The rental agreement in Catalan
We came to the flat viewing and discuss the rent in Catalan. 6 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Bon dia! Som els de la visita del pis de les sis.» — Hello! It is us, the flat viewing at six.; «Endavant! És amoblat i té dues habitacions amb llum de tot el dia.» — Please do! The flat is furnished, two rooms, light all day. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: we came to the flat viewing and discuss the rent. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Bon dia! Som els de la visita del pis de les sis.Hello! It is us, the flat viewing at six.
- Endavant! És amoblat i té dues habitacions amb llum de tot el dia.Please do! The flat is furnished, two rooms, light all day.
- Molt lluminós! I quan es pot entrar a viure?Very bright! And when can we move in?
- L'1 de setembre mateix. El propietari només demana una fiança d'un mes.On the first of September, right away. The landlord only asks for one month as deposit.
- Perfecte. I quan signem el contracte de lloguer?Great. And when will we sign the rental contract?
- Avui mateix, si vol. L'adreça nova queda escrita al contracte.Even today, if you like. The new address will be written into the contract.
Lines one by one
| Catalan | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Bon dia! Som els de la visita del pis de les sis. | — | Hello! It is us, the flat viewing at six. |
| Endavant! És amoblat i té dues habitacions amb llum de tot el dia. | — | Please do! The flat is furnished, two rooms, light all day. |
| Molt lluminós! I quan es pot entrar a viure? | — | Very bright! And when can we move in? |
| L'1 de setembre mateix. El propietari només demana una fiança d'un mes. | — | On the first of September, right away. The landlord only asks for one month as deposit. |
| Perfecte. I quan signem el contracte de lloguer? | — | Great. And when will we sign the rental contract? |
| Avui mateix, si vol. L'adreça nova queda escrita al contracte. | — | Even today, if you like. The new address will be written into the contract. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Catalan in this situation?
“Bon dia! Som els de la visita del pis de les sis.” — Hello! It is us, the flat viewing at six.. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.