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11 Things To Know Before You Rent Overseas

Kathleen Peddicord by Kathleen Peddicord
Jul 11, 2012
in Real Estate
0
Buy Or Rent Overseas is a decision ultimately you have to take, but we always go for rent first, generally.
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Rent First, Then Buy

When trying a place on for size, to determine whether it might be the overseas retirement haven with your name on it, we say: Rent before you buy.

Maybe rent, period. In the wake of the tumble and even collapse of property markets around the world, maybe you don’t want to mess with investing in real estate at all as part of your retire overseas plans. Renting long-term, rather than owning, leaves you mobile and flexible. No maintenance, no repairs, no property taxes…

Understand, though, that even renting abroad can come with complications you may not expect.

Here are 11 things to know before you sign a lease to rent overseas:

1. What’s included in your monthly rent? Make sure the lease establishes clearly what’s included in your rent and what’s not–building or homeowner’s association fees, water expense, utilities, phone, Internet, etc.

2. If you’re liable for utilities, find out previous renter’s average costs. Sometimes, they can be a shock.

3. Understand what’s included with “furnished” versus “unfurnished.” In some places, “unfurnished” means no refrigerator and no stove. Does “furnished” include air-conditioning units? Years ago, when we were shopping for a house to rent in Waterford, Ireland, I was confused by ads that indicated, “All Mod Cons” (that is, “All Modern Conveniences”). Finally, I came to understand that this meant the house had central heating. Many in Ireland at the time still didn’t…

Colorful Apartments in Lisbon, Portugal, might be a good choice for rent overseas before buying.

4. Understand how, where, and who you pay what each month. Maybe you deposit the rent directly into the owner’s bank account. Maybe you pay a rental manager. Maybe you have to hand-deliver the check to your landlord. In Europe, rent is often paid by direct debit to your local bank account…which means you need a local bank account. And, often, building, homeowner’s association, etc., fees are paid to a different person or organization and by a separate check than the rent.

5. Check for a sales clause in your lease. What protection do you have against the owner selling the apartment and giving you limited notice that you have to move out? The lease should include a compensation allowance in case the place is sold while you’re renting.

6. Understand who is responsible for setting up the utilities. Will they remain in the landlord’s name…or will they be switched to your name? There are pluses and minuses in each case. Understand, for example, what your liability is if the electric bill is transferred into your name.

7. Understand what documentation you’ll have to produce to be able to rent. In France, you need to satisfy the landlord that you can afford to become his tenant…and, because it’s France, you do this by creating a thick dossier of financial documents, bank statements, pay stubs, reference letters, bank letters, guarantor letters, etc. It’s a serious effort that you can’t undertake lightly.

France is a rent overseas must.

8. What repairs and maintenance are you responsible for? In some countries, as the renter, you can be responsible for structural repairs.

9. Document any existing damage and the current condition of used fixtures or appliances. Take photos.

10. Understand when the rental period begins. The start date of your rental (that is, the date from which you’re paying rent) doesn’t always coincide with the date you take up occupancy. Here in Panama City, for example, we paid rent for two weeks in advance of our moving in. The market was so competitive that we had to agree to pay half a month’s rent in advance of the first of the month we moved in.

11. Don’t sign anything until your lawyer reads it first.

Kathleen Peddicord

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Kathleen Peddicord

Kathleen Peddicord

Kathleen Peddicord has covered the live, retire, and do business overseas beat for more than 30 years and is considered the world's foremost authority on these subjects. She has traveled to more than 75 countries, invested in real estate in 21, established businesses in 7, renovated historic properties in 6, and educated her children in 4.

Kathleen has moved children, staff, enterprises, household goods, and pets across three continents, from the East Coast of the United States to Waterford, Ireland... then to Paris, France... next to Panama City, where she has based her Live and Invest Overseas business. Most recently, Kathleen and her husband Lief Simon are dividing their time between Panama and Paris.

Kathleen was a partner with Agora Publishing’s International Living group for 23 years. In that capacity, she opened her first office overseas, in Waterford, Ireland, where she managed a staff of up to 30 employees for more than 10 years. Kathleen also opened, staffed, and operated International Living publishing and real estate marketing offices in Panama City, Panama; Granada, Nicaragua; Roatan, Honduras; San Miguel de Allende, Mexico; Quito, Ecuador; and Paris, France.

Kathleen moved on from her role with Agora in 2007 and launched her Live and Invest Overseas group in 2008. In the years since, she has built Live and Invest Overseas into a successful, recognized, and respected multi-million-dollar business that employs a staff of 35 in Panama City and dozens of writers and other resources around the world.

Kathleen has been quoted by The New York Times, Money magazine, MSNBC, Yahoo Finance, the AARP, and beyond. She has appeared often on radio and television (including Bloomberg and CNBC) and speaks regularly on topics to do with living, retiring, investing, and doing business around the world.

In addition to her own daily e-letter, the Overseas Opportunity Letter, with a circulation of more than 300,000 readers, Kathleen writes regularly for U.S. News & World Report and Forbes.

Her newest book, "How to Retire Overseas: Everything You Need to Know to Live Well (for Less) Abroad," published by Penguin Random House, is the culmination of decades of personal experience living and investing around the world.

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