The Fourth-Floor Flat: Reading the Offer in a Landlord's Phone Call
Listening section, recording played twice. A telephone call between a Thessaloniki landlady (Κυρία Μαρία) and a first-year student, Γιάννης, about a fourth-floor flat near Aristotle University. She says: «Το νοίκι είναι 480 ευρώ τον μήνα. Τα κοινόχρηστα είναι 35 ευρώ τον μήνα, χώρια, και η θέρμανση πληρώνεται μαζί με τα κοινόχρηστα.» Then she offers: «Αν υπογράψεις για δώδεκα μήνες και προπληρώσεις τους τρεις πρώτους, το νοίκι πέφτει στα 450 - τα κοινόχρηστα μένουν ίδια.» The deposit is one month's rent, returned at the end of the tenancy if nothing is damaged. The flat is furnished except for the second bedroom, has a washing machine, no air conditioning, no lift, and the internet «θα το κανονίσουμε τον Οκτώβριο». Γιάννης has to answer by Friday and wants the cheapest arrangement for a full twelve months, with no surprises in writing.
1. Γιάννης stays the full twelve months, pays κοινόχρηστα every month, and gets his deposit back. Which option costs him less overall, and by how much?
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Work with net cost, not cash at signing.
- Month-to-month (480): rent 480 × 12 = 5,760; κοινόχρηστα 35 × 12 = 420; net total 6,180.
- Twelve-month deal (450): rent 450 × 12 = 5,400; κοινόχρηστα 35 × 12 = 420; net total 5,820.
Saving = 6,180 − 5,820 = 360 (i.e. 30 × 12). The deposit is not a cost: it is refundable, so it must not be counted in either total - it only affects how much cash he needs on day one.
Cash-flow point worth one line of the answer: the deal needs 3 × 450 = 1,350 prepaid + 35 + a 450 deposit = 1,835 at signing, against roughly 480 + 35 + 480 = 995 on the monthly plan. It is cheaper, but harder to fund.
Ambiguity to flag: she never says whether the deposit under the deal is 450 or 480; the contract must state it.
2. Γιάννης's mother concludes that the €35 κοινόχρηστα 'includes the heating'. Is that what the recording says? What single question should he put in writing before signing?
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No - that is an over-reading. She said «η θέρμανση πληρώνεται μαζί με τα κοινόχρηστα». In Greek, μαζί με means 'together with / at the same time as', which shows how it is paid (in the same payment or the same bill), not whether it is inside the €35. The two readings are both live: heating could be a fixed share inside the 35, or a separate charge collected with the κοινόχρηστα.
Question to ask: 'Είναι η θέρμανση μέσα στα 35 ευρώ τον μήνα, ή χρεώνεται ξεχωριστά - και αν ξεχωριστά, με σταθερό ποσό ή ανάλογα με την κατανάλωση;' Also ask whether the €35 stays at 35 in winter, since shared heating costs usually rise.
Why it matters: a heating charge not included could add well over €300 across the year and wipe out the €360 saving calculated above. Get the answer in the contract, not on the phone.
3. Which of these is supported by what Γιάννης hears? (a) The building has a lift. (b) Air conditioning is provided. (c) One bedroom is unfurnished. (d) The internet is already connected. Identify the supported statement and explain why each other one fails.
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Only (c) is supported. She says the flat is furnished εκτός από το δεύτερο δωμάτιο - 'except for the second bedroom' - so exactly one room lacks furniture.
- (a) Lift: the flat is on the fourth floor and no lift is mentioned as existing; the detail is there to warn him, not to reassure him. Nothing in the call supports a lift.
- (b) Air conditioning: the call mentions a washing machine and stops there; a listener who hears 'furnished' and infers air conditioning is adding information.
- (d) Internet: «θα το κανονίσουμε τον Οκτώβριο» is a future promise, not a present state - and October is after he moves in.
Exam technique: this item punishes 'plausible' answers. The rule is that a detail must be heard, not expected of a student flat.