I went to see an apartment last Friday afternoon. It wasn’t really in my preferred neighborhood, but when I got there, I really liked it. The size and layout were just right, and I could definitely see myself putting a lot of work into it and staying for a long time.
I tried to appeal to the landlords’ Zionism, but they were concerned that I don’t have any guarantors – no one to cosign the lease. I offered to pay a cash security deposit, but I guess it didn’t satisfy them, because they signed a lease with somebody else.
The lease in my current apartment ends 12 April. That gives me just a little more than a month to find a new place and move into it. I am already looking pretty aggressively on the websites, and I’m finding a few decent places, but I’m consistently experiencing the same problem that I found when I moved from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv four years ago: without guarantors, many landlords are reluctant to sign a lease with me.
It isn’t necessarily this way in New York. There, what matters is the renter’s income. A cosign (usually a parent) is required if the renter earns less than a certain percentage of the rent. Here, I offer to show landlords my pay stubs, but they don’t even care.
I don’t have anyone in Israel who can cosign a lease with me.
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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
B”H
Yeah, unfortunately, immigrants are considered a “flight risk.”
What if you showed him how long you’ve been here? Probably no difference, huh?
Looks like you want to stay in the center of town. What if you looked a little outside, or even Ramat Gan or Givataim?
There’s something that you can do at the bank to get a bank guarantee. Of course it’s a big pain.
Yeah, unfortunately, immigrants are considered a “flight risk.”
This is why I’m playing the Zionism card very strong.
What if you showed him how long you’ve been here? Probably no difference, huh?
I show recent pay stubs.
Looks like you want to stay in the center of town. What if you looked a little outside, or even Ramat Gan or Givataim?
Not a chance. I might move out to the countryside one day, but I hate suburbs.
There’s something that you can do at the bank to get a bank guarantee. Of course it’s a big pain.
Why would I do that? The point of the lease is that it’s a legally binding contract that obliges the tenant to pay x amount of money for y amount of time. Plus, I offer a cash security deposit.
You would do that because you need a lease and that’s how it works in this country. It may not make sense but what does in this Alice In Wonderland upside down nation?
You would do that because you need a lease and that’s how it works in this country. It may not make sense but what does in this Alice In Wonderland upside down nation?
Here’s why I would not do it: a lease is a legally binding contract between tenant and landlord. It spells out in detail the terms of the relationship. A landlord should not and does not need anything more than my signature at the bottom of a lease to know that I will honor the lease 100%. But honoring it 100% does not imply just a flow of money in one direction; landlords also have obligations to their tenants. A bank guarantee actually supersedes a lease by saying that the tenant will pay the landlord no matter what.