暴漲的房租讓我們何去何從

RENT is rising in cities across China, and young Chinese are feeling the brunt of this worrying trend.

最近一段時間，中國各大城市的房租都在持續上漲，年輕人成了這一趨勢的主要受害人羣。

Apartment rent in major cities like Beijing, Guangzhou and Wuhan has increased by an average of 10 percent, according to Xinhua News Agency. Prices are up as much as 20 percent in some of these cities' districts.

　　據新華社報道，北京、廣州、武漢等主要城市的房租平均增長了10％。其中，個別城區的房租上漲幅度達20％之多。

Experts blame the rising costs of renting an apartment on a number of factors, such as recent government regulations on housing prices, and an influx of rental demand from new graduates and other groups.

對此，專家認爲，導致房租上漲的原因很多，例如，不久前政府調控房價、應屆畢業生和其他人羣租賃需求的涌入等等。

"The government's recent policy on real estate has cooled down the housing prices a bit, so more apartment owners are choosing to rent their apartments," said news pundit Zhang Hong on the CCTV program Observe Today.

“不久前，政府頒發的房地產行業政策導致房價有所鬆動，因此，部分房主開始選擇出租房屋，”新聞評論員張鴻在央視《今日觀察》欄目中說。

Zhang insists, however, that the problem will be only temporary because the government will take measures to make sure the problem does not get out of hand. "As the policy on housing prices keeps working, the rent prices will be contained."

然而，張鴻堅信這個問題只是暫時性的，因爲政府定會採取措施，確保局面的可控性。“只要房價政策仍在貫徹，房租價格就一定會被遏制住。”

21st Century talked to young people in three cities to find out what impact rising rent costs are having on them.

《21世紀英文報》採訪了三大城市的年輕人，看看房租上漲對他們到底有什麼影響。

Beijing prices go through the roof

北京房租價格飛漲

The average rent of a Beijing apartment (from one-bedroom to three-bedroom types all included) rose to 2,792 yuan in the first half of the year, a year-on-year jump of 18.5 percent, according to data from Beijing-based property agent Homelink Real Estate. The average rent has increased even further over the last two months, hitting 2,885 yuan in May and June-up 19.8 percent from the same period in 2009.

北京鏈家地產近期公佈的數據顯示，2010年上半年全市套均租金爲每月2792元（從一居室到三居室全部包含在內），同比上漲約18.5%。過去兩個月的租金上漲幅度更大，5月份套均租賃價格爲2885元/月，比去年同期上漲19.8%。

Gao Song, a 23-year-old graduate from Beijing Institute of Technology, lives in a two-bedroom apartment near Tongzhou, a suburban area. "It used to cost me 1,000 yuan a month," said Gao. "But last month when we renewed the contract, the landlord told us that the rent has increased."

高鬆（音譯），23歲，北京理工大學畢業生，在京郊通州區租了一個兩居室。“以前每月房租1000元，”高鬆說，“但是，上個月續約時房東告訴我們房租上漲了。”

Now he has to pay 1,200 yuan for rent-almost half of his salary.

現在，他不得不支付1200元的房租--幾乎是他工資的一半。

In 2009, the average monthly income for new graduates in Beijing was 2,472 yuan, according to Xinhua. This suggests that rental prices are at least 17 percent higher than the average monthly income of many new graduates in Beijing.

據新華社報道，2009年，北京應屆畢業生的月平均工資爲2472元。這就意味着，目前的租金至少高出北京應屆畢業生月平均收入的17％。

White-collars feel the pinch in Guangzhou

廣州白領生活拮据

The situation is no better in Guangzhou. Rent has increased by 10.9 percent over the last two months and has now hit an average of 30.44 yuan a square meter in downtown areas, according to China Daily.

廣州的情況同樣糟糕。據《中國日報》報道，過去兩個月，廣州房租上漲10.9％，市中心的平均租金達到每平方米30.44元。

In addition to college graduates, some white-collar employees are also feeling the pressure of rising rent prices. Xia Meng, a 24-year-old who works as an accountant, is one of them. Last month, she moved out of her old apartment due to higher rent.

除大學畢業生外，部分白領同樣感到了房租上漲所帶來的壓力。24歲的會計師夏夢（音譯）就是其中一位。上個月，由於租金上漲，夏夢搬出了原來的公寓。

"Yes, now I pay less rent, but I need to spend two extra hours each day traveling to and from work," Xia said.

“現在的房子雖然租金較低，但每天上下班卻不得不多花2個小時，”夏夢說。

She thinks the rise in rental prices will have a direct effect on her peers. "If housing prices keep going up, we will choose not to buy an apartment," she said. "No big deal. But if rent keeps increasing, it'll drive many crazy."

她認爲，房租的上漲肯定會給同齡人帶來直接影響。“如果房價持續上漲，我們會選擇不買房，”她說。“沒什麼大不了的。但是如果房租持續上漲，相信很多人會瘋掉。”

In Wuhan, students fret about the future

武漢學子憂心未來

Rent prices in Wuhan have also risen 10 to 15 percent. According to Xinhua, the average rent in March was 19.04 yuan a square meter. But in June, the average rent jumped to 20.36 yuan a square meter-up from 18.33 yuan at the same time last year.

武漢的房租同樣上升了10％至15％。據新華社報道，3月份武漢的平均房租是每平米19.04元。但6月份的平均房租漲到了每平米20.36元--去年同期的價格是18.33元。

Even though the rising prices in Wuhan can't compare with those in Beijing and Guangzhou, they still worry many current college students.

即便武漢的房租上漲不能和北京、廣州相比，很多大學生仍對此憂心忡忡。

Tang Jiaying, a 22-year-old junior at Jianghan University, is reconsidering living on his own after graduation.

唐嘉穎（音譯），22歲，江漢大學大三學生，正在重新考慮畢業後是否要獨自生活。

"If it means I'll have to spend about half of my salary for rent, I think it would be better to live with my parents for a while."

“如果獨自生活意味着要花一半工資付房租的話，我想最好還是暫時和父母住在一起。”