Anyone who wants to rent a house with certain guarantees will contact a special agency. The conductor in real estate operations is always a realtor. Naturally, his services are not free. Let's try to figure out what the commission is when renting an apartment, how it is paid and what guarantees.
Basic concepts
What is the commission when renting an apartment? This is the usual reward for services provided by an intermediary, that is, a realtor. Usually they include:
- selection of options for voiced tenant requirements;
- presentation of selected objects, most often with a field trip;
- negotiations with the owner of the property (or his legal representative);
- conclusion of an agreement with the direct participation of the tenant.
Plus, a realtor will always help to assess the merits and point out the shortcomings for each of the options, tell you how to check the health of technical equipment. And the main reason to pay for the work of a realtor is the huge amount of time and money saved, which are usually wasted in independent searches.
We will distinguish
From the foregoing, it becomes clear what a commission is when renting an apartment. This is the amount paid once when renting a property. It is important not to confuse it with the monthly rent for a rented property. There are two types of this reward:
- When renting a property. In this case, a one-time amount is paid by the client receiving the right to reside.
- Upon delivery of real estate. Here the commission is paid by the owner of the premises.
In both the first and second cases, the amount includes the preparation and signing of bilateral agreements.
What is the difference between a pledge
This concept also confuses people who are ignorant of the intricacies of civil law transactions. Therefore, it should be noted that the deposit and commission when renting an apartment are completely different concepts. If the first is a reward to the realtor for his work, then the pledge is the amount of money determined by the owner, which guarantees the order and safety of property in the rented premises. There are many variations of the pledge. For example, the owner requires a fee for the first month of using the property and for the last before settling. That is, a pledge is a kind of insurance provided only to the owner. Transaction intermediaries are not related to the collateral amount.
Who pays
According to a long-established unshakable tradition, the commission for the services provided by the realtor is paid by the tenant of the real estate. This remuneration is unofficially called “reduced” (this is what the commission of 50 means when renting an apartment). This rule works for premises of a low price category and partially average in the secondary real estate market.
For elite real estate with a priori rather high rents, all commission payments (called "increased") are charged to the owner of the premises. Because most often we are talking about business. That is, not only premium-class housing in new buildings is leased, but also corporations, factories, enterprises (entities for doing business).
In rare cases, by prior arrangement, both parties to the transaction share the dividend equally.
Issue price
What does the commission mean when renting an apartment, we decided. What is its size? According to a tacit rule, the fee depends on the assigned rent and the type of transaction to be concluded. Less often, it includes the amount for the participation of an agency partner. Cases of increasing the amount of remuneration for especially liquid options for selected real estate have become more frequent.
Therefore, the commission may vary within 50-100% of the amount.
Sometimes realtors make discounts. For example, if the client agreed to the first proposed option. When asked how to calculate the commission when renting an apartment, no agency will give an intelligible answer. He has too many components and, most importantly, a realtor’s personal interest.
Payment Rules
Usually they are written in the agreement between the realtor and the client. The procedure for receiving remuneration by the agency is established. Direct payment should occur after signing the agreement and transferring the keys to the premises.
Payment by installments when renting an apartment (what is it, see above) does not exist. It is introduced clearly at the indicated time and in full.
Here I want to note that agencies with a solid reputation and many positive reviews will never demand to pay a fee before signing the contract. If such a situation suddenly arises, then, most likely, these are scammers.
Required documents
To confirm the seriousness of their intentions, the owner of the premises must provide:
- proof of identity;
- the consent of all registered residents (if any), written in a certain form and notarized;
- a certificate from the management company / Housing office about all registered at this address or a certified extract from the house book;
- rental agreement (if the premises are not privatized);
- certificate of ownership / deed of gift or sale.
On the basis of the documents submitted, a lease is drawn up, after signing which a client’s commission is paid when renting an apartment (for what, see above).
Contract signing
The first thing to note is that the agreement should be called a lease , and by no means a lease . In accordance with Russian law, only a lease agreement gives the tenant the right to use the rented premises.
The tripartite signing of the contract automatically recognizes the transaction as legal. That is, it is signed by three persons: the tenant, the owner of the premises and the realtor. In addition, this agreement contains all the necessary information about the parties to it, as well as about the terms and other conditions.
Key Points
A well-written document should include:
- full description and name of the transaction;
- passport data of each of the signatories;
- amount of payment and the procedure for making it;
- characteristics of the leased premises: address, area, etc.
- the rights and responsibilities of each of the parties;
- terms of payment for utilities;
- circumstances of the termination of the contract.
By agreement of the parties to the agreement, any necessary items may be added to it. For instance:
- requirement of invariability of monthly rental payments;
- inventory of property;
- liability of the parties for the damage caused;
- penalties;
- grounds and rules for settlement of probable damage;
- the possibility of staying in a rented room pets;
- a ban on the transfer of real estate to third parties;
- dispute settlement, etc.
The contract comes into force from the moment of its tripartite signing. And only after that, according to the rules, a commission should be paid to the agent when renting an apartment.
If the agreement is valid for less than a year, then you do not need to register it. And if the contract expiration date is not specified, it is automatically considered valid for five years.
What is a realtor responsible for?
What is the commission when renting an apartment, sorted out. And it is not a pity to pay a person who knows their work and bears responsibility for it. Therefore, turning to the intermediary, you need to know what he is responsible for.
First of all, this is the selection of options according to the parameters specified by the client and the preparation of an agreement. In addition, the realtor may offer to sign an auxiliary contract for the selection of premises that meet the optimal requirements. This document gives the tenant the right, in case of any inconsistencies or malfunctions, to contact the agent working with him and demand to choose another option. Moreover, this service is no longer paid.
As a result, the payment of a commission to the agent when renting an apartment (which means see above) provides a guarantee of the legality of the transaction.
We are trying to save
In today's economic conditions, many do not want to overpay, that is, they do not want to pay for the work of a realtor. But in this case, you need not only to find, download and correctly fill out the form for the rental of premises. There are a lot of small nuances that an ignorant person simply cannot know, in addition, there are many scammers in this area.
Most often, the so-called owner assures the tenant of their rights to real estate. Later, for example, it may turn out that this is just an unscrupulous relative who does not even have a banal consent to the rented premises. It happens worse. The rent has already been paid in advance, the commission for renting an apartment (which means, see above) and a deposit, but it is impossible to move in: the housing is already occupied. And the examples given are not the worst that can happen.
The document itself is also difficult to compose on its own. This is a rather scrupulous procedure: in addition to the main points in the agreement, the rights and obligations of the parties, the payment procedure, etc. must be specified in detail. Moreover, any ambiguity can give an unscrupulous participant in the transaction the opportunity to change the meaning of the written and interpret it in their own way.
Although there is a rejection of the services of a realtor and pluses. Agency commission when renting an apartment without involving third parties, that is, directly: the owner - the tenant, will be no more than 60%.
be careful
Any agreement concluded with the agency must be carefully studied before signing. For example, it may happen that the owner turns out to be a front man or the organization itself engages in dishonest transactions. With such a development of events, the commission paid in case of sudden termination of the contract will not be returned. But in case of unforeseen circumstances, it can be requested for a refund (if necessary, even through a court).
You need to pay attention to the section “Type of ownership” in the relevant document. The best option for the employer would be to record “ownership”. Legally, this means only one thing: real estate is not divided into shares and the owner has one. If the situation is different, then there is the likelihood of a lawsuit and other troubles from the rest of the owners of the premises. For safety, you can require a realtor to draw up and sign an agreement with all participants in the equity section.
Another interesting nuance is the hidden commission. Dexterous agents invisibly to the client in the transaction price include their remuneration. For example, remuneration to a realtor is added to the set amount of the pledge “quietly” (in this case no one is shy, 100% is levied). As a result, “everyone is happy”: the owner received a pledge, the agency received his interest, and the employer paid for everything.
In a situation where the agent prefers to receive money for his work on both sides and the employer agrees, two contracts should be drawn up. The first is about renting a premises (with the signatures of the landlord and the owner), the second is between the agency and the person renting the property. The latter, at the request of the company's specialists, can be called a search contract for the provision of services , etc. But its essence will be the same - to provide services for the selection of real estate options, according to the specified parameters, in order to conclude a hiring agreement. All these subtleties should be spelled out in documents.
Particular attention should be paid to the point about the moment when the service will be recognized as performed. Since the tenant expects that the completion of the transaction (the final result) is the signing of a lease agreement, it is in his interests to state in the document that the services of the agency are recognized as rendered from the moment of signing the lease agreement with the direct owner of the premises. Otherwise, the tenant may be between heaven and earth: the obligation to pay a fee for the services of a realtor has already come, and the contract has not yet been concluded, there is not even a guarantee that he will be at all.
It is equally important to indicate in the concluded contract the case of its early termination for reasons beyond the control of the tenant. In this case, the agency is obliged to provide a repeated service with guarantee and without making additional payments and find a suitable option.
Post scriptum
Agencies with a good reputation and solid experience, draw up documents and pay remuneration in accordance with all the norms of Russian law, which guarantees the integrity of the transaction. Therefore, the basic rule of the tenant is in no case to pay in advance!