Chapter 61 Old House
"Haven't you always wanted a house? It just so happens that I have an appointment with someone who works at a housing exchange to have dinner together today. They know best where there are houses in Shanghai."
"Oh, thank you so much! Have you chosen a place to eat? We have to find a restaurant he likes, right?" Gao Jialin was overjoyed.
"If you mention something else, I might not realize it, but how could I forget this? I've already found out. His family moved here from Ningbo and he likes Ningbo cuisine. I happen to know a Ningbo restaurant and I've already told him about it. We can just go over and wait for him!"
Niu Xinliang brought Gao Jialin to the hotel, got some tea and snacks, and while eating he told him the origin of the housing exchange. It is estimated that most people have never heard of this unit, but it is now closely related to the lives of ordinary people. People who work here are well-informed and are welcomed wherever they go.
After liberation, the real estate market stagnated for a time. Houses could not be bought and sold. What should ordinary people do if they want to improve their living conditions? Apart from waiting for the unit to allocate housing, they can only do so through house transfer, that is, citizens exchange houses with each other. Thus, housing exchanges were born.
The "house exchange" during this period is different from the concept of "house replacement" in later generations. It refers to the exchange of the right to use the house.
According to the regulations of the Municipal Real Estate Administration Bureau at that time, residents holding permanent residence in the city who needed to exchange housing should apply for registration at the housing management office in their place of residence with their rental public housing certificate and household registration book.
When residents of system housing exchange houses with residents of public housing, the former must obtain the consent of the unit to which the property rights belong; if one or both parties of the exchange are residents who rent private houses, they also need the written consent of the private house owner, and then the housing management office will handle the exchange procedures on their behalf.
The history of Shanghai residents changing houses can be traced back to 1956, when Shanghai established a housing adjustment committee specifically to adjust the work locations and housing for employees who had long commutes to work. This was interrupted for a period of time and gradually resumed after the 1970s.
Nowadays, with the large number of educated youth returning to the city, a large number of people born in the peak fertility period have reached the age of marriage. In addition, with the large-scale concentrated return of educated youth to Shanghai, people who need to change houses have poured in like a tide.
In the beginning, house-exchanging was mainly a private activity, and several large-scale free markets for house-exchanging were spontaneously formed: including Danshui Road in Luwan District, Shanghai Diving Pool in XH District, Kunshan Garden in HK District, in front of Cao'an Housing Management Office in PT District, in front of Yuyuan Housing Management Office in JA District, and in front of Pengpu New Village Housing Management Office in Zhabei District, etc. People looked for suitable houses here, and after negotiation, they went to the housing exchange office to go through the formalities.
Later, Huang Jianmin, who worked at the Huangpu District Housing Exchange Center, discovered that the success rate of housing exchanges assisted by the center was very low, while the success rate of spontaneous housing exchanges among the public was very high. After analysis, he found the reason: the center could provide too few houses.
So he used his off-get off work time to ride his bicycle around and copy down advertisements for house exchanges. Soon he increased the number of housing information in the office from more than 200 to more than 10,000.
With more houses available, changing houses becomes naturally smoother. From the 1970s to the present, Huang Jianmin has successfully helped tens of thousands of families to change to their favorite houses. He is also known as the "champion in house changing" and even the city will ask him for help.
"You're still a student so I guess you don't know much about it. If there's a house exchange fair someday, I'll take you there to see what it's like. Thousands of people will gather in the venue, staring at the electronic screens. It's even more lively than the temple fairs during the Chinese New Year!"
The 1980s were actually equipped with electronic display screens, which can be seen from the housing exchange.
"Nowadays, many private houses have been returned to private individuals. Some people who want to sell their houses will also seek help from housing exchanges. So if you want to buy a house, you'd be right to ask him! But you're only a freshman, why are you in a hurry to buy a house? If you stay in Shanghai in the future, your company will definitely give you points. If you go to other places, won't this house be idle?" Niu Xinliang asked curiously.
Gao Jialin looked around and said in a low voice, "Teacher Niu, you are an old Shanghainese, you must know how hot the real estate market in Shanghai was back then! I am buying a house now, firstly to find a quiet place for myself to write, and secondly to prepare for the future!"
Niu Xinliang helped him a lot during this period, and through contact, Gao Jialin also found that Niu Xinliang was very tight-lipped. The two of them had been eating and chatting together for such a long time, but he didn't hear anything inappropriate from him, so Gao Jialin revealed some information to him.
"No way? The country is planning to liberalize house sales? But now houses are distributed by work units, who would spend money to buy one?" Niu Xinliang opened his mouth in surprise.
Gao Jialin shook his head. "Definitely not in the short term! Even if it is to be changed, it has to be done step by step. If it is too big, it will be a disaster! But when everyone realizes that the policy will change in the future, it will be difficult for you to buy a house!"
"That's right." Niu Xinliang frowned. He had heard his parents talk about the prosperous Shanghai real estate market back then many times, and he had a general idea of the real estate industry.
"Like you said, I'm still a student and don't have much to spend money on. I'll save some money for emergencies and use the rest to buy a house. If I can make money, that would be great. If not, I'll just live on my own. I think my chances of staying in Shanghai are still relatively high."
Gao Jialin stopped here. What he had said was enough. If he was interested, he would pay attention. If he was not interested, he could only say that he was not destined to have such fortune.
Niu Xinliang did not ask any further questions and prepared to go back and think about it carefully.
After a while, Xie Chao, who worked at the housing exchange, arrived. Niu Xinliang introduced them to each other and handed the menu to Xie Chao to order. After the dishes came, the three of them started chatting slowly.
People introduced by reliable people are often more reliable. After chatting for a while, Xie Chao and Gao Jialin both felt that the other party was good. Niu Xinliang was relieved and slowly brought the topic to the right track, "Old Xie, Xiao Gao has earned some royalties recently and wants to buy a house. If you have a suitable house, please help Xiao Gao introduce one!"
"That's amazing! You can buy a house at such a young age? What kind of house do you want?" Xie Chao's expression did not change much.
He works at a housing exchange and deals with houses every day. He has sold quite a few houses, so naturally he would not be as surprised as Niu Xinliang that someone wanted to sell a house. Niu Xinliang had already told him this when he invited him to dinner.
"Look, these are the houses!" Gao Jialin pointed out the window.
Xie Chao turned his head and looked over, only to see several old houses standing there under the shade of the branches and leaves of the sycamore trees.
"Western-style house? That's not cheap!" This time, Xie Chao finally showed a surprised expression.
The release date has been changed to the first day. Thanks to Zhongliujishuiguofuminqiang for the reward (end of this chapter)
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