[中国新闻] 老北京危在旦夕

日月光

收入的增加和品位的改变在刺激着北京房地产业的繁荣。随着传统的四合院被有钱人抢占一空，北京的历史、文化和社区面临着消亡的危机。/ `* a. q; M$ L. J

1 b, G, C! W, M5 c4 J8 c' Q: }" i+ M这座房子在北京旧城区一条潮湿的胡同里，刚刚翻修了一半，房顶还是个大洞。这里没有花园也没有池塘，直到不久之前还没有多少现代化设施。
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但就是这座老四合院，刚刚卖出了1.1亿元（约合1，420万美元、710万英镑）的高价，创造了北京居住用房的新纪录。北京正经历着一场奥运会前的房地产热潮，甚至让伦敦也相形见绌，伴随这场热潮的是收入的提高、品位的改变和不平等的增加，而这所房子正是这一切的最新体现。4 H/ p7 W% [; z4 ^- K4 w& P
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2 Q3 ?" J, H" \, d* K. rcsuchen.de尽管政府采取了降温措施，但北京房地产业仍然达到了史无前例的热度。据当地媒体报道，今年2月北京的平均房价几乎上涨了10%。房地产经纪人说，许多豪华楼盘的价格在三年之内翻了一番。6 N$ j9 u9 v) w
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' t) S7 s. L( i. L! C0 D% f0 E仅仅在几年之前，大多数投机者关注的焦点还是市中心的高层现代化公寓，以及郊区的新建别墅。但是那座破了纪录的天价房产却是位于热闹的后海地区的一座老式四合院。# x' _7 f+ q3 x# |) r, A9 k
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过去住四合院的多是贵族官宦之家，但1949年之后，许多院子被收归国有，分割开来，分配给普通的工农群众。这些大杂院常常人满为患，臭气熏天的公共厕所和危险的燃煤锅炉更是广为人知，很多四合院社区变成了贫民窟。为了在明年奥运会之前及时完成应有的现代化，北京老胡同里已经有成千上万座房子被拆除。: z' Q0 `4 R0 }4 h! Q; H. A

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现在北京市中心地区的四合院只剩下3，000座，物以稀为贵，价格也随之上扬。刚刚卖掉的这所房子之所以特别有价值，是因为它很大，适合进行现代化改造，而且非常靠近北京最活跃的滨湖娱乐区——后海。
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9 ]& j% k1 M6 T: e% `1 f人在德国 社区这座院子的面积是3，028平方米，均价超过36，000元（4，600美元或2，300英镑），是周边任何房价的两倍还多。尽管当地媒体曾经推测买主是山西的“煤老板”或者俄国的亿万富翁，但现在他的身份仍然是个谜。
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0 k9 n8 Z* E9 s, j/ @四合院的新主人的成分很复杂。北京的很多四合院尽管现在还住着工薪家庭，但另外一些则被其他人抢占一空，这些人包括有钱的外国人、高级官员、当代艺术家和新富阶层。两年前，曾经有报道说，传媒大亨鲁伯特·默多克的妻子邓文迪逼着他花三千万元人民币买下了一座四合院。8 T* K% J* s" D8 Z' c
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9 k% ^0 @6 [0 Y5 b% X& v人在德国 社区在北京这座规划者常常征地进行开发的城市里，这样的购买是有风险的。去年10月，北京第一场四合院拍卖会开场一小时后被取消，因为谨慎的竞拍者甚至连起价的225，000美元（113，000英镑）都不愿出。但是，由于中国今年通过了第一部物权法，而且国家下令对几百座四合院进行保护，这个市场似乎得到了加固。
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一家房地产公司经理胡朝晖（音）说：“以前四合院人气没有这么高，主要是因为人们没有认识到它的价值和投资潜力。但是现在它们就非常特殊了。四合院都在中心地带，另外，它们的价格里不仅包括了使用价值，还包含了历史和文化价值。”人在德国 社区% S' W3 f+ V- `

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然而，批评家们指出，所谓的“保存”常常只是意味着拆掉老房子，然后依照传统样式盖一座新的。建筑家马岩松说：“现在的做法是在造假古董，这不好。胡同吸引了很多旅游者，但这里贫困的老住户要么就像主题公园里的演员，要么就被踢出去，让富人们得以买下这些房子。老北京的精神正在消亡。”人在德国 社区! R9 b! q; o( [' M

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A threat to old Beijing, _$ q6 T( z8 A

; k% b9 h. w0 E% z6 S5 LRising incomes and changing tastes are fuelling a property boom in China’s capital. As traditional courtyard houses are snapped up by the wealthy, writes Jonathan Watts, critics fear a loss of history, culture and community.
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In a dank alleyway in the old quarter of Beijing is a half-renovated house with a gaping hole where the roof should be. It has no garden or pool and had, until recently, only a few modern amenities. csuchen.de& L+ E- q8 ]3 a$ i

/ D( h, Q7 S/ C$ d* F; FBut this traditional courtyard home has just been sold for 110 million yuan (about $14.2 million, or £7.1 million) -- thought to be a record for a residential property in Beijing. It is the latest sign of rising incomes, changing tastes and growing inequality as the capital undergoes a pre-Olympic housing boom that puts even London in the shade. % t. K) b7 N' y8 I
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Despite government measures to cool growth, the Beijing housing sector has never been hotter. According to the local media, average prices in the city increased by almost 10% in February. Estate agents claim that many luxury homes have doubled in value in three years.
# f. U+ _& P, j* `Until a few years ago, most speculators focused on modern apartments in inner-city tower blocks and new villas in the suburbs. But the record-breaking home is an old-style siheyuan (courtyard) in the downtown houhai (“back sea”) area of the city.
0 P' g5 j3 u7 q( ^8 a# uWalled quadrangle residences were popular with the nobility and courtiers, but after the communist revolution of 1949, many were requisitioned and partitioned for families loyal to the new government. Often overcrowded and notorious for their smelly communal toilets and unsafe coal-fired boilers, many of these old neighbourhoods have been treated as slums by the authorities. In the race to modernise in time for next year’s Olympics, tens of thousands of homes have been demolished in the city’s old hutong alleyways.
  I9 G$ v! L) H' ?' Z! s5 r+ P1 s% X人在德国 社区In the central area, only 3,000 courtyards remain, giving them a rarity value that has pushed up prices. The one just sold was particularly valuable because it is a huge property, ideal for modernisation, and close to the city’s liveliest lakeside entertainment district.csuchen.de$ C# x* I& j+ G. L
Each of its 3,028 square metres sold for more than 36,000 yuan (over $4,600, or £2,300), more than double the price previously fetched by any home in the neighbourhood. The buyer remains anonymous, though local media have speculated that he is a coal-mine owner from Shaanxi province or a Russian billionaire.
& A, h  o' K8 M: x4 o3 {" tThe new owner will be in mixed company. While many Beijing siheyuan are still occupied by working-class families, others have been snapped up by wealthy foreigners, senior officials, contemporary artists and the new rich. Two years ago, media tycoon Rupert Murdoch reportedly was pressed into buying one for 30m yuan by his wife, Wendi Deng.+ d0 U8 N) ?  l7 L4 ^  u
Such purchases can be risky in a city where planners often requisition land for development. Last October, Beijing’s first courtyard auction was cancelled after an hour because wary bidders failed to meet even the reserve price of $225,000 (£113,000). But the passage of the nation’s first property law this year and state protection orders for hundreds of courtyards appear to have strengthened the market.
; d% W+ L' u# C. k( n  W“The reason courtyards were not that popular before is because people did not appreciate their value and potential for investment,” said Hu Chaohui, manager of a real-estate company. “But they are very special. They are rare and centrally located. In addition, their prices not only include the usage value but also the historical and cultural value.”
. F! \% c' l0 g3 ?- N: e" w5 o: icsuchen.deCritics say, however, that “conservation” often means knocking down an old building and replacing it with a structure in a traditional style. “The way now is to build fake old. It is not nice,” said Ma Yansong, an architect. “The hutongs attract many tourists. The poor, old residents are either like actors in a theme park or else they are kicked out so the rich can buy up the properties. The old community spirit is being lost.”