Korean Job Discussion Forums

[ujin821]

Hey guys, anyone have experience getting out of a housing contract? I'm deciding between getting a better job (that happens to come with a better apartment deal) or leaving Korea. (And no, I don't need any advice as to which choice to make.)

So either way, I need a way out of my contract and get my deposit back.

I figure I would have to tell my landlord that I need to leave and pay her the fee to relist the apartment, as well as continue paying rent until a replacement arrives. But are there any other penalties or things to look out for?

[blackjack]

What normally happens is you have to find someone to replace you and pay half the realtors fee.

[Typhoon]

I've done this twice now. The only way to legally get your deposit back is when the owner rents to a new tenent. If you have a cool owner they can give it back to you, but that is not the norm anywhere in the world and especially in Korea. Basically, you are the hook for rent, real estate fees, apartment bills/fees, and your deposit until the owner can rent out the place again or when your contract was supposed to be over (which ever comes first). The first time I did this I got screwed because the owner didn't even try to rent out the place until 3 months before the end of the contract. The 2nd one was better and tried to find a new tenent as soon as possible. Best of luck.

[cazzy3]

last message is right: if you want to make sure you get the deposit back. the three of you (landlord, new tenant and yourself) will meet together and the new tenant will basically give you the deposit since the landlord probably has it invested somewhere.

i agree about not paying rent until it gets rented because they have no incentive to renting it out. good luck.

[ujin821]

Cool, thanks a lot for your replies. But one more question: how long does it take to get a new tenant?

My target moveout date will probably be mid-October, so how early should I get the process moving?

[blackjack]

[Typhoon]

That's right, if you don't pay rent they just take it out of the key money. That is what happened with my first apartment, but it pisses off the apartment owner because the key money is always invested somewhere and they usually depend on the monthly rent for something (especially if it is a lot). If the owner is dragging their feet in getting a new tenent then not paying could speed up the process. In my case the owner was asking a crazy increase in the rent, which ensured no one would want to rent the place.

The amount of time it takes for someone to rent a place varies...how nice the apartment is, location, how much the bills are, how much the owner is asking will all factor into the speed that it is rented. I would say 2 months is a reasonable amount of time to find a new tenent, but it is a little stressful. In my experience Koreans are pretty last minute about their moving details, which probably won't be helpful to you at all.

[inthewild]

I was thinking of trying to first find someone on my own who would take over my contract, then just contact the landlord directly or my real estate office...

Would it be easier if the OP tried the same?

I've got like 6 months left and the next person to come in would go with me to the real estate office if needed, give me the deposit and pay rent to my landlord til my contract runs out.

Or they could just sign a new contract.

What fees am I looking at here? For example if my rent were 10m down and 1m a month what would I have to pay to the real estate office? And the new tenant?

Anymore people with experience with this kind of stuff please chime in. I'm guessing in the end it'll end up just being a big clusterfuck though.