【经济】美国网友评论中国房价:水泥地板,没有卫生间,20万美元

微信号：ichina21

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每个周末，我都会在早晨7点钟起床，乘地铁去找房子。在上海郊区，一套2室一厅的公寓至少需要20万美元。这意味着我在1分钱都不花的情况下，要用12年的时间才能付清。这是中国急速发展中的现实情况。经历了数十年快速增长之后，中国大城市的生活成本突飞猛涨，许多年轻人难以承担高昂的房价。西方人倾向于认为中国正在接管世界。而实际上，这里的年轻人正在挣扎着维持着自己的收支平衡。食物和住房依然是他们最关心的问题。我今年27岁，拥有新闻学研究生学位以及该邻域很好的工作。

原文翻译

【译者注：本文是NPR上海站的记者在NPR网站发表的一篇博客。NPR的受众很多是美国的中上阶层，80%受过良好大学教育。评论有一百多条我按支持率排名翻译了前面一部分】

Every weekend, I rise at7 a.m. to get on the subway to hunt for apartments. The cheapest two-bedroom

homes in the suburbs ofShanghai cost $200,000 or more, which would take me more than 12 years to payoff —

if I don’t spend a dime ofwhat I make.

每个周末，我都会在早晨7点钟起床，乘地铁去找房子。在上海郊区，一套2室一厅的公寓至少需要20万美元。

这意味着我在1分钱都不花的情况下，要用12年的时间才能付清。

This is the reality ofChina’sboom. After decades of explosive growth, the cost of living in China’s big cities

has skyrocketed, andmany young people have been priced out of the housing market.

这是中国急速发展中的现实情况。经历了数十年快速增长之后，中国大城市的生活成本突飞猛涨，许多年轻人难以承担高昂的房价。

People in the West tendto think the Chinese are taking over the world; the reality is

young people herestruggle to make ends meet. Putting food on the table and having a shelter

are still their biggestconcerns. I’m27, with a graduate degree in journalism and a good job in my field,

and I’m worried aboutthese basics.

西方人倾向于认为中国正在接管世界。而实际上，这里的年轻人正在挣扎着维持着自己的收支平衡。

食物和住房依然是他们最关心的问题。我今年27岁，拥有新闻学研究生学位以及该邻域很好的工作。

但我仍然在为这些基本要素担心。

No Home, No Honey

Owning a home is evenmore important in China than in America. Homeownership is the main prerequisitefor single men looking for wives — property becoming a unifying forcethat binds two families together.

没有房子就没有老婆。

和美国相比，在中国拥有一个房子显得更为重要。房产是单身男性找对象的先决条件——房子成为了凝聚两个家庭的一股神秘的力量。

“A rough calculationreveals that every month after paying the mortgage and for food and otheressentials, I will have a little more than $100 left. A crowded bus ride to theoffice now takes nearly two hours.

Mothers-in-law wanttheir daughters to have an easy life, making single male homeowners thepreferred choice of a mate. But that’s not enough. In-laws demand thathomeownership certificates include their daughters’names— an insurance policy that entitles the wife tohalf the value of a property if a couple divorces.

粗略的统计显示，每个月扣除房子按揭费，食物及生活品的花费，我的收入就只剩100多美元。乘坐拥挤的公共汽车去上班要花费近2个小时。婆婆们希望她们的女儿过上舒适的生活，因此拥有房子的单生男性是他们择偶的首选。但这样还不够。婆婆们还要求房产证上要包括她们女儿的名字——这样才能在离婚后拥有房子一半的产权。

A growing income gap andrampant materialism have driven many young women to openly focus on findingrich husbands. Some who do agree to marry poorer guys are reluctant to sharethe burden of paying off debts.

Businesslike as it maysound, the family negotiations before marriage are to a great extent likepreparations for a business transaction. This is true of many Chinese families,mine included.

不断扩大的贫富差距和疯狂的物质主义驱使年轻女性公然的集中精力寻找富有的丈夫。有些同意嫁给穷小子，但不愿意帮他分担债务。这听起来很商业化，结婚前的家庭磋商很大程度上像是一个商业交易的准备工作。这就是很多中国家庭的现实，包括我在内。

This age-old practice issuffocating many young men in China. Buying property is the talk of the nation,just as it was in the U.S. before the bubble burst a number of years ago.Except it is much harder here. Statistics show on average it takes families inShanghai 28 years to pay off an apartment, in a city where prices compare withbig American cities but incomes are far lower.

这种古老的做法令许多中国的年轻男性感到窒息。就像多年前（房地产）泡沫破裂之前的美国一样，买房子是全中国人民讨论的话题。不同的是，这里更困难。统计显示，上海的家庭平均需要花28年的时间偿还房贷。上海房价和美国的大城市相当，但收入却比美国低的多。

Not A Supply Problem

After seeing a lot ofreal estate during my three months of house hunting, it seems to me that thehigh prices aren’ta result of demand outstripping supply but the result of a policy failure.Block after block of apartments in suburban Shanghai sits empty. It’s more obvious at night, when few lights in those buildings are on.

Apartments in Shanghaicost as much as they do in major American cities — but incomes are much lower.

这不是一个供应问题。在我找房子的三个月内，我看过许多房产，我认为目前的高房价并不是源于需求过剩而是政策失败。一片片公寓在上海郊区做空。这在晚上非常明显，因为没有几盏灯是亮的。上海的房价和美国的主要城市不相上下，但收入要低很多。

The popular Chinesemagazine Caijing recently reported that a survey done by the Beijing policelast year indicated that of the 12.3 million apartments in the city, 3.8million were vacant. That’s a vacancy rate of 29 percent.

中国流行的《财经》杂志最近报道，北京警方在去年的一项调查中显示，该市1230万套公寓中有380万套是空的，空置率为29%。

With limited investmentoptions, companies and the rich have poured money into the real estate market.They are willing to let property sit empty so it can fetch a good price — in the belief thatincomes and demand will eventually catch up.

A commentary in thePeople’sDaily, the Communist Party’s main newspaper, recentlyasked why so many young people suddenly feel so old. A subsequent survey byBeijing News showed 86 percent of respondents cite high housing prices as themajor source of pressure in their lives. This frustration is widely shared. I’ve started losing sleep since I began house hunting.

What A “Bargain”

由于有限的投资选项，公司和富人将大量资金投入房地产市场。他们乐于将房地产做空，以便于他们能够卖个好价钱。

，GCD的主要报纸，最近发表一篇社论中，问中国的年轻人为什么显得暮气沉沉。新京报随后的一项调查显示，86%的受访者认为高房价是他们生活压力的主要来源。这种挫折感普遍存啊。自从我开始找房子以来，我开始失眠了。

To find a cheaper home,I focused on the areas at the end of each subway line. The search for a goodprice pushed me so far out, I came within a few miles of the next province.After months of painstaking online searches and visits, I settled on an860-square-foot, two-bedroom apartment that costs $208,000. That price tag isso big that it felt like a boulder on my shoulder. However, in the currentmarket, this price really seems like a bargain.

为了找到便宜的房子，我开始关注每条地铁线末端的区域。为了合适的房价我到了现在的位置，几英里之外就到另外一个省了。经过几个月辛苦的在线搜索和参观，我最终选定了一套860平方英尺，两室一厅的公寓，花费20.8万美元。如此巨大的花费让我感受到了巨大的压力。然而在现在的市场情况下，这个价格看起来算是先对便宜的了。

The apartment was builtsix years ago; colorful fliers from small businesses cover the walls of thebuilding’shallways. It’s just the skeleton of a living space,really; rooms with walls and uneven bare concrete floor and not much else — no appliances, no wooden flooring or carpeting, no usable toileteven.

这栋公寓建于6年前。走廊的墙壁上贴满了彩色的商业广告传单。事实上这只能算是一个生活空间的骨架。除了墙上和地板上裸露的混凝土，其他什么都没有——没有家用电器，没有木地板和地毯，甚至没有可用的卫生间。

‘Lightning Divorces’ Strike China’s ‘MeGeneration’

To modestly outfit theplace will require an additional $40,000. A rough calculation reveals thatevery month after paying the mortgage and for food and other essentials, I willhave a little more than $100 left. A crowded bus ride to the office now takesnearly two hours.

A friend of mine, whomoved to Australia and now works in a factory making springs for pacemakers andhearing aids near Sydney, owns a house, a brand new Toyota SUV and has threekids. Our monthly income is almost the same. He drives 20 minutes to hisworkplace. Life in Australia seems much easier, although he does complain hehas no savings.

适当的装修又需要花费4万美元。粗略的估计，我每个月付完房贷、食品和生活必需品后之剩下100美元。乘坐拥挤的公交车去上班要近2个小时。我的一个朋友在澳大利亚悉尼附近的一家生产起搏器和助听器的工厂工作。目前用于一栋别墅，一辆丰田SUV，三个孩子。而我们的月收入几乎一样多。他每天开车去上班需要20分钟。尽管他抱怨他没有存款，但在澳大利亚生活看起来更舒适。

Things should getbetter. Thanks to Shanghai’s fast-expanding infrastructure, a new subway line isexpected to open by the end of this year. That would very likely cut mycommuting time to 70 minutes.

My father comes from apoor farming village in western China. It has taken a few generations for myfamily to have a member able to live and work in what is arguably China’s premier megacity.To give my children a leg up, I plan to stay.

考虑到上海基础设施的快速发展，一条新的地铁线路年底将要开通，情况应该会有所好转，我的通勤时间将会缩短至70分钟。我父亲来自中国西部贫穷的农村，我们家族几代人中我是第一个能够生活在中国的大城市的人。为了给我的孩子一个更好的前途，我决定继续留在这里。

Zhuo Yang works in NPR’s Shanghai bureau.

作者卓阳，就职于NPR上海办事处。

评论翻译

ychick

The writer says that itwill take up to 27 years to pay off the apartment. Well, in the USA a 30 yearmortgage is standard, so I don’t see what’s so shocking aboutthat. Also, many people, especially if they buy a property in their 20′s, don’t have money left to save or spendfor fun things after paying their mortgage, food, cable, car payment, etc… This just sounds like life in the capitalistic system. Welcome to ourworld.

作者说需要27年的时间才能付清房款，我不认为这有什么令人惊讶的。这在美国平均需要30年。对于很多人来说，尤其是年轻人，如果在他们20多岁时买了不动产，支付了贷款、食物、通讯和交通费用后没有多余的钱去消费娱乐。

Rodney Burton ychick

He says it will take him12 years to pay off if he spends 100% of his salary on the home; his age is 27.That 12 doesn’tinclude the 40K to add a toilet and floors.

240K over 14 years andhe makes 17K a year. If he uses the rule of thumb of spending 25% of yoursalary on your mortgage, and the mortgage only accumulates a meagre 3%interest, the interest is still higher than what he pays.

SO, if he pages half ofall he makes on the mortgage, it will take over 65 years (again assuming only a3% rate).

他说如果他将100%的收入都用于支付房款，需要12年。这还不包括添加一个卫生间和地板所需的4万刀。他每年挣17000刀需要14年。如果他利用拇指规则将25%的薪水用于支付房贷，累积利率为3%，那么利息将比他所需要的贷款还高。所以如果他将收入的一半用于支付房贷，这将需要65年（假设利率为3%）

Brandon Elliott ychick

at least here there isthe option to not do that. This guy is getting a bare bones lifestyle after ahuge expenditure.

至少在这里可以选择不这么做。这个小伙在巨大的指出之后得到的是裸骨式的生活方式。

Mark Kropf ychick • 2 days ago

The biggest differenceis that renting is not seen as culturally acceptable for single men. If themores of Chinese society are not to be forced to change- and I for one wouldnot see it as my function to dictate values to others abroad-single men in Chinaare at a substantial disadvantage to those here. Unless they have been ‘well healed’ they are bound to live in virtual penury with wives, if they caneven afford to marry.

The Chinese governmentmay find that such social expectations need to be ‘adjusted’ or the supply of apartments needs to be increased dramatically todrop costs and increase access.

In the latter case, theGovernment may need to address Chinese mortgage holders who have been made tobe in a situation analogous to those here who find themselves ‘under water’.

China has a problem herethat is not going to go away, is rather likely to only get worse and which maylead to greater discontent with the governance of the country.

最大的不同是，租房对单身男性来说从文化角度无法接受。如果中国社会的道德观念不改变，中国的单身男性就处于巨大的不利因素当中。除非他们能被“治愈”，否则即使勉强支付了结婚的费用，他和他的妻子也会生活在贫困之中。中国应该意识到这样的社会期待需要得到调整，应该增加住房的供给以降低房价，增加入住率。至于后者，中国应该处理那些幕后的抵押持有者。中国在这方面的问题看起来越来越糟糕，这可能导致对政府的巨大不满。

Rodney Burton ychick

Also what many peoplehere seem to be forgetting when they say “sounds like the USA!” is that here we enter into large mortgages like that for greatapartments with good amenities inside good cities (not NY city proper, butgood), or we enter into mortgages like that for good houses in middle-classsuburbs/small towns.

In the USA we do NOTenter into life-crippling mortgage for a smallish apartment in an unfinishedbuilding with concrete floors, no toilet, and a two-hour commute from the citycenter!

This whole Chinese realestate bubble sounds to me like the inevitable result of the current generationof Chinese leaders having been raised in a China where any predictions of theirfuture that weren’t flamboyantly glorious led to imprisonment or death.Communism shrivels and crumbles in the harsh light of reality.

当这里的某些人说出“这听起来和美国一样”时，他们似乎忘记了在美国我们贷款买房是为拥有那些在有良好设施的城市(不一定是纽约市区，但是很好)中的好公寓，或者郊区/小镇里的好的别墅。在美国，没有人会为了一个水泥地板、没有卫生间、离市中心2小时车程的烂尾楼中的小公寓去贷款。在我看来，整个中国的房地产泡沫是中国导致的不可避免的后果。任何关于未来的预测都不是光明的，。、破碎。

colt call ychick

There’s something I loveabout the mystery of China. People in big cities live in closet sizedapartments….while there are entire ghost cities inChina. And now China is not only building these entire uninhabited citiesaround China….they are building entire uninhabitedghost cities in Africa. Wow. What gives with that?

*

Why is Chinaconstructing large, well-designed “ghost cities”that are completely devoid of people?

Now, the BBC reports agiant new Chinese-built city has been spotted in Africa in the outskirts ofAngola’scapital Luanda.

Read more athttp://www.wnd.com/2012/07/biz…

我喜欢关于中国的一些神秘的事物。大城市中人们生活在橱柜大小的公寓中……同时中国有些城市整个城市都是鬼城。如今中国不仅在全中国建设这样没人居住的鬼城，他们还在非洲建造鬼城。WOW，这样能够给予（他们）什么？

为什么中国要建造这样巨大，精心设计但没人居住的“鬼城”？

最近，BBC报道称，在非洲阿格拉首都罗安达的郊区发现了一个巨大的，中国人建的城市。详细报道请参阅 http://www.wnd.com/2012/07/biz…

Fan Yang colt call

people don’t go where flatsare, but where jobs are.

并不是哪里有房子人们就去哪，而是哪里有工作就去哪。

dan strayer colt call

The answer to yourquestion is that the money invested in these ghost cities appears to make theirGDP look larger that it really is, by many billions. Just another form offraud.

你的问题的答案是，将资金投入到这些鬼城能够使他们的GDP看起来更多，实际上达到了数十亿。但这只不过是另一种形式的欺骗。

ychick

You missed the big (BIG)one in your listening and/or reading: He says it will take 27 years at 100% ofhis salary. In the US you typically get a 30 year mortgage from a reputablebank if your monthly mortgage payment equals to about 30% of your monthlyexpenses.

你在收听或阅读这则报道时遗漏了最重要的信息。他说他用他所有的收入（用来支付房贷）需要27年。而在美国，从一个信誉良好的银行得到一笔30年的抵押贷款，每月的按揭款等于月薪的30%。

Rachel M Walls Guest

That was 12 years at100% of his salary… 27 years with having only $100 left on a monthly basisafter all bills/expenditures accounted for.

每月100%的薪水需要12年……..初去所有的开支后还剩余100每月这样需要27年。

Trena Gravem

The love of money isruining lives and causing human misery everywhere.

贪财是毁灭生活导致苦难的根源。哪里都一样

Trena Graven……Send your money tome so that you can live more happily in poverty? Yeah, that’s the ticket. Send your money to me.Trena Graven……

把你的钱给我，这样你就可以愉快的生活在贫困之中了？ 耶，这就是解决之道，把你的钱给我。

Trena Gravem colt call • 2 days agoHi Colt,you didn’t notice, I said the LOVE OF money IS ruininglives and causing human misery everywhere. Money is a necessary evil. But, manypeople put their faith in it, they depend utterly upon it, it is their toppriority to accumulate as much as possible of it, and this takes precedenceover their love of life. It DEFINES their pursuit of happiness. Money cannotbuy lasting, inner happiness of the sort which serves any purpose for eitherthe person with the money, or for anyone else.

嗨, Colt, 你没有注意，我是指对钱的贪念会毁灭生活带来痛苦。钱是必之要之恶。但有些人痴迷于钱，完全依赖于钱，他们的首要任务就是累积尽可能多的钱，爱钱剩于爱生活。用钱定义他们对快乐的追求。无论对于有钱人还是任何人，钱并买不到持久的、内心的幸福。

DH

I wonder how theireconomy will handle ahousing collapse. Greed will destroy just like it doeshere.

我想知道他们的经济如何应对房地产的崩溃。贪婪会导致毁灭。像这里一样。

DScully DH

You need to actually bewondering how oureconomy will handle their collapse. That’s the bigger issue.

你真正需要关心的是我们的经济如何面他们的崩溃，这是个更大的问题。

TheSanity Inspector

People in the West tendto think theChinese are taking over the world; the reality is young people herestruggle tomake ends meet.

With a population ofmore than a billion,can’t both be true?

“希望人倾向于认为中国人将要接管世界。实际上这里的年轻人正在为他们的收支平衡而挣扎。。。”又有超过10亿的人口，这两者不能同时实现吗？

RodneyBurton TheSanityInspector

“one singleunemployed man is anannoyance; 100 million are a war.”-Orson Scott Card

“一个人事业是烦恼，一亿人事业是战争”–奥森·斯科特·卡

mysterymeat TMur

i think that somehowsitting on the emptyreal estate must be cost neutral…

我认为那些做空的房产一定是不需要额外的财政资源。

lostisland

Hey, that sounds likeHonoluluor New York.

嘿，听起来像是火奴鲁鲁或是纽约。

IsaacBresnick

There’s no need to live inthe center of Shanghai, anyways. Pricesare much more reasonable for apartmentsthe further out you get. Furthermore,$100/mo. goes quite a bit farther than itwould in the United States.

无论如何没有必要住在上海市中心。远一点的地方房价会更合理。此外，100美元远比它在美国要多（意思是100美元在中国更经花吧）

mysterymeatIsaacBresnick

ut he says that hehunted in the suburbs,and purchased a unit that’s a 2 hour commute to his job

楼上，他说他在郊区买了一个距离单位2小时车程的公寓。

IsaacBresnickmysterymeat

Having recently spent anhour and fifteenminutes in a taxi trying to get from my hotel to Hongqiaoairportat noon on a Friday, which Google Maps estimated to be a half hourdrive,I’m notthat impressed by a 2 hour commute. You’re still wellwithin Shanghai. Compare that tofactory workers in Changzhou,which is about atwo hour drive outside of the city, and I bet thehousing prices are far morereasonable.

最近我在一个周五下午乘出租车从我的酒店到虹桥机场用时1小时50分钟。而谷歌地图预测驾车需要半小时。所以2小时我一点也不惊讶，你仍然在上海。和在常州工作的同时相比，2小时就出常州城了。我敢打赌，这里的房价价格还是合理的。

mysterymeatIsaacBresnick

are there jobs for journaliststhere? andreally, an occasion cab ride to the airport can’t reasonably becompared to 4hours a day on a train.

i’m not necessarilydisagreeing with you,obviously you have real life experience that i don’t… but in reading yourcomments in this thread,i can’t help wondering if you’vetaken everything intoconsideration. maybe your wife’semployer is getting a “deal” ontheapartment you’re living in, for example. i oncelived in a condo in downtown chicago that my employerrented well under marketvalue because the building was owned by a sistercompany. i can’t know, but i suspect there are a lot of “specialarrangements” made within the wealthy business class.

你在那里做新闻记者吗？用一次打车去机场才经历和每天4小时的火车（地铁）相比是不合理的。我不是一定要反对你，事实上你有实际的体验而我没有……但是在阅读你的评论时我忍不住想知道你是不是把所有的情况都考虑在内。或许你妻子的雇主用你居住的房子做了个交易。例如，我曾经住在芝加哥市中心的一套公寓。我老板用低于市场价的租金租到这个公寓，因为这栋建筑的拥有者是我们的姐妹公司。我不知道，但是我猜，对于富裕的商业阶级有许多“特殊安排”。

China isweird that ithas simultaneously adopted capitalist consumerism with communistmassivemismanagement of resources and assets.

中国很奇怪，。

MrBigStuffBrandonElliott

State Capitalism isreally what the countryhas adopted.

其实真正采用的是国家资本主义。

BrandonElliottmysterymeat

Their government issignificantly morewealthy on a personal level than ours even. It’s a classic case offunnelingthe wealth of an entire country to the hands of the political elite,only on amuch grander scale than usual.

他们的政府（官员）在个人水平上比我们都要富有。这是一个典型的例子，。比以往的尺度更大。