just wow. My clients are lucky to get a photocopied sheet of paper with their super's number scribbled on it and a list of who to call to get their utilities hooked up. Assuming, of course, I don't forget to hand off this all-important document at the lease signing.
This part about killed me:
WHEN you rent a place in Shanghai, the landlord gives you presents. This is a terrific shock for a New Yorker. My agent told me I could ask for special furniture, TVs, gym memberships — the landlady would actually take me shopping.
Can you imagine this sort of thing in New York? Hell, if anything, it's landlords who want their asses kissed and palms greased after the lease is signed or a sale completed. A bottle of wine or a gift basket? Perhaps, but usually it's the agent who provides such a gift to the client, or, in some cases, the owner. Often, the owner gets a nice present from the agent in the form of a fat kickback. "Listings fees" or "referral fees," they're called.
Well, China might not have all of the comforts of the developed world, at least not yet, but it seems they conduct real estate transactions in a much more civilized and humane manner than we'd ever consider here in New York.
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