If you want to stay here and the company you work for won’t find you a place then it’s quite easy to rent an apartment yourself…providing you have made friends with a Mongolian speaker. If not then you can look on the notice boards of expat pubs and bars, hostels and in the two English lang. newspapers, The UB Post and Mongol Messenger which have listings every week. These are normally apartments that are built and furnished at the Westerner in mind – obviously at western prices.

As always, make sure that you check the contract and are aware of little intricacies like what time of year the heating is turned on/off and if there is a curfew. Expat apartments can range from $300-$800 a month plus. Also be aware that even though it may look nice on the surface, probe deeper and you might find a few problems or where the builders have taken shortcuts. These shortcuts, like a semi-polished worktop or loose cupboard door won’t necessarily make or beak a deal but can be a pain to live with if you like your home just so.classified_papers.

To get a good cheap apartment, then turn to the classified papers such as Zar Medee (every Friday Tg400) and Shuurkhai Zar (every Thursday Tg400) which list 1, 2, 3, 4 room places and so on. Same rules apply as anywhere else – check what is included / excluded in the price and ALWAYS look at the property before signing on the dotted line. Normally a deposit is required and sometimes it’s asked for in US dollars. A good guide price is $230 for a one room, furnished with washing machine and cooker. Obviously apartments towards the outskirts of the city are cheaper but sometimes a few extra dollars a month will make all the difference.

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