Is there an official agency which deals with Renter rip-offs?
Difficult to find the correct thread on this forum.. Thanks..

local police station deal with rent contrat.

You have to take them to court - it's rare the police will intervene other than take a police statement.

Court means attorney fees - so most foreigners will hesitate to embark on this time consuming path - which is what the fraudsters count on.

Attorney's fees can range from CNY 4-6k and skyrocket from there - but aside from incidentals like notaries and documentation fees - that's generally a fixed cost - which you may or may not be able to recoup from the lawsuit.

Plus foreigners' chances of prevailing in court are generally slim at best. It's literally better to set the money on fire rather than pay attorneys, since at least that way you will avoid losing the time involved in pursuing a lawsuit.

A forceful local friend with good negotiating skills might be more use.

If the scam smells anything like organized crime, then you could take it directly to police. They even approached GoKunming to remind resident foreign audience of such option.

But if it's a case of petty cheating, it may indeed be more cost-efficient if instead of lawyer you pay a visit to a local gym for someone to accompany to the next meeting.

Along the lines of cloudtrapezer's suggestion: if you work for a large employer, you might see if they can bring their institutional weight to bear on your behalf. In schools and universities, for example, this kind of problem is obviously the province of the Foreign Affairs Office.

So maybe u guys should inquire what is the ”ripoff” too, there are many invisible rules in asia, and all of u must have seen the foreigners who dont even get the basics about these rules, and end up in bigger trouble than the initial trouble was - just by being a foreign loudmouth and poking a bees nest too hard. Even better when alcohol is involved.

My guess is that anyone who cant stand noisy kids on a modern train and says four days were destroyed and made ”hell” in complaInts, probably is not the easiest tenant either.

So maybe its better to hear the ripoff story first, hermit, before giving u advice what to do. Oh, you wanted to leave kunming, end contract early and u had paid already? But they dont give money back? And dont expect to get deposit money back if its not 100% clear on paper.

(sorry i had to say this, even trying not to write here) heh!

It's not always the foreigner's fault Peter. One landlord didn't want to give me my deposit back because I'd paid him up front for six months (plus the deposit) and wanted to leave after five. I got it back in the end because I think even he realised he was embarrassing himself.

More poisonous trolling from Peter99