When you are driving around in the urban area in Indonesia, you cannot miss eye-catching banners and signs that say “Terima Kost” or “Tempat Kost” in big letters, often posted on streets or in front of some houses.  So, what is tempat kost? It is basically “room for rent” which is available for monthly or daily rent.  It is an urban way of life that offers an affordable and convenient place to live away from home.

Traditionally, tempat kost is a bedroom for rent offered by a homeowner who has unused bedrooms or empty rooms after their children moved out to generate extra income. Sometimes, offering a “kost’ is also a way for empty-nesters to make the house be lively once more as when their children were still living with them.

Often time, in a traditional “tempat kost,” the kost tenant would live with the homeowner’s family in the same house.  However, if the tenant prefers privacy and independent living, renting a room at a boarding house type of tempat kost might be the best choice.

A boarding house type of tempat kost, popularly known by “koskosan” (a place that offers rooms for rent), often consists of a row of small rooms with all facilities being shared with the other kost tenants, such as bathrooms, living room, and kitchen. Usually, there is a maid who would attend cleaning the public area, and do laundry and ironing for the kost tenants. If needed, with decent tips, the kost tenants can ask the maid to clean the bedrooms and do shopping for them.

Pricing of the kost rent would generally be based on location, the size of the room, facilities and the services. Usually, the room is provided with a bed, a wardrobe, a working table and a mirror.

The price beyond a small bedroom and a shared bedroom will run between 1 million rupiah ($80) and 6 million rupiahs ($500) per month. If money is no object you can rent a big room with room AC, inside TV, refrigerator, bathroom with water heater, unlimited internet access, laundry, room cleaning, even free hot beverages and drinking water. The higher the price tag, the better the services would be.

It is easy to find a tempat kost, either you just knock the door and ask, or search for it in the newspapers’ classified ads. There are options of kosts that you may choose to suit your needs from “khusus wanita” (female only), “khusus laki-laki” (male only), “campur” (male and female), “suami isteri” (husband and wife) and “orang asing” (foreigners). In the office and business area, the kosts would be advertised as kost untuk “karyawan/ karyawati” (male/female workers), and kost untuk mahasiswa/mahasiswi (male/female students) when they are located by the universities or the colleges.

This kind of living arrangement may be very appealing due to its flexibility.  As there is no lease to be signed and you only pay for the room daily or monthly, compared to a two-year lease minimum as is usually the case if you’re renting a house or an apartment. You can come and go as you please. On the other hand, as there is no lease, the owner can ask the kost tenant to leave at any time.

Kost is preferred housing for those who live away from home.  There are college students, new employees, and low-salaried workers who aren’t able to live with their family, and people who avoid daily traffic during weekdays, then go home on the weekend.

Choosing a tempat kost will also depend on whether the kost policies and rules fit into a kost tenant’s life style regarding noise, privacy and overnight guests of the opposite sex.

Following is the example of the kost:

KOST DISEWAKAN: KOST BEBAS, FREE WIFI, AMAN, NYAMAN DI LOKASI STRATEGIS JAKARTA PUSAT

(Sawah Besar) (JL KARTINI 3 NO 38)
Jl Kartini III No 36 Jakarta Pusat 10750 masuk dari kartini raya sebelah kanan dekat mangga besar,sebelah kiri dekat pasar baru.
Telepon : 021-6290746 (ditempat)
Mgr. 021-33867133 ( Steven ) / 021-70940118
Peruntukan : Pria, Wanita, Suami Istri / dengan Anak-anak, Karyawan, Karyawati siang malam, dll
Lokasi : Kesebelah kanan pasar baru,sebelah kiri jl gunung sahari dekat halte busway ‘pasar baru timur’ (golden truly).Gunung sahari raya samping ada kali kecil disebelahnya adalah kartini raya disepanjang jl kartini III ada banyak jual ikan hias ada bank bca & puri sehat di tengahnya adalah kartini III.
Jakarta Pusat

Rp. 750.000

Sertifikat Hak Milik

Kamar tidur: 50
Kamar mandi: 50
Kamar pembantu: 2
Garasi: 1
Luas tanah: 1000
Luas bangunan: 800
Berapa lantai? 2
Bangunan menghadap: Selatan

AC: YA
Sambungan Internet: YA
Apakah mobil masuk? YA
Bebas banjir? YA

Info lengkap: http://rumahdijual.com/jakarta-pusat/718717-kost-bebas-free-wifi-aman-nyaman-di-lokasi-strategis.html

QUESTIONS

1. Did you find any similar services or living arrangements in another country? What was the difference?
2. What do you think about this kind of housing/living arrangement?