Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Swampfox10mm]

We moved.

[eamo]

My floor is like that too. Only 2 year old apt. Worth 600,000,000 apparently. But drop a fork and there's a permanent dent in the floor.

We estimate that by the time our lease is up the whole floor will have so many scratches and dents that the landlord will ask us to replace it. Nightmare.

This is the same apt (remember, it's worth 600 million) that has only single-pane windows on the cold north side of the apt......but big double windows on the sunny south side!! What genius thought that one up?? We're paying 200,000 a month for heating in the Winter because the whole north side of the apt is like a cold radiator..

[Rutherford]

I had an apartment like that for a short time as well. They used the cheapest grade of the "foam" vinyl flooring.

I had moved in a new apartment and just setting my suitcase down on the floor left permanent dents. A Korean friend said not to worry about it since when they're using that sort of cheap flooring they know they're going to have to replace it between tenants. This is something you'll probably have to argue about with your landlord when you leave. Make sure he doesn't charge you for the price of a new, higher quality floor.

[Rutherford]

I had an apartment like that for a short time as well. They used the cheapest grade of the "foam" vinyl flooring.

I had moved in a new apartment and just setting my suitcase down on the floor left permanent dents. A Korean friend said not to worry about it since when they're using that sort of cheap flooring they know they're going to have to replace it between tenants. This is something you'll probably have to argue about with your landlord when you leave. Make sure he doesn't charge you for the price of a new, higher quality floor.

[mmstyle]

Ah, crap, are you expected to pay for these floors when you move? My last apartment was awful when I moved in and there was no mention of it when I left. Our current apartment was new, and the floor looks like crap after 2 and half years. I thought that they put this cheap, crappy flooring in knowing they would have to replace it after a tenant.

[toadkillerdog]

Fortunately, the flooring is very cheap to replace.

[Chris.Quigley]

My apartment was like that in Korea as well. They use cheap vinyl... If they used real hardwood (probably prohibitively expensive in Korea)... or decent vinyl(expensive but would last longer)... you wouldn't have the same problem. But, as the above poster said, the good thing is that it will be cheap to replace. (hopefully). I was surprised at how many things fell apart and needed to be fixed while I was in Korea. (My school paid).

I don't know how the law works in Korea. But, in Canada you cannot be charged for "normal wear and tear" through a lease. What this means it that if they put cheap carpet in the house, and it gets roughed up over a 10 year period, they cannot sue you for it. But, if you have a 1 year lease and at the end of it the carpet is totally destroyed, they could demand that you replace it.

I would assume Korea has similar laws... But I don't know.

For this reason I would assume... that some amount of "key dropping" would be considered normal wear and tear... but then again... I don't know!

[tardisrider]

The soft floors are good conductors for the ondol heat.

They're cheap and easy to replace, even if a landlord does grouse about having to do so.

[walter235]

I have wood floors, but not hardwood. I dropped a frozen chicken breast as I was taking it out of the fridge and it dinged the floor!

[Swampfox10mm]