Korean Job Discussion Forums

[emmajuno]

Said expenses have been removed from my wages. Is this normal? And what on earth is it? It's like 90,000 won.

[thegadfly]

At my place, there is a bill for electricty, sewage, cable TV, the apartment complex guards, cleaning/lighting/elevator, water, etc etc et al which is termed "building maintenance fee." The bill actually breaks it down to like 30 different things, and in my case, the biggie is electricity, as I run my AC a lot in the summer.

If you are in a larger apartment complex, with quite a bit of parking and guards at the entrances/folks that clean the halls and stairwells daily, then I would say it is probably a legitimate bill...if you already pay separate bills for water, gas, electricity, cable TV, etc, then it seems a bit off.

Of course, best thing to do is ask at work.

[emmajuno]

ahhh ok, that makes sense. No there is no seperate section for electricity or anything so I guess that must be it. Thanks.

[Junior]

Water, electricity, TV, Internet, gas, heating are all separate bills.


"Appartment maintenance fee" supposedly covers things like sweeping the corridors of the building and security guards (if you have them).

In reality its basically pocket money for the building owner.

[Njord]

This is a legitimate fee, but unless your boss is also your landlord, it should not be deducted from your pay check. You should get a separate bill from your apartment complex each month with details of the charges.

[methdxman]

I have to pay almost 250,000 a month on utilities and community fees. It sucks but you gotta help cover the security guards, cleaning ladies, trash guys, and the owner's room salon fees.

[jrwhite82]

90,000 is very reasonable. I'd still want a copy of the bill for my own records though.

[lifeinkorea]

If you live out in the country, then 90,000 is a lot. In the city it's normal.

[Skyblue]

My monthly total bill runs about 120 K excluding gas. That includes leccy, TV, "security fee", etc.

[PEIGUY]

my total bill runs 100 k every month since I moved into this apartment. Everything is shared (minus the internet).. as other people have mentioned it pays for the ajoshis who do nothing but try to act important by making sure you separate your garbage correctly etc. etc.

[big_fella1]

Yeah it's normal but Hagwons don't tell you first.

Two theories:

1) The paranoid, Hagwon's don't believe in full and frank disclosure.
2) It's normal here, so why don't you know about it?

May I say, a little bit of 1 and a little bit of 2.