(crienglish.com)
Updated: 2007-09-15 16:55

In face of sky-rocketing housing prices, most Chinese people still can't give up their hopes for owning their own homes. Some government officials are suggesting that people can also rent instead buy a house, as many people in the developed countries do.

Owning a stable home and a steady job are the essentials for the Chinese people who are deeply rooted in agrarian culture. But nowadays, with convenient transportation, house-renting should have been a modern convenience. But the reality in China is different.

Wang Jianlin and his wife are from Hebei Province and run a newspaper booth in Beijing. Their 5-year old daughter goes to a kindergarten close by. Today, when Hukou, the certificate of one's officially-registered place, is still heavily related to social benefits one can enjoy, it is a blessing for such a migrant family to find a proper school for their child.

"It stands to reason that the rent should be inversely related to the length of the lease. But we rented for 3 years and the rent kept rising. When we moved in, it was poorly furnished and all the electric appliances were almost broken."

Li Zhuo is an architect working in Beijing. He got married and bought the family's first house by mortgage last year. Before they moved into their own dwelling, the couple rented 4 different apartments since they began 3 years ago.

"Mostly, what concerned me was the housing condition. The sewage systems, especially toilets, were always the weakest point in the buildings. Many people had bad hygienic habits. I couldn't stand the mess left in the house I was going to rent. And the house structure was always unsatisfactory. So we had no choice but to buy our own house."

Zhang Suhua, a filmmaker, has been working as a freelancer in Beijing for 3 years. In her words, she has been toughened during the process of constantly having to move.

"My biggest headache is about renting sources. Now renting agencies have monopolized all information and blocked landlords from tenants. Furthermore, the information provided by agencies to tenants is sometimes deceiving. "

Zuo Yi is in his late 70s. Owing to his health conditions, he has been considering living part of every year in Hainan. After a one-year trial period of renting a house there, he finally decided to buy a house instead, also as an asset for his children in the long term.

"The rent is subject to random changes. What's more, you have to think about the facilities in the neighborhood. The shopping markets, transportation, post office and others, are all factors affecting your living standard. I'd better settle down and adapt myself to a fixed environment."

The Chinese people now travel more and more for business or for pleasure. Huge market potential in house rentals has been proven by the emergence of innumerable renting agencies. It is true that every country has housing problems but a well-regulated and easy-to-handle residential rental market is not impossible and is also necessary.