Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Gwangjuboy]

I am thinking of getting my own place. If a landlord goes bankrupt in Korea I have been told by Korean friends that it might be impossible to get your key money back (one friend lost a lot of money because of this) . While it's an unlikely scenario it's best to be safe than sorry. How does one go about checking the lanlord's credibility? Does the estate agent carry out checks or is it something you have to do yourself? Give me an account of your experiences and some advice please. Thanks in advance.

[denistron]

I rent my own place. I got my recruiter to do a background check on him for me. You need to contact the local government office of that area to find out about him. ALSO, make sure that after you pay the key money to get your lease stamped and insured. This means you will be more likely to get your money back even if the guy does go bankrupt. If you are insured, if the rentalsman goes bankrupt the goverment has to step in and help pay you back. But still doesnt gurantee you will get 100% of it back, or maybe in the worse senario anything at all. There is a pecking order to how they pay up. They will pay everyone back one at a time starting with the person who's been there the longest until they get to you. They will pay until the money runs out. If you are last on that list you could get burned. The government only has to pay up to a certain amount for the entire building.

Anyway, there is risk for sure. I think about it all the time. I hope I can get my money back in full. I think the odds of getting screwed are really small but its good to understand what you are getting into before you give up that cash.

Get a korean to read your lease before you sign, and go to the office to get your lease stamped, you should be fine.

Also, you might want to know that it can take a while to get your key money back from the landlord after you lease is up.

[Gwangjuboy]

Cheers. So, if I get a property in 천호동 I should go to 강동구청 in order to check the landlord's records? Or can it be done at the 동사무실? Is there a fee for the insurance? The difficulty in getting the key money returned (and the small risk of not getting it back at all) is one of the reasons I wanted to only put up 3 million won for a deposit and pay a higher monthly rent (for a one room). However, I have yet to meet a landlord who is prepared to do this. It might indicate that the landlords I have met are in debt. It's looking like I will have to put up a minimum of 5 million won.

[judge-ing-na]

denistron pretty much hit the nail on the head.

However the real estate agent is obliged to tell you if there is money owing on the property. Ask them.

It is difficult to find out if the property has been used as a gaurantee for another loan / credit card etc. As denistron said the best thing is to go down to your local governmet office and register there.

In the sorry event yor landlord has his assets siezed, you can go to the local courthouse and register as a debtor. The person who buys the property will have to pay you out. I am not 100% sure how this works but came up against it when i was looking at foreclosures.

Be aware that the lease will automatically roll over unless a) the landlord gives you 3 months notice before the end of the contract or b) you give one months notice before the end.

Good luck.

[sistersarah]

very good advice deniston

right before we signed for a place a couple years ago, we found out that the owner was 400,000,000 won in debt! we ran the other way, even though we really loved the place.
this stuff is no joke.