Renting in Bogota is not easy, for gringos or for Colombians. Most apartments are rented through signs on the window or possibly through an ad in the paper, but almost always there’s a rental agency involved, and a TON of paperwork, references, checks and double-checks, delays on top of delays. People put up with it, though, and the attitude seems to be that all this is necessary because there’s so much fraud in Colombia.
Even though I have a work visa and a Colombian ID, a job with a salary that probably puts me in the top 10% income bracket in the country, I would not have been able to rent an apartment on my own from most agencies. My school rented the apartment for me, even though my own credit had to be checked.
Leases are for a year, usually, and the tenant has to take over the utilities payments that are in the landlord’s name. Apartments come “clean,” which means they generally have no appliances like washers or refrigerators. When it comes time to move, you have to givee three months notice, and leave a deposit to pay three months more of utilities, since most of the public utilities companies are three months behind in billing.
I get the impression that tenants have very few rights–the law mostly favors the landlords. I’ve never had any conflict with my landlords (in fact, we’ve not even talked since I moved in), but I’ve heard a few stories and it’s always the landlord who gets his way.
Buying is also interesting. I haven’t done it, but I have an American friend who has. Real estate agencies traditionally have not usually involved in the sales, and people sell their apartments themselves, but that is changing. There’s a new Coldwell Banker office near my apartment, and I’ve read that that company is really anxious to come start collecting their 6% in Colombia.
When a price is agreed upon, if you need a house loan, banks are only willing to loan 70% at most, usually, of the price. But the buyer and seller usually agree to a “public” price that’s much lower than the actual one, so that they can avoid taxes and fees due to the government. So, the bank only loans 70% of the stated (not the actual) price.
Last year there was a sort of revolution in the mortgage business, and banks started offering home loans at 1% interest per month, which adds up to about 13% per year. (Loans are usually for 15 years.) Before that interest rates were much higher. Supposedly the new rates will make it possible for a whole new group of people to afford to buy houses. This could help a middle class to develop.
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