中国家长争买海外学区房

 　　Chinese businessman Li Sheng is looking for a $900,000, four-bedroom home in Australia, where he hopes his two children will someday attend college. At this point, neither child has finished grade school -- one is still in diapers -- but Mr. Li hopes to buy a family home in Melbourne in the next year.

　　李胜和他的妻子目前居住在中国哈尔滨，他们正在澳大利亚墨尔本物色房产。他们希望，将来有一天，他们的两个孩子（一个10岁大，一个8个月大）可以在墨尔本上大学。中国商人李胜（音）正在澳大利亚寻找一套价格在90万美元、带有四个卧室的住宅，他希望将来有一天他的两个孩子能在澳大利亚大上学。现在，他的一个孩子还在上小学，另一个孩子还穿着尿布，但李胜希望明年就在墨尔本购买一套家庭住宅。

　　Mr. Li, who lives in Harbin, an industrial city in northern China, sees the purchase as a good investment in both his real-estate portfolio¹ and his children's future. While China has plenty of universities, he and other affluent² parents say they want their children to experience life abroad, where the educational system is less rigid³. 'In Chinese families, the parents make the choice for their kids,' Mr. Li, 40, says. When his children get older, 'I don't want to make choices for them. I want them to do it themselves.'

　　李胜目前居住在中国东北工业城市哈尔滨，他认为这既是对房地产、也是对孩子未来的一个很好的投资。虽然中国也有很多大学，但他和其他富有的家长表示，希望孩子体验国外的生活，国外的教育没有中国那么死板。现年40岁的李胜说，中国的父母常常替孩子做决定。他说，等他的孩子长大后，他不想替孩子做决定，他希望孩子们自己做决定。

　　中国家长争买海外学区房

　　In an effort to increase the likelihood of their children studying abroad, a growing group of Chinese buyers is snapping up high-end real estate in college towns around the world. Some Chinese buyers are using the properties to meet the universities' residency requirements. Luxury homes also offer their children an upscale alternative to dorm life. Most important, many hope that real-estate purchases will help pay the costly⁴ university tuition.

　　为了提高孩子在国外学习的可能性，越来越多的中国买家纷纷入手全球大学城的高端房地产。一些中国买家利用这些物业来满足大学对居住的要求。此外，豪宅也可以给他们的孩子提供比住大学宿舍更好的选择。最重要的，许多人希望投资房地产可以帮助支付孩子高昂的大学学费。

　　'Parents might buy several apartments, one for their child to study in and one to bring in an investment return,' says Andrew Taylor, co-CEO of Juwai.com, a Shanghai-based real-estate portal that features world-wide property listings for Chinese home buyers.

　　Andrew Hinderaker for The Wall Street Journal房地产经纪人布朗最近卖出了一套位于曼哈顿One 57大楼（如图所示）的公寓，售价650万美元。购买这套公寓的中国购房者希望，她2岁大的女儿将来有一天能用得上这套公寓。上海房地产门户网站居外(Juwai.com)的联席首席执行长泰勒(Andrew Taylor)表示，家长可能会买下几套公寓，一套给孩子上学时用，另一套用来获取投资收益。居外主要为中国买家提供全球各地的房地产信息。

　　A few months ago, Kevin Brown, a real-estate broker⁵ in New York, sold a $6.5 million, two-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath condo in Manhattan's One 57 building to a Chinese woman from Hong Kong. One reason for the purchase: Her daughter, who was 2 years old, could use the apartment if she decided⁶ to go to New York University or Columbia University, Mr. Brown says. For now, Mr. Brown says his client plans to rent out the unit and estimates she will earn a 3% return on her investment each year. 'Family and financial planning all mix into one,' Mr. Brown says. 'Where we have a one-year or three-year plan, they generally have a 20-year plan.'

　　几个月前，纽约的房地产经纪人布朗(Kevin Brown)向一位来自香港的中国女士出售了一套公寓。这套公寓位于曼哈顿的One 57大楼，带有两间卧室、三个盥洗室（其中一间没有淋浴设备），售价650万美元。布朗说，这位女士的购房理由是，她的女儿（现在2岁）将来如果决定上纽约大学(New York University)或者哥伦比亚大学(Columbia University)，这套公寓可能会用得上。Brown表示，现在他的客户计划将公寓出租，估计每年的投资回报率在3%，这样做同时兼顾了家庭和理财计划，可谓一举两得。他说，在美国人们会制定一个1年或者3年计划，但中国人通常都是制定20年计划。

　　Since 1978, more than 2.6 million Chinese students have gone to school abroad, according to the latest statistics available from China's Ministry⁷ of Education. And the number of Chinese students studying abroad increased nearly 18% in 2012 compared with 2011. In a survey published last year, about 80% of high-net-worth Chinese individuals said they planned to send their children overseas to study, according to the Hurun Research Institute, which tracks China's wealthy individuals. At the same time, the cost of real estate in big cities such as Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai has skyrocketed, making a $1 million condo in Boston look like a relative bargain. 'In Beijing you can buy a home for about $600 a square foot,' says Patty Chen, founder⁸ of the PattyC Property Group, which helps Asian buyers find real estate in the U.S. 'In Boston, you can buy a home for about $400 a square foot.'

　　Weber Thompson计划建设的24层公寓大厦1321 Seneca的效果图。该大厦位于西雅图First Hill附近，开发商在亚洲推销该项目时称这是适合学生的住宅项目。来自中国教育部的最新数据显示，自1978年以来，有超过260万中国学生赴海外留学。2012年，中国留学生数量较2011年增长了近18%。据追踪中国富人的胡润研究院(Hurun Research Institute)称，去年公布的一项调查显示，约80%的中国富人表示他们计划将孩子送到国外上学。与此同时，香港、北京、上海等大城市的房价一路飙涨，这让波士顿一套100万美元的公寓看上去相对不太贵。派蒂克房地产集团(PattyC Property Group)的创始人陈艺平(Patty Chen)表示，北京房价现在是每平方英尺约600美元（约合每平方米人民币4万元），而在波士顿，只要400美元就能买下一平方英尺（约合每平方米人民币2.67万元）。派蒂克房地产集团主要帮助亚洲人在美国找房子。

　　Developers, too, are catching⁹ on, marketing¹⁰ new units as student-friendly. In May, Dean Jones, owner of Realogics Sotheby's International Realty in Seattle, will travel to a Beijing luxury property show to market student-friendly real-estate projects, such as 1321 Seneca, a planned 24-story condo tower in Seattle's First Hill neighborhood, near downtown.

　　地产开发商也在迎合这种需求，推销适合学生的新住宅。今年5月，西雅图Realogics Sotheby's International Realty的公司所有人琼斯(Dean Jones)将参加在北京举行的一个豪华住宅展览会以便推销适合学生的住宅项目，比如1321 Seneca。该项目计划建一座24层的公寓大厦，位于西雅图First Hill附近，靠近市中心。

　　One of Mr. Jones's clients, a Chinese family from the Sichuan provinceince, is under contract to purchase an $8 million home outside Seattle. The 14,400-square-foot residence has five bedrooms and eight bathrooms, and includes an indoor pool and 1,600 feet of riverfront. The parents, who both graduated from the University of Washington, have a newborn. The home is a gift from the man's father, who hopes the entire family will settle in Seattle, Mr. Jones says.

　　琼斯的客户中有一个来自四川的中国家庭。这家人已签了合同，将在西雅图城外购买一所价值800万美元的住宅。这座面积达1.44万平方英尺（约合1,338平方米）的住宅有五个卧室和八个盥洗室，还包括一个室内游泳池和长达1,600英尺（约合488米）的河岸。这家人中的父母均毕业于华盛顿大学(University of Washington)，目前有一个出生不久的孩子。琼斯说，这所住宅是男主人父亲赠送的礼物，因为他希望一家人都在西雅图安家落户。

　　In downtown Boston, developers of the Millennium¹¹ Tower, a 60-story building that will have 442 condos, plan to market the property this fall in Asia. The idea followed the success of Millennium Place, a luxury building in Boston that sold 25 condos to Chinese buyers -- many of whom bought units for their children's future use, says Leanne So of Bel & Well Property in Beijing.

　　位于波士顿市中心的千年塔(Millennium Tower)是一个60层的住宅项目，将有442套公寓。开发商计划今年秋季在亚洲进行该项目的营销。北京百富行房地产(Bel & Well Property)的Leanne So表示，开发商之所以想在亚洲推销千年塔，是因为之前波士顿的一个豪华住宅项目千禧名园(Millennium Place)取得了成功，向中国购房者卖出了25套公寓，其中不少人是买给孩子的。

　　Of course, there is always the chance that these Chinese children won't go to a university nearby, or that visas and residence permits won't come through. But many buyers still view the homes as long-term investments that can generate income. 'Even if their kids don't end up coming here, they're more likely to make a profit on renting or resale,' says William Montero, an agent at Gibson Sotheby's International Realty in Boston.

　　当然，总有可能出现这些中国孩子没有在所购房产的附近上大学或签证和居住证未获批准的情况。但许多购房者仍将这些住宅视为可以带来收益的长期投资。Gibson Sotheby's International Realty在波士顿的经纪人蒙特罗(William Montero)表示，即便子女将来并没有住到那里，这些购房者也很有可能通过出租或转售住宅获利。

　　Recently, Mr. Montero sold a $2.6 million two-bedroom, two-bath condo to a Chinese woman with two children attending school in Boston -- one at Suffolk University and the other at Boston University. Four months later, she decided the apartment was too far away from Suffolk's campus, so she sold the condo for $2.9 million and bought a three-bedroom apartment for $2.4 million in a luxury building in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood.

　　Bryce Vickmark for The Wall Street Journal据北京的房地产经纪人Leanne So称，波士顿豪华住宅项目千禧名园向中国购房者卖出了25套公寓，其中不少人是买给孩子的。前不久，蒙特罗卖出了一套价值260万美元、带有两个卧室和两个盥洗室的公寓，买家是一位中国女士。这位女士有两个在波士顿上学的孩子，一个就读萨福克大学(Suffolk University)，另一个就读波士顿大学(Boston University)。四个月之后，这位女士觉得这座公寓离萨福克大学太远，就以290万美元卖出了这套房子，并在波士顿的后湾(Back Bay)附近花240万美元购买了位于一个豪华住宅楼中的带有三个卧室的公寓。

　　She then asked Mr. Montero to show her other listings in the area, and ended up buying three additional properties: a $9.5 million single-family home, which she now rents out for about $30,000 a month, a $4.5 million home that rents for about $25,000 a month, and another unit on the same floor of her children's apartment, which cost $2.8 million. 'It all started with a place for her children,' Mr. Montero says. 'Now she considers the real estate a safe, protected asset.'

　　此后，这位女士让蒙特罗向她提供该地区其他待售房产的信息，并最终购买了另外三处房产。其中一处是一座价值950万美元的独栋住宅，目前该女士以每月大约3万美元（约合人民币18.6万元）的价格将其出租。另一处是价值450万美元的住宅，该女士以每月大约2.5万美元的价格将其出租。还有一处是与其两个孩子所住公寓同一层楼的另一套公寓，价值280万美元。蒙特罗说，这一切都始于为孩子找一处房子，而现在这位女士认为房地产是一种受保护的安全资产。

1 portfolio   

n.公事包；文件夹；大臣及部长职位

参考例句：

• He remembered her because she was carrying a large portfolio.他因为她带着一个大公文包而记住了她。
• He resigned his portfolio.他辞去了大臣职务。

2 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

3 rigid   

adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的

参考例句：

• She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。
• The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。

4 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

5 broker   

n.中间人，经纪人；v.作为中间人来安排

参考例句：

• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions.他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。
• I'm a real estate broker.我是不动产经纪人。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

8 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

9 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

10 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

11 millennium   

n.一千年，千禧年；太平盛世

参考例句：

• The whole world was counting down to the new millennium.全世界都在倒计时迎接新千年的到来。
• We waited as the clock ticked away the last few seconds of the old millennium.我们静候着时钟滴答走过千年的最后几秒钟。