Shenzhen will step up the supervision of home leasing firms and how they collect deposits and rent in a bid to both standardize the operation of home leasing companies and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of tenants, Shenzhen Economic Daily reported.
Companies engaged in the home leasing business in Shenzhen should open a special account at a local bank to collect deposits and rent from tenants, according to a circular released by the city’s housing and construction bureau Thursday.
The collected funds are not allowed to be used at will, and banks will pass on the rental payments to the home leasing firms on a monthly basis, as per the new rules, which will come into full effect Friday.
Home rental firms that have been registered before the issuance of the circular shall establish a special account within two months from the date of implementation of the circular.
Under the new policies, a home leasing firm will need to sign a supervision agreement on rental payments with a bank, when it opens the special account at the bank, and they should specify the scope of fund supervision along with the conditions and procedures for the release of funds.
The bank will supervise the funds according to the supervision agreement and will publish the balance sheet and other relevant information of the funds, according to the regulations.
Home leasing companies are also required to put the information of the special account on record when it is registered for business.
The circular also said if a financial institution provides a personal housing rental loan for the tenant, it shall sign a loan agreement with the tenant separately and allocate the loan to the tenant’s personal account.