[Suits]

I've recently been simply using short-term airBNB rentals for housing as I've haven't wanted to be tied down to one part of Beijing.
The experience has allowed me to live in several different parts of Beijing and armed with the new information I've learned along the
way, I've settled on two possible locations to settle in.

My ideal location for women and social opportunities is (#2) San Li Tun. I've lived just east of this area and it was very ideal for getting
SNL. There are a great number of excellent venues in this entertainment district that would put women in the mood for dicking. I had a
2 venue setup that got me laid probably more times than I remember.

However, this area is very expensive to live in and farther from most of my clients, so I've decided to consider two other options.

It's also very expensive to live in areas like Wudaokou (#5) and Houhai #1 or Shuangjing (not referenced with a number on this map).

As well, being in the west of the city puts me a short distance from great roads for biking, pretty much free of cars and the stress of
traffic, with both flat and mountainous regions to explore.

Being only 20 or 30 minutes from Wudaokou (#5) will make it easier to meet the younger student crowd.

Option A: Haidian Wuluju

As indicated by the star on the map, this area puts me within reasonable range of all of the key entertainment districts of Beijing. I
primarily use an electric scooter to get around Beijing, but do use subway in cold and rainy whether when necessary.

The main disadvantage of this choice, while it's great for access to much of the city, I can't literally walk girls home from any
entertainment area, which means either taking them to an unsexy local Chinese food place (never gets them wet) or convincing them
that a 10-20 minute scooter ride is no big deal.

I've had no trouble getting girls to walk 20 minutes home with me in the past by telling them that I lived 10 minutes away or when I
was riding my scooter, just tell them that it was a 5 minute ride away (the truth).

Haidian Wuluju is 10 or 20 minutes away by scooter from the closest entertainment districts ideal for turning women's panties
damp (#4, #1 and #5).

If I should ever need to go to the east suburb of Beijing (Tongzhou), living directly on Line 6 would afford me access in about one hour.
It would usually take much longer by subway, as with line multiple line changes and short distances between stops on some lines,
the time adds up fast.

Option B: Wukesong

The other option (for low cost rent) is to settle into Wukesong, which would mean being at the most, a 15 minute walk (or 4 minute ride)
from the 4th best entertainment neighbourhood indicated on the map.

Being walking distance means that I don't need to haul heavy e-scooter batteries out of my apartment just to ride 15 minutes to a coffee
shop to get some work done. I can simply walk.

On the other hand, this location would add 10 minutes to my journey to any other part of the city I'd like to travel to, which would be an
extra 20 minutes round trip. That time adds up over a year if you're doing it everyday.


Note: This map does not include the entirety of the Beijjng subway map.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? When it comes to securing bangs, would it be superior to be within walking range of nightlife options
or should I opt for closer access to more of the city?

[Sonoma]

Option two is low rent, has access to bangs and is only adding 20 minutes roundtrip per day. If you leave to do that 20-25 times a month, you're using up 500 minutes, or 8 hours. Is one day of wages worth the lower rent? The more bangs? What other considerations are most important to you?

Ultimately only you can answer this, but it sounds like you know a lot about the city.

[Suits]

I'm not entirely sure which option would have cheaper rent. Probably comparable.

I scouted Option A today (I'm already very familiar with Option B) and found some housing agency locations. Tomorrow I'll return and ask to see some apartment or at least quiz them or rent costs.

[Suits]

I went to the Haidian Wuluju area yesterday and walked into a few housing agencies and asked to see what apartments they currently had available to show. I was less than impressed with the pricing available.

While the area (just on the edge of Ring Road 4) is notably cheaper than the downtown core (inside Ring Road 3), the difference isn't significant enough for living this far out to be the obvious choice. At this point I could get a satisfactory one-bedroom in the best area of Beijing for a young single player (SanLiTun) for about $1100USD a month. The same apartment would cost $900USD in the SanLiTun area. While $200 a month adds up over time, that extra $200 a month might be worth the fact that in the SanLiTun area, I'd literally be able to walk home from my favourite nightlife options and could easily bounce girls back to my place after taking them to the venues most ideal for getting them in the mood to fuck.

That's not to say that I need to rely on specific venues to get laid, but it does certainly increase the odds of SNL. Without perfected logistics, it may take me 2-3 dates to fuck the same girl.

Either way, rental prices in both area are currently a little to close to being outside what I feel comfortable budgeting towards housing in the short term. Most landlords in Beijing expect their tenants to pay 3 months of rent upfront on top of a month security deposit and another month worth of rent as a finder's fee to the agent who showed you the place.

I have enough cash currently banked to come up with 5 months of rent upfront, but that would force me to live paycheck to paycheck for a while, which isn't something I'm interested in doing at the moment.

I'm going to go back to look at a few more places today, but if there isn't a really good option in the bunch, I think I'll just stick to using short-term stays on airBNB for the rest of the summer and then re-evaluate.

[Travesty]

What a nice map, it's like a Chinese CandyLand.

Get a champagne fridge, not a keggerator.

[Sonoma]

Jesus, your housing prices are like a quarter of mine, but I'm assuming the salary options are in line with the housing.

Would it be possible to ramp up the business to cover the difference? 200 for far better bangs sounds much preferable, especially when you consider each bang attempt costs money in and of itself

[Suits]

At this point I'm forced to make compromises, because to grow my business at this point requires having money to invest. Tasks for the next year will include getting a very attractive website setup and acquiring the necessary tools to make high quality Youtube videos to market my products.

I'd also like to be free to take a few months off in 2018 during the slow business seasons to work non-stop on product development.

I'd also like to have all of my student loans paid off in 24 months. Currently, my minimum payment is $700, but I'd like to be knocking off at least $2000 a month going forward. Focusing on that for now will serve me well in the future.

In a few years, assuming that things continue to go in the direction I've mapped out, I'll be debt free and have the stable income to have superior housing options.

[DirectDanger]

I am wondering what $1,100 USD per month will get you in Beijing. That is a decent size budget for an apartment I would think. Do you have pics or links of what a place in that price range will get you?

I have never been to Beijing nor do I have plans on living there. Just curious.

[Suits]

(07-05-2017 09:30 AM)DirectDanger Wrote:  

I am wondering what $1,100 USD per month will get you in Beijing. That is a decent size budget for an apartment I would think. Do you have pics or links of what a place in that price range will get you?

Here's some quick pictures I took of a place that was going for $1100USD a month in Location A. A place like that would probably be around $1700USD+ a month in SanLiTun, although I got a good deal on a comparable place just a 15 minute walk east of SanLiTun for about $1300USD a month. But that was unusually lucky. The landlord seemed more interested in a reliable tenant than squeezing as much money out of it as possible. Also, I got that place over two years ago and prices are definitely higher now.



Here's an apartment that was going for $800 a month in Location A. Not horrific, but there's just a feeling of agedness and cheapness when you are in it. You could do worse, but the building itself was very old and I knew that given the quality of the bed, I wouldn't be able to have sex without all my neighbours knowing it. That was a problem at my last place, a building of a similar age and build quality.

If you were new in China, you could do worse, but I'd rather pay $1000+ a month for something that I was really happy with, rather than lock myself into a year lease on a place that I wasn't entirely satisfied with for $800 a month.



I've decided at this point to stick with airBNB for a couple more months just to pad my bank account a bit more, so that I can choose an apartment without being forced to live paycheck to paycheck for a while after. I made that mistake in 2015 and while the more expensive place offered a ton of advantages, it wasn't fun living literally on the edge of being able to afford all my expenses and I wasn't able to reduce my student loans at all while I was paying the heavier rent.

At this point, the priority is on making the smart choice and delaying comfort (temporarily) for security and comfort together a few months down the road.

Given the cost of an apartment in the areas that I prefer to live, airBNB isn't anymore expensive, so I may end up just riding out the year with short term places and then I won't have to pay rent for two months while I leave Beijing to travel Jan&Feb 2018.

[DirectDanger]

Interesting. Thanks for the pics.

I had no idea Beijing apartments were such poor value. $1,100 just goes so much further in BKK and Manila. Even mid size USA cities give you better value than that.

I knew that Beijing was more expensive... Just didn't realize how much.

[Cattle Rustler]

Just looking at that subway map makes me say "Gaw damn!!!" I'd get lost in BJ in no time.

Edit: 1100 for that? Much expensive, very $$$, many monies [insert doge meme]

[Digimata]

(07-04-2017 11:26 PM)Suits Wrote:  

At this point I'm forced to make compromises, because to grow my business at this point requires having money to invest. Tasks for the next year will include getting a very attractive website setup and acquiring the necessary tools to make high quality Youtube videos to market my products.

I'd also like to be free to take a few months off in 2018 during the slow business seasons to work non-stop on product development.

I'd also like to have all of my student loans paid off in 24 months. Currently, my minimum payment is $700, but I'd like to be knocking off at least $2000 a month going forward. Focusing on that for now will serve me well in the future.

In a few years, assuming that things continue to go in the direction I've mapped out, I'll be debt free and have the stable income to have superior housing options.

I hear you on the rest of the points so let me play devil's advocate.

Student loan rates are still affordable although they are never as low as one would like them to be. Since you are not paying credit card rates on them, and have the need to invest in your business that's your #1 priority. Another is you are a fairly young guy who has many years left. Trading off lifestyle in your prime vs non essential debt reduction that you can pay off anytime you have excess cash is a shitty choice.

Contrary to the notion that debt is evil, debt is a tool to be used. Cars can be used to transport or kill people. It's how you use it.

If you have a great personal aversion to debt sure, pay it off. I suspect you don't however given the facts.

Reinvest in your business or lifestyle if you are taking the cheaper option but debt reduction is not an argument I buy.

[nomadbrah]

(07-05-2017 10:07 AM)Suits Wrote:  

If you were new in China, you could do worse, but I'd rather pay $1000+ a month for something that I was really happy with, rather than lock myself into a year lease on a place that I wasn't entirely satisfied with for $800 a month.

Wow, that looks like really bad value for money even globally. $1000 in Thailand

Here is $800 in BKK right in tourist centre:

[bootyhuntah]

Damn! I'm paying $700/month for a room/private bath in a 3br/2.5ba condo (shared with one other person) with an outdoor pool - walkable to nightlife, grocery store, cafes, and good restaurants in a major US city. Value doesn't seem good at all in Beijing...

[Suits]

I saw another place yesterday. I only looked around long enough to be polite, as the landlord as there. She wanted $800 a month for her place, which would have been a perfect place to shoot scenes for a horror film.

The problem is that everyone wants subway access. I barely use the subway 10 months of the year and only resort to it in the winter or when it rains, but it's a massive pain to need 20-30 minute just to reach the nearest subway station when you do use it, as this add up to an extra hour of travel to your day.

Also, it's much more straightforward to host girls or parties at your place when it's easy for people to find and access your home.

I could get a cheaper place (which would be fine for me 10 months of the year, as I wouldn't be taking subway myself, except when it rains), but those few rainy days would really fuck me over, as it's impossible to get a taxi when it rains, so those days would be miserable. It would also hurt my sex life if girls who want to come to may place had to spend a bunch of money for an Uber.

[nomadbrah]

I'm of the opinion of logistics over luxury always, studio in prime location over 1 bed in lesser location.

[Suits]

I'm at a stage in my life where I'm looking for meaning. During the last year, I've spent very limited time with male friends and most of my socializing has been one-on-one with the girls I'm fucking. This is in part due to most of my friends leaving Beijing a year ago (that happens a lot in Beijing) and both working too much and having logistics incompatible with participating in the types of activities where I'd be able to meet new friends.

I'm looking at housing decisions from the standpoint of wishing to increase my quality of life. On one hand, I don't want to live in a place that looks like a jail cell and I've discovered how important it is in Beijing to have a place that I like to come home to. On the other hand, I also want enough space to host people (so a studio is a bad fit), as that's been the most effective path in my experience to building a real community. Third, I need to keep costs down, while having decent logistics, so that I'm able to actually attend social events and meet new people to replace the never ending flood of people I know leaving Beijing forever.

It's obviously an imperfect situation that only having a ton of money would fix.

As far as carrying debt, I'm not opposed to doing so if it meant more money going into my business. However, that would still require having a gap between my income and my living expenses. At present, I do if I keep my housing costs at $1000 or lower per month. Any higher than that and I'll make no financial progress worth noting.

[nomadbrah]

Where was the area with the mountains and little traffic?

[Suits]

(07-05-2017 10:05 PM)nomadbrah Wrote:  

Where was the area with the mountains and little traffic?

To the west. Outside of the range of meaningful public transport access and too far to make it convenient to entertain women.

[DirectDanger]

Suits...
What did you decide?

Did you find what you were looking for? Can you share any pics or pics of a place similar to the place you decided to live?

How did you decide on a location?

Always interested in seeing how far the $$$ goes in other countries.

[Suits]

I've settled on a long term location, but for a variety of reasons, I've put off signing a lease. I plan to do this in January, in the run up to CNY when a lot of people will be departing Beijing and landlords will be in a weakened bargaining position.

I'll be looking for a place I can have for 18 months, as I plan on being in Beijing for at least that long.