Traditional Chinese houses enjoy reinvention

The Jakarta Post | Sun, 07/19/2009 10:02 AM | Travel

A small alley lies between traditional houses in China. Many small alleys create labyrinth-like path for residents. JP/Tifa Asrianti

While traditional houses in Indonesia disappear due to a lack of conservation, the trade of traditional-style courtyard homes siheyuan in Beijing thrives after the government issued a decree in March that encourages groups and individuals to buy the siheyuans.

Under the new decree aimed at promoting better siheyuan conservation, owners will have a legal right to sell, lease, mortgage or transfer their property at negotiated price.
Over the past five years, the price of siheyuan has soared to 30,000 Yuan (US$4,500) per square meter. The price is expected to continue rising given the fact that there are only around 1,000 siheyuan for sale in Beijing.

According to real estate agencies, most buyers are non-Beijingers seeking a solid investment. Because of the high cultural value, the profit margin ranges from 100 percent to 200 percent per sale.

One of the non-Beijingers buying or renting siheyuan is Mark Thirwall, an Australian who found his ideal place to settle down in Central Beijing’s Beixinqiao hutong.

Beijing has many hutongs, but Thirwall set his heart on Beixinqiao because he believed it had somemagical charms and, unlike other hutong in the capital, the lanes were meandering.

“It’s quiet and has no bars or tourist harpooning small shops near it. Instead it’s a piece of Beijing’s older past brought to the forefront. Besides, there are some beautiful big trees in the area that have their own identity papers issued by the local neighborhood group,” Thirwall said.

According to him, renting a hutong in Beijing was as simple as obtaining all the right papers including a leasing contract.

“The main issue that really needs to be addressed is how to deal with your neighborhood relations” he said.

It certainly is not an issue for Thirwall as he enjoys walking, riding his bike or sanlunche [tricycle] and talking with the locals.

After six months of renovation, Thirwall’s new home became a club called ‘The Hutong’ (www.the-hutong.com). Opened in 2007, The Hutong has a kitchen for creative cooking classes, a private tea house, a multi function room and a roof-top terrace.

“I love tea and my business partner Stacey Shine loves painting. It seemed like the perfect place to convert into a cozy lounge/tea house atmosphere conducive for learning. We wanted a space that could offer Chinese cultural courses in a soft environment,” he said.

“The neighbors all know us now. They pretty much work as the tour guides pointing everyone whom has a “big nose” to our front doors. Sometimes even random strangers that didn’t even want to come to The Hutong.”