fictionpage Chapter 105 Business Opportunities Behind the Pain Points of Finding a House
Chapter 105 Business Opportunities Behind the Pain Points of Finding a House
The next day, Wu Wenjie and Lin Xiaoqiang arrived at the hotel where Lin Feng was staying early in the morning.
Lin Xiaoqiang changed into his best outfit: a light blue shirt and dark trousers. Although the fabric was inexpensive, it was neatly ironed, and his hair was carefully combed, making him look much more energetic.
Upon seeing Lin Feng, Lin Xiaoqiang immediately stood up and greeted him with a strong voice.
"Good morning!" Wu Wenjie greeted him with a smile. He was wearing a dark polo shirt and carrying a black briefcase, looking ready to get down to business.
"Good morning." Lin Feng nodded, gesturing for them to sit down. "Let's eat and talk."
During breakfast, Lin Feng asked Wu Wenjie, "Brother Jie, you know all the districts of Shenzhen well. Tell me, if we were to rent an office, where do you think would be the most suitable?"
Wu Wenjie was prepared: "Huaqiangbei is of course the most convenient place. You can go there to buy things and check market prices. But the office rent there is high and the environment is noisy. It's mostly wholesale businesses, not like a tech company."
Futian Central District is impressive, but more expensive, and we don't need that kind of extravagance initially. I think Gangxia and Futian South are good value for money, and not far from Huaqiangbei.
Lin Feng listened, tapping his fingers lightly on the table: "What's the development potential of these places over the next three to five years?"
Wu Wenjie thought for a moment: "There are many old houses in Gangxia, and the demolition and renovation have been talked about for several years, but nothing has happened. There are some new buildings in Futian South, but the surrounding facilities haven't been developed yet..."
"What about the science park?" Lin Feng asked.
"Science and Technology Park?" Wu Wenjie was a little surprised. "Nanshan? It's not close to Huaqiangbei. It's mainly high-tech companies and R&D centers there, and the rent isn't cheap. Besides, for us MP3 manufacturers, it's not that convenient to source materials or visit factories."
Lin Feng quickly processed the information Wu Wenjie had given him, and after careful consideration, he said, "The place we're looking for must meet three conditions."
"First, the location must be on the main axis of Shenzhen's development in the next three to five years. The government's plan is clear: industries will gather there, and land prices and population will definitely rise."
Wu Wenjie's eyes narrowed as he listened intently.
"Secondly, this place should be able to attract two types of people at the same time: tech-savvy programmers and designers, and potential customers that our future business will serve, including college students."
"Third, the building can be a bit old, but the management must be standardized. Most importantly, we can sign long-term contracts to lock in rental costs."
Wu Wenjie digested these words and gradually began to understand their meaning.
This isn't just about renting an office; it's about securing a foothold, about playing a much bigger game. He tentatively asked, "The main focus you're talking about... is it towards Zhishan? The science park?"
"That's right." Lin Feng nodded. "Shenzhen will definitely develop westward and southward in the future. Futian is already saturated, and Luohu is an old city. Nanshan has the sea, land, and universities. The government is investing heavily in high-tech parks. That's an open secret."
We're looking for the area around the science park, but not the core area. That's too expensive. We're looking for a place between the science park and the old town of Nanshan—an area that has a tech atmosphere, is grounded in local life, has mature amenities, and where rents haven't yet skyrocketed.
Wu Wenjie suddenly realized, "I get it! Boss, you're using money now to buy a future position! By the time things take off over there, we'll already be firmly established!"
"That's what I mean." Lin Feng stood up. "Let's go, let's start the search today."
……
Wu Wenjie bought a copy of the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily from a street vendor and flipped to the GG category.
The text was densely packed with tiny characters, listings for rent, job postings, and transfers all mixed together. They circled a few office building listings and dialed the numbers on them.
A person claiming to be the "owner" answered the phone, speaking very enthusiastically. He said the house was in the "core area of the science park" and asked them to pay a 200 yuan "viewing fee" before he could take them to see it.
Wu Wenjie became suspicious and said he wanted to see the house before paying. The other party immediately hung up the phone, cursing.
The other call was answered by a woman who said the house belonged to her brother, who had gone abroad, and that she had the keys.
But you have to pay a 500 yuan "deposit" before you can see the apartment; you can get a refund if you're not satisfied. Lin Feng hung up the phone immediately.
"What kind of nonsense is this?" Wu Wenjie angrily crumpled the newspaper into a ball.
Since the guys in the newspapers were unreliable, Lin Feng and Wu Wenjie started looking for real estate agents on their own.
On the streets of Shenzhen, especially at bus stops and under overpasses, you can see the earliest kind of street-side real estate agencies everywhere, their glass doors covered with red and green papers that say "Rent," "Sell," and "Transfer." Wu Wenjie led Lin Feng into one of them.
The shop was filled with smoke, and a middle-aged man was making tea. When he heard that someone wanted to rent an office, he pulled out a crumpled notebook with dozens of messages scrawled on it in ballpoint pen.
"Near the Science Park? Yes, yes, yes!" The agent pointed to one, "This one, 'Commercial and residential building next to the Science Park, 80 square meters, monthly rent 2500.' Cheap, right?"
When I called, they said the house had been rented out for half a month.
Another item was mentioned: "This one, 'Nanshan Central District, office building, 100 square meters, fully furnished'."
When I called again, the number was no longer in service.
The agent chuckled, "Information updates are slow, that's normal. Why don't you leave your phone number, and I'll call you if there's a suitable opportunity?"
Lin Feng walked out of the store without saying a word. Wu Wenjie felt a little awkward.
Later, they found a slightly larger real estate agency with a sign. The person who greeted them was a young salesperson in a suit and tie, who was very enthusiastic.
He recommended an office unit located in the "East District of Science Park," saying that the owner was in a hurry to rent it out and the price was discounted.
Later they went to see it. The place was indeed in the science park area, but it was an old industrial area slated for demolition. The so-called "office building" was just the second floor of an abandoned factory building, with hardly any windows intact.
Wu Wenjie's face turned green.
Lin Xiaoqiang was also speechless.
Lin Feng said helplessly, "Let's not use an agent! We'll go directly to the science park and ask in every building! I refuse to believe we won't find one!"
For the next two days, they braved the scorching sun and walked around Nanshan Science and Technology Park and the surrounding area to "sweep through buildings".
When you see a decent-looking office building, go inside and ask the property management office if there are any vacant offices for rent.
Office buildings in popular locations are completely empty; some buildings have ridiculously high rents, with 100 square meters costing seven or eight thousand a month; and some buildings are in very remote locations, surrounded by construction sites, with not even a small restaurant nearby.
After two days, Wu Wenjie's voice was hoarse, and the business cards and contact information he handed out disappeared without a trace.
On the afternoon of the third day, in a fairly well-maintained office building, the property manager, upon hearing that they wanted to rent an office, looked them up and down a few times and slowly said:
"Yes, we do, but our building's tenants are all high-tech companies. What do you do?"
"MP3? Oh, an electronic product..."
"Our area mainly houses high-tech companies like software and integrated circuits. Your company... doesn't quite fit the park's positioning. Why don't you try asking around in those older buildings next door?"
It's not very harmful, but extremely insulting!
Stepping out of the building, Wu Wenjie spat angrily: "You snobbish jerk! What's wrong with selling MP3 players? I make tens of millions a year!"
Lin Feng stood by the roadside, looking at the scene before him: on one side were the brand-new, impressive but heavily guarded new buildings of the science park, and on the other side were the chaotic but lively urban villages and old industrial areas.
There seems to be an invisible chasm between the two. Information is fragmented, and demand is mismatched. Finding a foothold that is close to technological resources, close to real life, and reasonably priced is more difficult than he expected.
He lit a cigarette and took a deep drag.
He deeply missed the internet platforms like 58.com, Beike.com, and Ganji.com from his previous life. Suddenly, a thought flashed into his mind like lightning.
Why can't I do this?
It can gather all this fragmented information, such as where there are vacant offices, where there are houses for rent, where people are hiring, and where you can find repairmen, and make it all clear, transparent, and readily searchable…
If landlords can contact tenants directly, and employers can find employees directly, all these intermediaries, false information, and the risk of being scammed are eliminated…
If this platform is free, or has extremely low costs, making it affordable for ordinary people...
How many people's pain points will that solve? How much value will it create?
Yao Jinbo founded 58.com after being scammed while searching for a house. Lin Feng, on the other hand, is currently experiencing firsthand the common predicament faced by all homebuyers in this era.
This is a business opportunity!
Lin Feng stubbed out his cigarette, his eyes clearing again: "Brother Jie, do you know anyone around the tech park?"
Wu Wenjie then remembered: "I have a distant relative who works at some research institute in Nanshan."
"Contact him and ask if he knows anyone in the area."
Wu Wenjie's relative, also surnamed Wu, was in his forties. He was very enthusiastic when he heard that A-Jie wanted to rent an office.
His workplace is a long-established electronics research institute in the city. Near Baishizhou on the eastern edge of the science park, there is a six-story annex building built in 1992 called the "Innovation Building".
Originally the research and development building of an electronics research institute, a few years ago the institute underwent restructuring, leaving many rooms vacant, and the institute wanted to rent them out to subsidize its funding.
The building is a bit old, with red brick exterior walls, but it's well-maintained. And the location is excellent.
It's less than a ten-minute walk to the core area of the science park, and behind it lies the huge urban village of Baishizhou, making life extremely convenient.
The key point is that the research institute has a state-owned enterprise background, standardized management, and doesn't engage in any shady practices.
They looked at a south-facing suite on the third floor, about 130 square meters, with basic decoration and excellent natural light.
"This place is quiet and safe, and the water, electricity, and internet are all readily available. The institute prefers tenants to be technology or manufacturing companies."
"According to the firm's rental standards, the monthly rent for your area is 3,200 yuan. The contract can be signed for five years, with the rent increasing by 3% each year."
Lin Feng walked around the room. It wasn't high-end or luxurious, but it was full of potential. The future of technology and the present of life intersected here.
"This is it." Lin Feng decided to rent it.
Wu Wenjie still had some concerns: "Boss, isn't this building a bit too old? Our company..."
"The company doesn't rely on the building to make a name for itself. It relies on business and talent. The rent for this place will at least double in the next three to five years. By signing this price for five years now, we're basically getting a bargain."
More importantly, the technical talent is right here in the industrial park, and a massive user base is on the campus behind. Where else can we hear the heartbeat of the market more clearly than here?
The contract negotiations went smoothly. The research institute had all the proper procedures and followed all regulations.
Three days later, a sign reading "Rongcheng Fengchi Digital Technology Co., Ltd. Shenzhen Office" was hung on the door of Room 306 of the "Innovation Building".