Upper-Intermediate - Signing a Lease (D1924)

A: 你好,请看一下,这个是这次租房的合同。没问题的话,就在下面签个字。
nǐhǎo, qǐng kàn yīxià, zhè ge shì zhècì zūfáng de hétong. méiwèntí dehuà, jiù zài xiàmian qiān ge zì.
Hello. Please take a look at this housing lease. If there's no problems, you can sign your name at the bottom.
B: 哇,好多条款啊。这是你们中介公司草拟的吗?
wā, hǎo duō tiáokuǎn a. zhè shì nǐmen zhōngjiègōngsī cǎonǐ de ma?
Wow, there's a lot of clauses. Was this drawn up by your agency?
A: 我们用的是政府网站现成的合同范本,非常正规的。
wǒmen yòng de shì zhèngfǔ wǎngzhàn xiànchéng de hétong fànběn, fēicháng zhèngguī de.
We use a ready-made contract template from the government's website. It's completely legitimate.
B: 哦,那让我稍微看一下。
ò, nà ràng wǒ shāowēi kàn yīxià.
Ah. Let me take a quick look.
A: 没问题。你看,甲方是出租人,也就是房东,你是乙方,承租人。第一部分是甲方的权责描述,第二部分是乙方的权责描述。
méiwèntí. nǐ kàn, jiǎfāng shì chūzūrén, yějiùshì fángdōng, nǐ shì yǐfāng, chéngzūrén. dìyībùfēn shì jiǎfāng de quánzé miáoshù, dì èrbùfen shì yǐfāng de quánzé miáoshù.
No problem. Look: Party A is the lessor, or the landlord. You're Party B, the tenant. The first section is a description of the rights and responsibilities of Party A. The second section is a description of the rights and responsibilities of Party B.
B: 那你们中介呢?
nà nǐmen zhōngjiè ne?
What about your agency?
A: 我们中介的话,除了提供中介服务外,也起到了见证人的作用。我们最后也会签字确认。
wǒmen zhōngjiè dehuà, chúle tígōng zhōngjiè fúwù wài, yě qǐdào le jiànzhèngrén de zuòyòng. wǒmen zuìhòu yě huì qiānzì quèrèn.
Regarding the agency, other than providing intermediary service, we also serve as a witness. We'll also confirm the signatures in the end.
B: 好的,我看到房屋设施配置和租金都没有问题,但我还是比较关心损害赔偿部分的约定。
hǎo de, wǒ kàndào fángwū shèshī pèizhì hé zūjīn dōu méiyǒu wèntí, dàn wǒ háishì bǐjiào guānxīn sǔnhài péicháng bùfen de yuēdìng.
OK, I think the facilities and furnishings, plus rent, all look good, but I'm still a bit concerned about the stipulations concerning compensation for damages.
A: 哦,在第二页,你看,在这里。
ò, zài dì èryè, nǐ kàn, zài zhèlǐ.
Ah, it's on the second page. Take a look, it's here.
B: 唉,我发现乙方的损害赔偿责任好像比甲方要大啊。
ài, wǒ fāxiàn yǐfāng de sǔnhài péicháng zérèn hǎoxiàng bǐ jiǎfāng yào dà a.
Hey, I notice the responsibilities of Party B to compensate for damages are much greater than Party A's.
A: 哪里?
nǎli?
Where?
B: 这里,我觉得不是很合理。
zhèlǐ, wǒ juéde bùshì hěn hélǐ.
Here. I don't think it's very reasonable.
A: 那没关系,我们等房东到了,再和他商议一下这个问题。
nà méiguānxi, wǒmen děng fángdōng dào le, zài hé tā shāngyì yīxià zhè ge wèntí.
No problem. Let's wait for the landlord to get here to discuss this issue.
B: 嗯,必须的,否则这不成了霸王条款了。
ng4, bìxūde, fǒuzé zhè bù chéng le bàwángtiáokuǎn le.
Yeah, we have to, otherwise this section is really unfair to me.
A: 呵呵,没事的,你放心。
hēhē, méishì de, nǐ fàngxīn.
Heh heh, no problem. Don't worry.
B: 我看我还是等我的朋友到了再签字吧,她比我更仔细些。
wǒ kàn wǒ háishì děng wǒ de péngyou dào le zài qiānzì ba, tā bǐ wǒ gèng zǐxì xiē.
I think I'm just going to wait for my friend to arrive before I sign. She's a bit more meticulous than I am.
A: 可以,没问题。
kěyǐ, méiwèntí.
OK, no problem.

Key Vocabulary

租房 zūfáng to rent an apartment
合同 hétong contract
条款 tiáokuǎn clause
中介公司 zhōngjiègōngsī intermediary, agency
草拟 cǎonǐ to draw up
现成 xiànchéng ready-made
范本 fànběn model
正规 zhèngguī legitimate
稍微 shāowēi slightly, a bit
甲方 jiǎfāng Party A
出租人 chūzūrén lessor
房东 fángdōng landlord
乙方 yǐfāng Party B
承租人 chéngzūrén renter
权责 quánzé rights and responsibilities
描述 miáoshù description
见证人 jiànzhèngrén witness
确认 quèrèn to confirm
设施 shèshī facilities
配置 pèizhì furnishings
损害 sǔnhài damage
赔偿 péicháng compensation
约定 yuēdìng to set
合理 hélǐ reasonable
商议 shāngyì to discuss
霸王条款 bàwángtiáokuǎn monopoly clause
仔细 zǐxì meticulous

Supplementary Vocabulary

签合同 qiān hétong to sign a contract
合法 héfǎ legal
非法 fēifǎ illegal
权利 quánlì right
证婚人 zhènghūnrén chief witness at a wedding ceremony
强势 qiángshì emphasis
皮包公司 píbāogōngsī fly-by-night operation
模板 móbǎn mold
议论 yìlùn to debate
反问句 fǎnwènjù rhetorical question

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