Foreigners invited to save Beijing's courtyard homes

Foreigners will be allowed to buy courtyard homes in Beijing in the hope they can help save part of the capital's cultural heritage. The city government would give up ownership of about 4,000 courtyard homes, said Wang Rongwu , an official of the Beijing Municipal Administration of State Land, Resources and Housing. 'We are prepared to give up our ownership of half of the courtyard homes situated within the second ring road of the city.' There are about 8,000 courtyard homes - siheyuan - in Beijing, half of which are privately owned. Until now, sales of courtyard homes - especially to foreigners - have been subject to strict regulations. But officials say many of the courtyard homes need repairs and many private owners are reluctant to invest. At the same time, the municipal government sees great interest in the houses among foreign buyers - especially Chinese residents of Hong Kong and Taiwan. Mr Wang said opening the market to overseas buyers was now seen as an option to save the courtyard homes. 'The houses we owned are currently being rented to mainland residents at a rather low rate and can usually accommodate several families each,' he said. 'But overcrowding speeds up the deterioration and some houses are even collapsing. 'We can't do much maintenance on these homes because the money we collect from rent doesn't even come close to the costs of repairs. 'Only a small number of privately owned homes are well maintained. The owners inherited the most exquisite cultural relics, but most can't afford the high maintenance fees. 'We are encouraging courtyard owners who can't afford maintenance to move and sell them to foreigners.' In March last year, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Cultural Relics launched a campaign to save the courtyard homes - some as old as 700 years - from demolition, calling it an urgent task. So far, 658 courtyard homes - most of them in Beijing's Dongcheng district - have been classified as protected sites. Each of these sites is now marked with a blue sign at their entrance. They cannot be demolished without approval from the Cultural Relics Bureau. Mr Wang said protected sites could also be sold but renovation must be conducted under government supervision. Regulations prohibit changing the 'original style' of the houses, protected or not. 'But new owners will have considerable freedom in interior decoration. They could even dig a basement in their courtyards if they want to,' Mr Wang said. Interested buyers should be prepared to spend because, according to the Cultural Relics Bureau, most of the buildings were so old that they lack even the most basic facilities. Lawrence Brahm, an American lawyer in Beijing, has been fascinated by the architecture of courtyard homes since his arrival 20 years ago. 'Beijing courtyard homes represent a unique style of Beijing architecture, combining elegance and simplicity,' he said. He now owns three. Two have been converted into a restaurant and a hotel. 'I like to restore them to life and revive a spirit that is disappearing in the great changes of the city,' he said. 'I am trying to preserve them by taking these courtyard homes and opening them up to the public to share my experience with them. 'The government has made a forward-looking decision [in opening the market]. They want to preserve these homes but they don't have the money required. Beijing is learning from Shanghai - selling the houses to Hong Kong, Taiwan and foreign individuals and companies who are proud to own them and are happy to protect them. 'There are not many old cities left, and those that we can protect are very precious.' A property agent from Joanna Real Estate in Beijing said most of his clients who have shown interest in the courtyard homes were foreigners. 'Few Chinese can afford rent as high as US$10,000 per month,' he said. 'Foreigners care more about the cultural atmosphere than the location, so courtyard homes are very popular, even if it means they have to spend more on renovation.' Chen Zhihua , a professor of ancient architecture at Tsinghua University in Beijing, said selling courtyard homes was the only option for the government. 'A lot of courtyard homes have been torn down over the years [with] the fast pace of the urbanisation and modernisation,' he said. 'I expect that the new regulation can save some of these historical houses.'