Have you ever wondered why people are into pain? We did, that’s entirely different story, but nevertheless, never have we found an answer to this question when it comes to professional life and careers.
Changing jobs is stressful; add changing city or country to the equation, and it can become a real challenge. So many aspects to consider, arrangements to do, places to go….
Heachaches of relocation and global mobility managers, working with the community of digital nomads and also corporate professionals alike, are real. However, by addressing some key principles, the relocation process can become as smooth as Morgan Freeman’s voice.
We look in detail at the relocation process and identified top three areas where you really should be aware of the numbers:
#1: Time management
Make sure you have enough time to find the right property. Finding the more-or-less right ad in classifieds, local internet sites or through old-school agency can take 30 minutes per qualified offer on average. If you want to be thorough and investigate the apartament and its surroundings, count at least 60 minutes per viewing and add commuting time of another 60 minutes (if you are lucky and not out of town!).
On average, a tenant chooses 1 apartament in 5 viewed, so multiply the total time by that factor. Add contracting and exchange of documents, verification of signatures, visit to local branch for transfer of funds. Bottom line: have at least 4 working days ready for the process (better 5, so it makes sense to take the whole week) to get it done.
Or, alternatively, do it all online. We mean ALL of it: finding of offer is obvious, but how about virtual tour of the apartment? Or what about predetermined, legally optimised contract? Digital signature? And payment - instant, with card, transfer or even Bitcoin, or delayed for almost a quarter by proper invoicing. Bringing the process online can offer a time saving of up to 40 work hours per case. You know how many more productive (or not, but at least: pleasurable) things you could do with this amount of time? And just think about it if you are looking at something like 5 relocations...
#2: Cost management
Obviously no one wants to pay for the appartement any more than they need to. But then, no one wants to pay for the apartament no one wants to stay in. There comes a decision making time: would you rather secure the apartament you like, or the apartment which availability you can secure when you need it.
Flexibility and ability to book specific apartaments in advance is a feature that is missing from many traditional letting services. Having a good overview of options and their time availability is a golden key to that door. Another troublesome aspect of effective cost management during a relocation process are the utilities and hidden costs: make sure you have enough budget to accommodate deposit, utilities and bills - bare in mind that these sometimes require fees while transferring a service, not to mention administrative burden and time. What type of heating is in the apartament? Which operator provides broadband and what cost? Ask yourself these and many similar questions to make sure the offer of landlord price is actually reasonable.
As an alternative, you could look at what modern online services have to offer. Do you want to book place six months advance and not worry about deposit or cash flow burden? Would you rather see the price final, fixed and complete, including all extras? These are very transparent solutions, that enable tenants to plan their cash flow with high efficiency and accuracy.
#3 Security
Unfortunately, there are risks awaiting tenants on every corner: unfair landlords, biased contracts, even fraudulent offers, like those which only really exist on paper or computer screen. Have you ever discovered the pictures are not really giving the place a fair score? This hardly ever turns to a positive experience. There is also a growing number of landlords with doubtful service history, especially around CEE. At the end of the day, the oldest trick in the book is letting a place without proper ownership rights to a number of tenants simultaneously and disappearing with cumulative deposit - trust us, you do not want to be there.
If one decides to rent, one should seriously consider the security factor: who am I letting from, what is the cash-flow involved, do I have a warranty of service and some arbitrator to talk to? It is really worth tenant’s time to investigate into these matters, as - at the end of the day - the devil is in the details.
To wrap it up: these three issues determine how you will relocate and provide much needed mobility at ease to yourself, your clients or colleagues.
You can do it the way it has always been, with objectively high investment of time and assets and rather big risk of running into some not-entirely-consensual BDSM with the landlords and the system.
If however, you would much rather spend your time in more productive and enjoyable way, come and see us at Flatio.com where we have found answers to all of the above listed problems and implemented them into our service - so that you don’t have to worry about it anymore!
Are you in need of accommodation already? Wait no longer, register today and find your solution for a couple-of-months fully hassle free!
Need more information? Read more about Flatio for business and do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected].
