Renting in Kunming

[studychinese]

Is it still possible to get a nice 2 bedroom place in a decent location in Kunming for 2500 a month?

I am currently in Beijing and it is getting cold here. Looking to leave at the end of November.

[abcdefg]

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Is it still possible to get a nice 2 bedroom place in a decent location in Kunming for 2500 a month?

The short answer is yes. It isn't as easy as it was three or four years ago, but it is still quite feasible. 2500 is a generous housing budget.

I usually look for a 2 bedroom flat that is furnished and has appliances. Last year I had 90 square meters for 2,000 RMB per month and it was more space than I really needed but I took it anyhow because of the good location. Thought I might get a housemate, but never did. This year I wound up in a 50 square meter efficiency in a modern high-rise building. It was really a bit cramped and it cost 1,800 RMB per month. Utilities were extra for both.

Location, like in any city, has a big effect on price. Kunming has recently torn down many of its older, low priced six story apartment buildings to make room for new for high-rise gated communities. Some units are kept empty and unfinished by absentee housing speculators who are counting on appreciation to allow them to resell at a profit after just holding them a few years. And quite a few of the others are only rented unfurnished.

[studychinese]

abcdefg, thanks for the reply.

I am really tossing up between getting a 2 bedroom (allowing friends to visit) or getting what would probably be a much nicer one bedroom place for the same price.

At the moment I am in Wudaokou (Beijing) paying 2400 for a single room within an apartment shared by others. Those are the kinds of prices in this area. I will be happy to get away from that.

At the risk of imposing on you, may I ask which areas in Kunming are good to live in?

[abcdefg]

...may I ask which areas in Kunming are good to live in?

It depends on what you will be doing most of the day. If you plan to attend one of the universities, such as Yunnan Daxue or Yunnan Shifan Daxue, with main campuses in the Green Lake area of Wuhua District, then living fairly close to that location makes good sense. Several private schools are in that general area as well. If you want easy access to foreigner hangouts, then somewhere near Wenlin Street and Wenhua Xiang are popular choices. If you are heavily into the bar and nightclub scene, Kundu is the focus for that.

The variables one has to juggle are convenience, cost and modernity. My first choice is to try for an older place that has been remodeled fairly recently. I prefer the older neighborhoods with small shops and wet markets and such. This year I lived in Panlong District.

What I usually try to do is arrange my schooling first, since that's my main reason for going to Kunming, then I locate a place to live not real far away. Kunming is not as spread out as Beijing, but I value being able to get from home to class in half an hour or less, so I prioritize that fairly high. I look into bus lines and such to get from A to B.

The only thing that would be a really bad idea is to live in the north (Bei shi qu) and plan to attend classes in the city center. The reason is that north-south traffic is slow to start with because there are only a couple of main connecting streets and one of them (Beijing Lu) is all torn up with subway construction.

Have a look at GoKunming, specifically the housing classifieds, and I think you can get an idea of what's available and what it costs. Sorry I can't be more specific.However you slice it, plan on spending some time looking once you arrive. You might get lucky, but a week or so in a hotel or hostel or guesthouse while hunting would not be uncommon and it's real difficult, if not impossible, to do it all long distance.

http://www.gokunming...older/8/housing

[Rin]

The dean at KUST told me I could rent a one bed place for 7500 for the year just off campus. So is this not correct?

[abcdefg]

#5 -- Sorry, I don't understand your question.