Stone

About 15 - 20k per square meter is average. On a one million RMB mortgage, the monthly payment is about 6,000 RMB per month for 30 years. That's within reach of your two-income household earning a bit above average incomes. banks here usually only require your monthly payment to be less than 50% of your monthly income. Interesting. I am wondering what percentage of Beijing housholds who are currently earning over 150K RMB a year to qualify for the 1 million RMB mortgage (I mean, if we do not include those migrant workers who never intend to settle in Beijing).

Tony_Onrock: many (I think at least half of) apartments within the Beijing 3rd ring are selling above 1 million RMB. Who are those typical buyers for those apartments? Do you have to earn at least 150-200K RMB a year to buy those apartments? Or most of the buyers are investors who are speculating on price appreciation?

China indeed has made tremendous progress since 1978. I remember back in 1978, I was a middle school student, in a big city of Chongqing. My family was allocated two rooms in a two-story building which housed many families, who all had household members working for the same employer. We shared a large kitchen with some 5-6 families, and a public bathroom and public restroom with even more people. Meat and vegetable cooking oil were rationed, as you needed coupons to buy those items. But I do not remember I was ever hungry at that time, as I had a lot of fun with other kids in the same housing compound. 1978 also marked the first (or 2nd) year when China restarted National College Entrance Exam. So many students began to be under growing academic pressure.

My guess is that average Chinese (household) savings of 172,523 RMB do not count rural households, but can include big cities as well as small towns. Comparing average Chinese savings account with average American mortgage debt is not informative. A typical American household has $4K in the bank. For the half of American households who have a retirement account, the average balance is $45K. And the median American family "net worth" is $120K, according to the latest Fed Survey of Family Finance.

I sometimes travel between China and US, and also within the continental US. I used to buy my tickets from travel agencies in Boston Chinatown, becuase I found they could get the best deals. Now it is no longer the case. I can almost get the exact same prices from the airline's websites and I can choose the seats right from my computer. I guess more and more experienced consumers will use the airline's own website instead of the travel agencies? Is that sort of a trend?

To be on the safe side, your wife can ask a doctor in China to write a prescription for the said medicine. The prescription will prove that the medicince is for her own use, not for commercial purposes.

But it will be a gift from heaven for those who work in China and have their US$ salary pegged at a rate of 8.3 RMB per dollar. Why would they be pegged to 8.3 RMB/dollar? What GDBill was trying to say (as I guess) is that for U.S. citizens who are now working in China, their Chinese yuan earnings (and assets in China) will be worth much more when converted to dollars, with anticipated yuan rise. They may have the option to come back to the States and retire here. Example: Let's say you bought a nice apartment in China for 680,000 yuans (or $100,000 equivalent). After 5-10 years, the price of your apartment rise to 1,000,000 yuans. But the exchange rate also changes to $1 = 5 yuans due to yuan appreciation. So your apartment will be worth $200,000, twice the original costs in dollar terms. Of course, the above example presumes that home prices in China will continue to rise. There are few investment alternatives in China. That is why a lot of "hot money" is pouring into properties.

But it will be a gift from heaven for those who work in China and have their US$ salary pegged at a rate of 8.3 RMB per dollar. Why would they be pegged to 8.3 RMB/dollar? What GDBill was trying to say (as I guess) is that for U.S. citizens who are now working in China, their Chinese yuan earnings (and assets in China) will be worth much more when converted to dollars, with anticipated yuan rise. They may have the option to come back to the States and retire here. Example: Let's say you bought a nice apartment in China for 680,000 yuans (or $100,000 equivalent). After 5-10 years, the price of your apartment rise to 1,000,000 yuans. But the exchange rate also changes to $1 = 5 yuans due to yuan appreciation. So your apartment will be worth $200,000, twice the original costs in dollar terms.

This may not be directly related. But many experts are saying Chinese yuans are under-valued by 25-40%. But if they let yuans rise 40% (in 5-10 years), it will be a huge problem for U.S. citizens who plan to retire in China, because the U.S. income from pension souces will not go far in China when converted to yuans.

If you do a quick search on flychina.com for flying from either Boston or Washington DC to Beijing in the next month or so, you will find Asiana is the cheapest. But both Asiana and Koren Air involve long overnight connection, either on your outgoing flight or on your return flight.

Last time I was thinking about Korean Air because it is cheap, but it requires an overnight connection, right?

Can I offer my perspectives from a different angle? Just my 2 cents. Chengdu is close to a politically sensitive area (you know what I mean). Is it possible that the security guard at the school, possibly at the direction of some school officials, is told not to allow foreigners, because they are afraid that some foreign journalists might sneak in and take unwanted pictures of the school and put those photos in Western media drawing unneeded attention? I can imagine the school officials must take full the responsibility if their school is exposed in a derogatory manner. Yes, you showed the guard your marriage certificate, but could the guard still be suspicious of a foreign journalist? My guess you might be able to avoid this scenario in a big and more open city like Shanghai? Also, I have the guess that if you dress in an expensive suit and have an interpreter go with you, that the guard might let you in, because he may think you are a foreign official who has some business with the school principal?

Because you are a US citizen and your wife has a US green card, your son is treated as a US citizen, and as such, he needs a China visa. You just follow whatever the instructions there, then you should be fine. Another way is to ask for a Chinese travel agency who is experienced in helping US citizens obtaining a visa. Then you do not have to go all the way to NYC. You may have to pay a small fee for the China travel agency in your local area.

You are absolutely right, Kyle! There is a tiny dial pad hidden on the side. I just have to click and enlarge it. And there is no charge for the 800 toll free number, just like a regular phone. It's great. Thanks a lot for the info.

I just installed SKYPE. But if I call US 1-800 numbers, I can not use SKYPE to navigate through the menus, right? I mean, SKYPE does not allow me to dial 1 or 2 or 3 to choose a menu, after I dialed the 800 number.

What if you use SKYPE to call a landline or a cell phone in the U.S.? Does it only cost a few dollars a month, even you make lots of calls?

Has anyone used SKYPE? Is it really so cheap and so good? It says it costs less than $5 a month and you can make unlimited calls in the U.S.? How can it be? I have been using Verizon for my landland service and it costs me at lease $20 a month even I make very few calls. Thanks

Did you go to the Consulate yourself or have some travel agency apply on your behalf?

Bill, you may be right. The figures that I got are from a large real estate broker in Beijing. But, remember the Fifth Ring in Beijing is so far away from downtown BJ, it is probably comparable in distance to some suburb in NJ to downtown NYC. Talking about saving 9.5 years of gross salaries without paying taxes, without eating, clothing, healthcare, shelter, etc is still way beyond imagination. If the apartment averages RMB 1.2 million, then if you take a 30 year mortgage, then you could pay well over RMB 2 million in total.

I was reading this article which says the average unit price for new apartments within the Fifth Ring of Beijing is RMB 17,000/M2. The average size of the new apartment sold is 113 M2 (or 1,216 square feet). Thus the average sale price of a new apartment in Beijing within the Fifth Ring is RMB 1,921,000 (or US$281,000). The article continues to say the average annual before tax family income in Beijing is about RMB 113,000 (US$16,500). If the average family is making $16,500 a year and has to support a $281K apartment, the home price/income ratio is 17 times, way too high. I think you can buy a nice house of 1,216 square feet for $281K in many parts of the United States. No wonder many Chinese tourists say U.S housing is cheap.

I had BCBS before my wife and kid even got here. So during the open enrollment period, I asked my employer to see if BCBS can cover my wife and kid once they arrived here. The HR director told me just to fill out their names and DOB on the electronic form, and they would be covered. My HR said after my wife and kid got here, and received their SSN, then I should update the form, then that's it! They never need to see the marriage license. Also, when you get married, it is considered a "life-event", then you can even change your insurance coverage during the middle of a year.

I have a 2-year mutiple entry visa to China. But it expires this month. When I inquired at a travel agency, they told me the Chinese Consulate only grants 1 year multiple visa now. Even the Visa Application Form on the Consulate website no longer lists 2 year mutiple entry visa as an option. So I am wondering if anyone here has recently got a 2 year multiple entry visa and how? I read David got a 2 year visa, but how? Thanks

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_ATM_Alliance

You need a Tri-band phone and open up international roaming feature.

My wife and kid arrived in Shanghai, China last week. She said nobody was quarantined on her plane, because everybody passed the medical test, which only lasted a few minutes. They even did not bother to wear the respirators that she brought with her, because nobody sneezed or coughed on the plane. They are now in her parents home and will stay indoor for 1 week for "observation purposes" as recommended by the Chinese health official.