Where do owners post advertisements? Reader's tip: How to rent an apartment without intermediaries - an unusual method

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Many tenants think that searching for housing on their own is preferable to using intermediaries who need to pay a percentage of the transaction. In fact, it is possible to find living space yourself, but this requires caution and attentiveness. In this article we will tell you in detail about methods of searching for rental housing, ways to reduce the risk of meeting an unscrupulous counterparty, and the specifics of the procedure.

○ Advantages and disadvantages of renting an apartment without intermediaries.

Renting a home without involving intermediaries has both pros and cons. To make a final decision, you need to study all aspects of the issue in detail and weigh all the advantages and disadvantages of this method.

So, positive aspects Self-rented housing is an opportunity to:

Savings due to the absence of additional costs for intermediary services.
Joint hiring with friends and splitting the amount of payment.
Bargaining with the owner and reducing payment.

All of the above points allow you to save a significant amount on rented housing.

At the same time main drawback This type of hiring carries a risk of becoming a victim of fraud. Other cons:

Difficulty finding suitable housing.
The possibility of conflicts with the landlord regarding things provided for temporary use.
Risk of sudden eviction.
Lack of guarantee of respect for the rights of the tenant.

○ How to find an apartment that is rented without intermediaries.

You can find an apartment yourself through:

Acquaintances.
The Internet, the most popular sites for searching in this direction are www.avito.ru, www.irr.ru, as well as various social networks.
Newspapers and magazines, in special sections.

You can also independently post rental advertisements within the area of interest and wait for a call from landlords. In this case, it is advisable to place advertisements on the walls of houses or special stands.

○ How to check the apartment and the owner.

Before concluding a transaction, it is important to conduct a thorough inspection of the apartment for technical condition. Special attention You need to pay attention to the condition of the pipes and wiring.

You also need to check whether the landlord has the rights to conclude the transaction:

Is he the owner (providing a certificate of title, extracts from Rosreestr).
If not, does he have title documents: primary lease agreement, purchase and sale agreement, certificate of inheritance.

In addition, you need to check the following documents:

Passport (if the renter is an individual).
Constituent documents (if the housing is rented out by a legal entity).

Also, regardless of the status of the landlord, you need to check the apartment for the presence of debts to pay for utilities (extract from Rosreestr or the management company).

○ Fraud with apartments.

Renting a home is one of the most popular areas of work for scammers. Therefore, when embarking on an independent search, you should minimize the risk of meeting them.

The most common fraud schemes:

Re-letting of rented housing. The fraudster rents an apartment, then rents it out, posing as the owner using forged title documents. When renting out, they take a deposit for a few months and disappear.
The same type of fraud can be carried out by the owner of the apartment. Upon agreement, he shows a copy of the certificate of title, citing the fact that the original is in some authority. Here he also requires a deposit, after receiving which he disappears.
A real estate agency can also commit fraud. For example, you may be offered to buy a database with phone numbers of potential tenants, specifying that they will not charge you a percentage for the transaction. As a result, the list turns out to be invalid, and the payment for it is quite high.

To protect yourself from such cases, you should choose housing as carefully as possible, observing the following rules:

Do not trust options with too attractive prices.
Check the authenticity of the documents provided (for this you can ask for an extract from Rosreestr).
Pay money for the arena only on receipt.
Draw up a lease agreement, attaching a transfer and acceptance certificate for the premises and an inventory of the property.

○ How to draw up an agreement?

An agreement concluded in accordance with all the rules guarantees the observance of the rights of each participant in the transaction. Therefore, it is worth compiling it even if the property is rented without the involvement of a realtor.

Despite the fact that the legislation does not provide for an established template for such an agreement, the agreement must indicate:

Personal data of the parties to the transaction.
Subject of the agreement (features of real estate that make it possible to determine that it is being rented out).
Rent amount.
Rights and obligations of the parties to the agreement.
Responsibility of the parties.
Duration of the agreement (if this clause is not specified, a maximum five-year validity period will be assigned, in accordance with Article 683 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
Details of the parties to the transaction, their signatures and the date of conclusion of the agreement.

It is also necessary to draw up the following annexes to the agreement:

An act of acceptance and transfer of property that records the technical condition of the property at the time of conclusion of the agreement.
An inventory of property, which indicates things transferred for temporary use, indicating their exact quantity.

Hiring in the second way implies participation in the business of any persons, facilitating the conclusion of a deal. They may be:

Thus, there may be several options.

However, if you wish, you can enter into a rental agreement yourself.

So, if you decide to rent a living space yourself, you should know the important points, risks and possible difficulties.

You can learn about the concept, its rights and responsibilities from our article.

How to find?

To rent a living space on your own, without overpaying for realtor services or other intermediaries, several sources can be used:

information from relatives and friends. Perhaps some of them themselves want to rent out the property or there is information about such options;
ad sites. A modern and effective way to exchange information and search for housing;
newspapers and other printed publications. The advertisements in them have not yet lost their relevance;
self-submission of advertisements about the desire to rent housing. Perhaps the landlord will call himself.

You can learn about how to live in an apartment, as well as how to do it, from our articles.

Obviously, there are a lot of options where to look for an apartment for rent without intermediaries. To do this, it is not at all necessary to contact a real estate agency.

If, when trying to rent a living space, it turns out that a realtor is involved in the matter, you can try to conclude a deal without his participation. To do this, by agreeing to inspect the option you like, you need to come there prepared.

You can write in advance on a piece of paper your phone number and an offer to negotiate without a realtor. Upon examination quietly transfer it to the owner.

However, you should first establish personal contact with him, as invisible as possible to the realtor.

You can stay in the apartment after the realtor leaves under any pretext.

This is quite difficult to do.

That is why it is important to find an approach to the property owner.

Risks

Of course, there are certain risks when independent search housing available:

incorrect preparation of papers. with all the key points included in the text, otherwise, quiet living is at risk;
scammers. There is a great risk of “running into” scammers who rent out the same other people’s apartments to several clients and then disappear;
increase in accommodation fees. Again, if the contract is drawn up incorrectly, there may be a disproportionate increase after a couple of months of residence;
prepayment. It is important about transferring money. If the landlord asks for an advance payment many months in advance, this is a reason to think about the honesty of his intentions;
unjustifiably private visits from the owner. Rarely is this point spelled out in the agreement, considering it unimportant. This results in a misunderstanding between the parties regarding the frequency of the landlord’s visits.

Any risks can be minimized by correctly concluding documents and considering possible scenarios.

In addition, it can tell a lot owner behavior. However, even reputable agencies do not guarantee an absolute absence of risk.

What needs to be checked?

When communicating directly with the landlord should be checked:

owner documents, identification documents;
documents for living space. This is necessary so that it does not later become clear that the person who rented out the living space does not have any rights to it;
presence of other owners. If the living space is owned by several persons, their consent is required to rent it out. You should make sure in advance that there is only one owner. This will protect you from further problems and premature eviction;
condition of the premises. Everything is important: the condition of the plumbing, the interior, the details. If something doesn’t suit you, you need to solve this problem “on shore” or look for another option;
neighbours. It is better to inquire in advance about which neighbors live nearby. If they are too noisy or dysfunctional, you should think about the feasibility of removal;
property location. Ask the owner about the nearest metro stations, stops, shops, etc.

Thus, it is better to immediately verify the legality of providing housing for rent, assess its condition, as well as the situation in general.

Making a deal

To do it correctly and with minimal risks record the fact of a transaction for renting living space with all important conditions, it is necessary to draw up a number of documents: In order to draw up and correctly conclude documents Intermediaries may not be needed.

Thus, renting a living space on your own is quite possible.

The main thing is to conclude an agreement correctly and competently, get acquainted with the situation, communicate with the owner of the property, paying attention to his behavior. Risks cannot be eliminated, but they can be minimized.

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

You can avoid all the delays in looking for an apartment if you first notify all your friends that you are looking for an apartment. Most often, friends and relatives can recommend you an acquaintance who rents out housing.

It is convenient to rent an apartment through friends, as you have confidence that you will not be deceived. But not many people have such an opportunity. So let's look at the next step.

But remember that you should not mix friendship with business relationships. This can lead to a completely unexpected turn of events.

What should you do before you start looking for an apartment?

The first thing you need to do is decide on a budget. At the same time, you need to understand that it is impossible to get better housing for a low price. You need to find a middle ground for yourself and build on it when searching.

Nuances that need to be thought through in advance:

District. That is, look for housing in convenient place. Infrastructure and transport interchange are within walking distance. To work through these points, open the map and plot routes (below is an example of a map). And you also need to get to work or school on time. Remember this.

Apartment parameters. Think about what the size of the apartment should be. It’s logical that what larger area, the higher the cost of rent. Most often, a one-room apartment for one person is more than enough.
Repair. You need to know what the apartment should be equipped with, what condition the taps and toilets should be in. After all, it’s nice to live in a neat apartment with normal renovations that were carried out last time not 20 years ago.
Furniture and household appliances. Most often, rented apartments are suitable for living. But sometimes it’s better to talk to the apartment owners in advance and find out about the availability of a particular device.

Let's summarize: when choosing a rented apartment, the most important thing is comfort, safety, and adequate terms of the contract.

Remember that the phrase “apartment in good condition” may hide various troubles. For some, good condition means windows without cracks, a working shower, but holes in the ceiling, and a faulty plumbing system is not taken into account. That is, make sure of the condition of the housing in person.

How to find an apartment without intermediaries - 3 reliable ways

For those brave souls who decide to look for housing on their own, here are 3 reliable methods:

Via the Internet.
With the help of newspapers and magazines.
Through advertisements.

These methods are available to everyone, because even grandmothers have smartphones. Let's consider each method separately. After all, they hide their pros and cons.

Advertisements on the Internet

On at the moment Almost every person has the opportunity to access the Internet. There are many free platforms on the global network where advertisements for renting, renting, buying and selling housing are published. At the same time, there are divisions into parameters, type and cost of housing.

The first step is to find the owners and eliminate intermediaries. Some resources (the majority of them), for example, the Avito bulletin board, contain information about who rents out an apartment. But even this “tick” is not a 100% guarantee that you will run into the owner. So be careful.

Sometimes intermediaries write in advertisements that they are the owners. Therefore, ask clarifying questions over the phone in order to accurately deal with the owner.

There are other points by which the intermediary can be identified:

Intermediaries do not put forward any requirements for tenants: nationality, presence of children and pets, number of people who will live in the apartment. For them, the main task is to sell the apartment faster and get their percentage. But owners don’t like to rent out housing to just anyone.
Intermediaries do not pay attention to rental terms. The owners are interested in long-term rentals.
Agents have little knowledge of the apartment itself. The owners know everything about their apartment and can answer all your questions quickly.
The owners do not try to find out your information the first time you call. Intermediaries will first begin to find out personal information in order to expand their client base.

Social networks also help users rent an apartment. There are many public pages and groups in cities where owners post their advertisements. But even here you should remain vigilant. Remember that there can be no talk of any prepayment before inspecting the property and concluding a contract.

Search for housing in VK:

Newspapers and magazines

Newspapers and magazines have entire columns dedicated to renting housing. Most often, elderly owners resort to this method.

All you have to do is select the most attractive advertisements and contact the owner.

If you have time and you like a particular offer, just wait. It happens that after a week the owners reduce the rental price.

The disadvantage of this method is obvious: the search will take some time, since you need to spend it looking at apartments.

Do not rush, because it is important for you to choose the maximum advantageous offer. Check out all the ads, then you will be sure that you have found the best.

If you are looking for housing in a specific place (area), you can head there and find advertisements on entrances or stands.

You will spend a lot of time on this, but you will be able to find really inexpensive housing in the location you need. Often such advertisements are posted by elderly people.

If you find such an advertisement, do not rush to stop searching. Now you need to make sure the content of the ad and the adequacy of the owners.

Instructions for renting housing

Let's look at the step-by-step instructions you can't do without when renting a home:

Find the best option for you. At the same time, rely on the area in which it will be more convenient for you to live and on what your apartment should be like. This will allow you to save time on searching.
Get in touch with the landlord. During the conversation, find out all the nuances that interest you. Check the condition of the apartment, the availability of furniture, the Internet, for what period the housing is rented, who pays for utilities. Also try to find out from the contact person whether he has documents confirming ownership rights.
Make an appointment. Inspecting the apartment is the key to your peace of mind in the future. Ask any questions you have. Check appliances for serviceability (refrigerator, stove, TV, etc.). If something doesn't work, notify the owner. It is advisable to include all faulty devices in the contract.
Sign a rental agreement. In this case, you need to record the counter readings.

4 simple steps that everyone can follow. A little attention and you will get what you want.

Lease agreement

As surprising as this may seem, many people do not know what should be included in the lease agreement. At the same time, your well-being and peace of mind depend on it. Therefore, we will devote a section to this topic.

Many people sign a lease document without reading it. This is absolutely impossible to do. The agreement must be read from beginning to end. If possible, show the contract to a lawyer.

Not all renters have the extra money to go to a lawyer, so let’s look at the main points that you definitely need to pay attention to:

Payment, prepayment, deposit: amount of payment, what date payment is made, in what way.
Actions in case of late payment of rent (it is important that you are only responsible if the late payment is your fault).
Responsibility of the tenant and the lessor. It makes sense to know who is responsible for what.
Living conditions.
Payment of utilities.
Actions in case of early termination of the contract.

It is important to pay attention to the increase in rental costs. Stipulate in advance that the landlord can increase the rent once per year by 10% (this is for those who rent for a long time).

Even if you rent an apartment for a couple of days, still sign an agreement. This is necessary in order not to overpay and not get into trouble.

Information that must be reflected in the lease agreement:

Ownership agreement.
Extract from their Unified State Register for housing. This document is the only proof of ownership.
Passport of the owner or owners of the apartment.
An extract from the passport office with information about persons who are also registered in the house.

You also need to indicate the condition of the house:

Doors.
Windows.
Kitchen.
Furniture.
Technique.
Lighting fixtures.
Walls, floors.

When leaving, these points are taken into account; you will not be asked to pay extra.

Make this item a priority. A contract is a document that should be used as protection if something happens. Including cases when the owner crosses boundaries (comes to your place at any time, cleans the refrigerator, makes noise, and so on).

Meter readings

When concluding a contract, you must pay attention to the meter readings. Why do you need to pay the debts of previous tenants? And it doesn’t matter whose debts it is.

If there are debts public services, it is important to reflect their size in the contract. It is important to determine the amount the owner will pay for the debt.

Renting luxury housing

If you are interested not just in housing and rentals, but in luxury housing, you will need to know additional recommendations. After all, luxury housing must correspond to its status. Let's find out what explains the status.

When renting luxury housing, you need to pay attention to the following:

Location. Luxury properties are most often located in historically significant areas (a fact that contributes to the value).
Street. Attention should be paid not only to infrastructure, but to prestige and quality of service.
House. Remember that buildings erected 7-10 years ago are considered elite. These are new buildings, club houses. It is important that the complex has no more than 30 apartments, otherwise it is not luxury housing.
Neighbours. If celebrities live next door to you, the cost of housing will increase.

Finding luxury housing is not easy. If you are in a hurry and do not want to waste time (and at the same time have money), it is better for you to contact realtors. Since there are few advertisements on this topic on the Internet, and you do not want to go to a realtor, best way search - word of mouth.

A deposit is one of the nuances when renting a home. Since it is charged three to four months in advance.

It is also important to comply with the terms of the contract, since the fines in case of anything are quite high

A rental agreement for luxury housing can be drawn up in a standard manner. But most often, owners draw up individual contracts based on their requirements and wishes.

You should not enter into an agreement without the help of a lawyer. Since the clauses of the contract must not violate the legislation of the Russian Federation (otherwise they have no legal force).

Relationships with owners

Have you already decided where and from whom to rent an apartment? This is great! Just remember to be friendly with the owner while maintaining your distance.

Always remain calm. Even if the owner unexpectedly increases the rent in the future, you should not react violently. After all, a constructive dialogue will allow you to resolve any issues in your favor.

But at the same time, do not show excessive friendliness towards the owner. You should not give gifts or invite people to tea parties often. Just show yourself as a responsible landlord.

And let’s pay a little attention to your attitude towards the apartment. Not everyone feels at home in a rented apartment. But in vain. After all, you are paying a lot of money. If something happens, don’t be afraid to call a plumber again or nail down a shelf.

Those who care about how and where their money goes can check out 10 tips from experts that will help them in the future:

Tip 1. By all means, check the availability of documents for housing. This is a basic recommendation, but not everyone follows it. And then it turns out that it was not the owner who rented the house to you, but his relative. Or even worse: a complete stranger to the owner, a fraudster.
Tip 2. Be sure to sign a rental agreement. All real estate transactions require documentary confirmation. It doesn’t matter how long you rent the apartment for. Still, enter into an agreement that spells out all the important points.
Tip 3. If the home owner or agents refuse to enter into an agreement for any reason, switch to other options.
Tip 4. Before contacting any real estate company, check its reliability. Even outwardly calm and adequate people can turn out to be scammers. When working with a realtor, call his company and find out if a specific employee is listed in their company.
Tip 5. Make payment only after concluding the contract. If the contract has not yet been concluded, and you transfer money, you are sending it out of nowhere. Don't be fooled by verbal deals.
Tip 6. Check the equipment during the first inspection of the apartment. This will allow you to understand that you are paying money for a reason.
Tip 7. Assess the condition of the locks. Their reliability is the key to your safety. If the castle is in poor condition, negotiate with the owner to change the locks (at his expense, of course).
Tip 8. Evaluate sound insulation. When inspecting a home, few people pay attention to sound insulation. But this is an important point, especially if you come across noisy neighbors.
Tip 9. Inquire about parking availability. This applies to motorists. The safety of the car is your concern, but it is important that all conditions are in place for this.
Tip 10. Presence of insects. Living in an apartment with insects is unpleasant and difficult. It's not so easy to get rid of them. Of course, at the first inspection they will not rush to meet you. Your task is to inspect the corners and crevices for the presence of insects.

- this means saving a tidy sum from the budget, which would flow into the pocket of the realtor.
Therefore, if you have time to complete this not difficult, but painstaking and long work independently, this site is for you step by step guide according to the deal from A to Z.

True, you need to read 20-30 articles to understand the procedure for the transaction and registration of property rights.
But you have time :-)

Take at least 3 months to find the best property.
After all, you need to take a closer look at the real estate market in your city, and not buy the first thing you come across!

Article updated 05/22/2019

It's easy! You just need to know how! Of course you expect to receive a magic wand.

There are such services. But they cost money and access to them, as a rule, is on the recommendation of realtors who have earned a good reputation.
In these services, robots sift through thousands of advertisements on Avito and other similar sites in order to separate realtor advertisements from property owners.
And sometimes they make mistakes.
Realtors are too skillful at imitating owners.

You can also listen to my video consultation, in which I tell you how I act myself if I need to find a property directly from the owner.

In fact, these are the techniques that experienced realtors use when searching for real estate properties.
Even if they have access to special services. After all, robots can make mistakes and miss the desired property.

In the era of the Internet, almost all apartment sellers place advertisements on sales websites.

But for every one advertisement from the owner, there are more than a dozen advertisements from realtors.
And this creates serious difficulties for the Buyer.
In order not to make dozens of useless calls, you need to make a selection of the most likely advertisements from the owners.

What are the characteristics of advertisements that distinguish them from real estate advertisements?

earliest placement
highest price
unprofessional description of the apartment
ordinary photos
there is no information about the readiness of documents for the transaction
placement on only one site
round price (from realtors this plus 50-70-90-130 thousand commission)
signature “from the owner”, “owner”

BUT! realtors imitate owners, so the above signs are not 100% accurate!

But questions that you still have not clarified need to be asked in a phone call.

Even if a realtor answered you, you can get the information you need as much as possible. BUT then you cannot avoid calls from this realtor. To relieve yourself of worry, simply say that you have already made your choice.

You must understand that the work of finding an apartment from the owner will take you a lot of time, set aside 3 months for this work, the market is slow right now, so don’t fuss.

Just track daily new announcements. Services allow you to view advertisements for the last 24 hours. You can also arrange a daily newsletter on sales websites with new offers coming to the market.

Dedicate at least 1 hour a day to this work. Organize this information so you can compare later.

Select the characteristics of the apartment that are most important to you and evaluate the price-quality ratio in these offers.

Find an apartment from the owner A simple, but often ignored by Buyers, method will help - posting advertisements for the purchase of an apartment.

Advertisements often give the address of the house, and if you are interested in the apartment, but you cannot find advertisements from the owner, post it on notice boards at the entrances. Until now, this method remains very effective!!!

Many classifieds sites offer to send mailing lists to newly received properties at your request. Take advantage of this service.

It's very convenient. Allows you to monitor market replenishment.

To find an apartment from the owner You can also use special real estate services to find apartments from owners. They are paid. The subscription fee can reach up to 10,000 rubles per month.

A new service is currently being tested and I will soon give you a link to it.

Service for realtors, but confirmation is not required

In addition, you can receive an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate, with publicly available data, at the apartment address. It contains information about the owners.

This will help you if the owner does not live in the apartment.
You can receive such an extract using your passport through the Rosreestr office or the MFC!

The state fee is 400.0 rubles for a paper extract and 250 rubles for an electronic extract.

It is easier to order a reliable extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate via the Internet. It will be sent to you by email.

This is what a modern electronic statement looks like:

It happens, of course, that a realtor receives from the owner exclusive right to sell apartments and keys for organizing viewing. It is impossible to buy such an apartment without a realtor, provided that he does his job well. Even if you contact the owner, he will refuse to enter into a deal without a realtor.

And don't make unnecessary calls!

careful sampling first
then analysis of options, price comparison
only then the call.

This will save time and your budget.

With the right approach, buying an apartment without an intermediary will cost you 5-15% less.

Therefore, the hard and long work that you do will pay off handsomely, especially if you have time for it.

How to find an apartment from the owner

What you need to do to rent a home directly from the owner: three proven methods

Photo: imagebroker / Giuseppe Graziano / Global Look Press

Renting an apartment without a realtor is a pipe dream for many people who want to rent a home in Moscow. In the capital's economy-class housing market, there are many real estate agents who negotiate on behalf of the owners and take a commission from the tenant for this. This system is convenient for owners of inexpensive housing: they do not spend money on the services of a realtor, who independently brings potential tenants to them. At the same time, for tenants the situation seems unfair: they did not hire a realtor and did not want to pay him, but are often forced to do so, since the agent leaves them no choice.

Now, on average, 90% of ads on various specialized real estate websites are placed by realtors, he told RBC Real Estate general manager online service "World of Apartments" Pavel Lutsenko. Currently, the share of advertisements from agents on the World of Apartments website is 84%, on Cyana - 90%, on Yandex.Real Estate - 89%, representatives of these companies told RBC-Real Estate. The Avito press service was unable to answer the editor’s question about the share of advertisements from owners and from intermediaries.

Those who don’t want to pay a realtor just for posting an ad on a free website and being present at the conclusion of the deal can only look for rare offers from homeowners or use not very popular services where agents are not allowed, for example, The Locals or "33 elephants" This method is time-consuming and does not guarantee results: the most suitable option can be rented through a realtor, who will require the tenant to pay the equivalent of 100% of the monthly rate as his own remuneration. “In Germany there is a very good law: whoever hires a realtor pays for him,” said Evgeniy Luchinin, co-founder of The Locals service. “I believe that the realtor’s services should be paid for by the owner, since the realtor helps him.”

The editors of RBC Real Estate have found three working and absolutely legal ways to exclude a realtor from a rental transaction - even if the agent is present in the apartment and insists on his own remuneration.

How does rental housing work in Moscow?

Photo: Britta Pedersen / DPA / TASS

Many owners of Moscow apartments turn to realtors, who promise the owners to find tenants free of charge and quickly. The owners agree, since they themselves do not bear the costs. The realtor advertises on his own behalf, and then arranges viewings with those who call. At this stage, the interested tenant cannot contact the owner directly: all communication takes place exclusively through the agent.

Three parties usually come to view an apartment: a potential tenant, a realtor and the owner of the apartment (or a relative of the owner authorized to enter into an agreement). If the tenant likes the apartment and is satisfied with the price, then the parties agree on a deal. At this point, the realtor hands the owner and tenant a lease agreement - usually this is a standard agreement template, a sample of which can be easily found on the Internet. In most cases, there are two parties to the agreement - the tenant and the landlord. The realtor is not mentioned in such a document. “In many cases, the payment of a commission to a realtor is not documented at all,” said Ksenia Kazakova, a partner at the law firm Orient Partners. “In such a situation, it is almost impossible to prove any violation.”

In the presence of an agent, the landlord and his tenant sign an agreement, after which the tenant gives the owner the first month's rent along with a deposit, and the realtor an agent's commission, usually equal to the monthly rental rate (in some cases, half the rate). After this, the realtor disappears, and the owner and tenant are left to resolve everyday issues - handing over the keys, the possibility of replacing furniture, and so on. All further communication between the apartment owner and the tenant takes place without anyone’s mediation - in other words, if disagreements arise, the parties clarify everything with each other without the involvement of a realtor, who is not responsible for either the decency of the tenant or the decency of the owner.

In isolated cases, a realtor accompanies the apartment throughout the entire rental period, but for economy class housing this situation is an exception to the rule. The system with the payment of a commission by the tenant usually works for apartments in the mass segment (costing up to 50 thousand rubles per month); in the business and elite categories, the agent's remuneration is often paid by the owner.

Method number 1: bring a friend and pass him off as a realtor

The first method will require the help of a friend who agrees to play the role of realtor on the tenant’s side. The point is what to look for rented apartment It is possible not only via the Internet, but also through real estate agencies. In this case, the future tenant comes to the agency’s office, where employees tell him about the available options. This is the only case in which the tenant actually contacts the agent and pays a commission to him of his own free will - only we are talking about his own agent, and not the one who represents the owner of the property.

If there is also an agent on the owner’s side, then the transaction is carried out through the mediation of two realtors at once, who divide the commission in half - these are the unspoken rules of work for realtors in Moscow. A savvy tenant can use these rules to their advantage, especially since real estate agents often use the same free online services as regular tenants. A person who wants to save money can ask a friend to make a call, and then, together with the future tenant, go to view the apartment under the guise of a private realtor. In this case, at the conclusion of the transaction, the tenant’s friend will calmly take half of the commission - and then simply return this money to the tenant.

This method is not a deception: in the All-Russian Classifier of Professions there is no specialty “realtor”, which means that anyone can call themselves a realtor. “The concept of “realtor” in the market is quite vague,” confirmed Orient Partners lawyer Ksenia Kazakova. — Representatives of well-known well-known companies, employees of small companies, individual entrepreneurs, and simply individuals who are not registered as individual entrepreneurs act as realtors. In such a situation, it is quite difficult to check whether the person who came with the tenant is a “real realtor”. However, this also works in reverse side“: the realtor representing the interests of the landlord, as a rule, also does not have any supporting documents.”

Method number 2: wait until the realtor leaves

Photo: Vadim Nekrasov / Russian Look

The second method is popular both in the rental market and in the segment of purchase and sale of apartments in major cities Russia. A person interested in a transaction agrees with a realtor to view the apartment in the presence of the owner, but during the viewing, he refuses the deal under any pretext. After this, the potential tenant says goodbye and leaves - but not for long. During the visit, the future tenant will find out exact address home and remembers the name of the owner (this information is usually not indicated in advertisements).

If the tenant liked the apartment, then a couple of hours after viewing it, you can return there and find the owner inside without a realtor. “I really liked your apartment, but I don’t want to pay a commission to a stranger. Let’s conclude an agreement with you without intermediaries,” such a tenant says to the property owner. If the tenant is still not found, this strategy ends successfully for all parties: the tenant receives housing without a commission, and the owner receives a persistent tenant who is ready to immediately pay the money and move into the apartment. It is simply unprofitable for the owner to refuse such a deal: extra days of downtime will lead to lost profits.

“A person will have to make a choice: either I don’t conflict, leave everything as is and overpay the realtor, or I go into an open conflict and try to save money,” said psychologist and gestalt therapist Yulia Smelyanets. - Both have their pros and cons. I need to ask myself if the money I don’t want to spend is worth the possible consequences (this could be a conflict, tension in the transaction, or a possible negative attitude from the landlord).”

Method number 3: negotiate with the owner openly

Photo: Andrew Olney / moodboard / Global Look Press

The third method is the fastest and toughest of all. When viewing an apartment with an agent, you need to openly contact the apartment owner with a proposal to conclude an agreement without an intermediary. To do this, the potential tenant must quickly and correctly convince the homeowner that renting without a realtor is the best choice for the owner. It is better to ignore the realtor at this moment so that he cannot interfere in the conversation. The difficulty is that the negotiations will have to be conducted in the presence of the opposing party, so this method will require composure and the ability to maintain a friendly attitude even in a conflict situation.

“If the landlord works through a realtor, and the tenant wants to squeeze out the realtor right in front of him, then the reaction of all participants is unpredictable,” said psychologist Evgenia Bulyubash. “I think the realtor will resist, because his profession itself requires certain personal characteristics - perseverance, aggressiveness, speed. In addition, he expects to receive a fee. This is an equation with two unknowns: it is unclear how the homeowner will feel about the process and whether he will want to work directly.”

“In any conflict, one’s own clear position gives stability. If you formulate your position and constantly remember it, it gives you peace of mind,” Bulyubash added. “Not taking your opponent’s words personally will help—this is ensured by self-respect. It is useful to be able to notice various manipulative techniques in relation to yourself and others, as well as the ability to make choices without falling into passion - that is, wild rage or fear. Obviously, such a conflict is not for everyone. Sometimes it’s not worth going the hard way and getting into a fight with a realtor, wasting effort and energy on it. You can always choose a simpler option and conclude a contract without a feat. This is also a choice."

“Much of the focus in a perceived conflict may be that the landlord or realtor might think something bad about us if we take the risk of acting more boldly. This is what often stops people from clarifying relationships,” Yulia Smelyanets pointed out. — It is important to understand that people who engage in real estate transactions have, by definition, strong nerves - otherwise they would not be able to remain in a market full of uncertainty, risk and unpredictability. Realtors are people with certain personal characteristics. [For them] you are just another client in the track record; they are unlikely to remember you in two days. Maybe if you keep this in mind, it will be easier to defend the requirements on which you yourself want to rent the property.”

What do lawyers think?

Photo: Andrew Olney / moodboard / Global Look Press

“None of these methods contradict Russian law,” says Ksenia Kazakova from Orient Partners. — In fact, the payment of a commission to the owner’s realtor by the tenant is an imposed service. Strictly speaking, a realtor’s commission is payment for his services in finding tenants provided to landlords. The ban on imposing services is established in Art. 16 of the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”. Part 2 of this article provides the following: “It is prohibited to condition the acquisition of some goods (works, services) on the mandatory acquisition of other goods (works, services). Losses caused to the consumer as a result of violation of his right to free choice of goods (work, services) are compensated by the seller (performer) in full.”

However, if the lessor acts individual, then his relationship with the tenant is not regulated by the law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights,” the lawyer added. “The question of the possibility of applying this law to the actions of a landlord renting out an apartment remains open,” Kazakova clarified. — There is no clear answer to the question whether a realtor is a subject of imposing services in accordance with Art. 16 of the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”.

“The actions of a realtor who offers his services to a tenant of an apartment and assures that renting out an apartment is impossible without the consent of the realtor and without paying a commission to the realtor cannot be called legal,” noted Maria Ponamoreva, senior lawyer at the A2 law office. — It happens that in the agreement that is proposed to be concluded, neither the name of the realtor nor the name of his company are mentioned, but only the owner of the apartment and the tenant appear. The above indicates that this is a private broker or a real estate agency where services are not officially provided financial statements" In this case, the realtor can be intimidated by a complaint to the tax service - it is unlikely that “gray” employees will want to frame their employer. If successful, the agent can leave the apartment himself.

It happens that while discussing a deal, the realtor tells the owner that he does not have the right to rent out the apartment without the participation of an agent. “The answer to this is that there are no mandatory norms of law prohibiting renting out an apartment with or without a commission,” Ponamoreva pointed out. If the realtor begins to appeal to oral agreements with the landlord, then the potential tenant may ask the agent to show the agreement with the landlord.

“If a realtor has provided the owner of the premises with a service in the form of searching for a tenant, then these relations must be recorded in a service agreement, which will clearly indicate the conditions under which the realtor or agency provides the service of finding a tenant for the property. The amount of remuneration is also indicated there,” said the head of the project department for commercial real estate legal company Heads Consulting Olesya Shilova. Without such an agreement, the apartment owner can legally kick the realtor out of the apartment and conclude a deal without an intermediary.

If legal arguments do not help, then the tenant can turn to the common sense of the apartment owner. For example, a tenant may offer to raise the monthly rent by 1-2 thousand rubles. in case of refusal from the realtor. In this case, the owner’s income will increase (by 12-24 thousand rubles when concluding an annual contract), and the deal will immediately become more attractive. It is important that the proposed increase still turns out to be more profitable than a one-time payment to the realtor - it is enough to calculate in advance how much you can raise the rate.