From Property, page 37, issue 337, Oct 15 2007
Translated by Ren Jie
Original article: [Chinese]

"Our long distance relationship has finally come to an end, we are now reunited under one Beijing..."

This thought ran through Xiao Wang's mind as he sat in the newly launched Line 5 subway, cuddling his wife. 

That was in the afternoon of October 7, when Line 5 was first opened to the public, linking Beijing's largest low-cost housing area in the north-- Tiantongyuan district—to the suburban south, Songjiazhuang district. 

Though the subway opened while many had left Beijing for the National Holiday, those staying in Beijing took advantage of the the new line. "Have you tried out Line 5 subway?" became a popular greeting.  

Wang and his wife, An Jing, joined the massive crowds for the inaugural ride. Sitting in a chaotic subway car packed with riders, the young couple worked out the amount of time and money they could save in the future by using the line to commute. 

The couple, both of whom work in information technology, owned a second-hand property in Shangdi in the northwest part of Beijing, where both of them used to work. An Jing subsequently took up a new job in Sanlitun, to the distant southeast.  

That started her ordeal of commuting long hours to work by using a combination of Line 13 light transit railway, Line 2 subway, and taxi. Later, her office moved again to Yizhuang, located in the south of Beijing near the 5th ring road. 

"I had to wake up at six in the morning and get ready as fast as possible, there was no time to fix my hair or put on make up... If I didn’t eat out every day after work, I would have fainted from hunger if I waited until I got home at 9pm," An Jing recalled. She kept up with the routine for six months. 

In the end, An Jing decided to rent another house in Yizhuang, located about 40km away from her home in Shangdi. Thus a couple striving for their livelihoods in Beijing ended up living at two poles of the city.  

"It was like a long distance relationships," says An Jing, recalling the days when she only saw her husband once or twice a week. 

But now after the launch of Line 5, An only needs to pay 2.4 yuan for the subway ride and feeder bus transfer, and is free from worry over traffic jams. 

The story of Wang and An Jing mirror tens of thousands of others in Beijing. The city has grown so large that kin living at different ends of it hardly find time to meet up.

 Property Boom
Subway fares at a flat rate of 2 yuan appear to have propped up the "Happiness Index" of city residents, but on the other hand, prices of properties along the subway lines have skyrocketed.  

In the past months, landlords have floated prices for rental for properties along Line 5, and new housing projects have advertised the convenience of the subway to bolster sales.  

During the week-long National Holiday, "I Love My Home" real estate agency attracted 6,000 people to large-scale viewing tours to promote units along existing and under-construction subway lines.  

During the same period, the company received over 10,000 inquiries for second-hand properties along various lines, with Line 5 at the top of the favorite list. 

Based on the agency's records, second hand properties along Line 5 in Fangzhuang, Liujiayao, Hepingli and Lishuiqiao made up 28 percent of its total sales. 

Besides commuters and developers, homeowners are the biggest beneficiaries of the opening of Line 5. According to statistics released by 21st Century Real Estate, from 2004 to 2006, prices of second-hand properties surrounding Songjiazhuang increased between 20 and 30 percent each year. But recently, the prices have soared over 40 percent.  

Second-hand properties in several housing estates in the area are now selling for 9,000 to 10,000 yuan per square meter. Meanwhile, new housing projects are asking for 12,000 yuan per square meter. 

Xiao Wang and An Jing dream of one day buying another property located closer to their workplace, but the steep prices are potent deterrents.  

"When we were university students, we dreamed of some day being rich, living in a villa near a flowing stream and hills. Over the years, we have learned to be more realistic and our dreams have become simpler. 

"Now, we are content as long as we live in the same city under under the same roof, and only need to spend five yuan a day on transportation," Wang says.