Should I Rent Apartments in Chisinau from Owner or Agency?

Published on: January 11, 2016

Both options have their own pro's and con's. Regardless of your preferred way to rent an apartment in Chisinau here are some tips on how to make sure that you choose the right rental agency or an independent landlord.  

How to Choose an Agency to Rent Apartments in Chisinau

Choosing an agency to help you find an apartment for rent in Chisinau could be overwhelming. However, if you follow the 5 tips we list below you are significantly increasing your chances to choose the right agency.  

1. Pricing

One would fastly argue that renting an apartment in Chisinau from and individual should be much cheaper than from an agency. Well, here's the thing the pricing difference is very small. And that small price contrast is overshaded by the security and support you get from an agency. In general it is recommended to use an agency. But read on and convince yourself. 

2. Safety is Important

Be aware that there are individuals that act as being agencies just to get more rentees. Make sure you use a renting agency that will provide you with a leasing agreement. This way you will be 100% legally safe. 

A tip for that is to check out for how long has the agency been renting out apartments in Chisinau. The seriousness and freshness of their website is usually signaling whether the agency is trustworthy or not.  

3. Responsivness and Support

Make sure you check out how responsive an agency is. This is really easy to do. Write the agency a short email and try to see how fast they reply. Give them a call and see how well they speak English. Ask them to send you some offers back for your rental period. You will be surprized to see that some agencies will actually make you a better offer than stated on their site.

A good agency will quickly reply to your email, give you advice about the Chisinau neighbourhoods, the surroundings of your desired apartment and help you out in finding the best solution.

NOTE:  Do not settle for the first agency you contact. Test out how different agencies correspond with you. Choose the one that you feel could easily support you during your stay in Chisinau.

4. Agencies have Extra Services

The great part of using an agency to rent apartments in Chisinau is that you can get extra services that will make you feel like you are staying in a hotel. We advice that you choose and agency that offers free apartment cleaning and bed sheets change. Also a professional agency will offer you laundry services, airport tranfers and 24/7 support of your apartments. Yes, you read it right, if something goes wrong in your apartment (e.g. no hot water, internet stopped) you should be able to call the agency and ask them to help you out. 

So make sure you ask about these kind of services. If they do, then it's a good decision to go with the agency and feel like you are living in a hotel's penthouse.  

5. Agencies Care About Loyalty

A good agency will always recognize your loyalty to their services. This way you can get better deals next time you visit Chisinau. It is a bit complicated to detect agencies that care about its customers. Some signals are the way it responds to your emails. The rule of thumb is to go to an agency that is showing signs of professional commitment and willingness to support you throughout your entire stay in Chisinau.

How To Rent Chsinau Apartment from an Individual Landlord

Renting an apartment from an individual landlord in Chisinau is somewhat a gamble. Using apartment rental listing sites (similar to craigslist) can be quite risky. Here are some tips you should keep in mind when adventuring yourself to rent an apartment in Chisinau from an individual.

1. Individuals Can Lack Professionalism

As an agency we have encountered situations when people called us and asked us for a fast renting solution as they can't get hold of the individual landlord they agreed with. You have to keep in mind that individual landlords are frequently activating illegally and can't provide you with any papers that would protect you as a rentee. 

2. You Could Encounter a Scammer

Unfortunatelly you can also encounter some real scammers. There have been cases when rentees where accused of stealing, thrown out of the apartments and even robbed. We are not saying that every individual landlord would do that but there is a certain possibility of this happening when there are no legal bidings.

3. Try to Protect Yourself

Even though individuals are not possesing a status of a company, the least you can do is document any kind of transaction between you and the landlord. One way would be to get the landlord's personal data (e.g. copy of the passport) and always sign papers whenever cash transactions occur. 

4. Charging Inconsistencies

Sadly enough you could encounter a landlord that will try to make you pay for electricity, gas, heating at unofficial rates. For example they would ask you to pay the double amount for electricity just by saying that the prices have increased. To avoid such situations make sure to ask for the commodities bills. 

5. Who Will Be Your Neighbours and Where is My Apartment Located?

A good apartment rental agency in Chisinau would always filter the apartments that it is listing on the site. The filtering criteria is usually neighbours, neighbourhood safety, working apartment amenities etc. With an individual landlord you should expect uncertainty regarding the real condition of your apartment in contrast with what you see/read on the listing. 

Conclusion

We highly recommend you to use an agency for renting an apartment. This way you will always be legally safe, get free and reliable support and most importantly you will not have to worry about scams. 

Before choosing your way of renting an apartment in Chisinau remember this: An agency has a reputation to maintain, a landlord can always change his/her online identity. 

We wish you a safe and pleasant stay in Chisinau. 

Write to us at chisinau.rental@gmail.com  and see if we are a good agency for you!