Chapter 45 - Buying A House (3)

As Shu Yan followed the sales girl toward the inner part of the district, the sales girl continued to point out to her all the amenities available in the district, “This is the security office. There is 24 hours surveillance, ensuring the safety of our residents. This is our district’s very own dual-language kindergarten. There aren’t a lot of kids just yet, but once our residents start to move in, it will be very lively.”

As they walked into the second building, the sales girl said proudly, “Ours is the only apartment building in City Nan that has elevators. And all of them were purchased from overseas so you wouldn’t need to worry about your safety.”

The district has a total of 12 floors and they headed first to the 60 m2 unit.

The 60 m2 unit was as small as Shu Yan had expected. The rooms were small, as was the bathroom and the kitchen. At most, 2 people could pass by each other at one time, with 3 you would be stuck. The 80 m2 one looked to be the same as the 60 m2 one, except for the additional room. The 90 m2 one was much bigger. The patio also allowed a better view of the area. There were a total of 4 bedrooms, she and each of the children could have their own room and still one left for a study. This could work, but Shu Yan still wanted to check out the 120 m2 one.

The 120 m2 unit was impeccable. The room was reasonably sized, the living and dining rooms were spacious. It further has 3 large patios and 2 bathrooms. Very pleasing overall.

“How much is this?” The starting price was the price of the one with the worst location. It was dark and humid. Anyone not of perfect health would probably get sick living in it. The one they were looking at definitely cost higher than the starting price.

“Is this the one that you like?” The sales girl wasn’t ecstatic. Most everyone liked the 120 m2 floorplan after they have toured it, but they were all scared away by the cost of it. The sales girl was deadly afraid that Shu Yan, too, would turn and leave after she heard the price, but she maintained her professional smile and said, “We have hired the best architect, the best construction company, and used the best materials…”

“Just tell me the price.” The only reason she was rambling on was to support why it was so expensive.

“$4,200 per square meter.”

Shu Yan almost wanted to laugh out loud. Whatever happened to the $1,500 per square meter? $4,200 was quite a bit higher than that.

$4,200 might not seem like a lot, but this was $4,200 back in ’92. The official salary of City Nan was $300 per month. That meant one wouldn’t even be able to buy 1 square meter even if he didn’t eat or drink for a whole year.

Shu Yan hesitated about a house this size. It would cost close to $500,000. She’d earn more in interest if she put the same amount into a savings account.

The sales girl looked at Shu Yan nervously.

“What’s the lowest amount? And, what about the parking spot?” Shu Yan walked around the condo one more time. It was impeccable and she liked it a lot. Within City Nan right now, this was probably the best with the exception of the ones that were only permissible to be purchased by foreign corporations or individuals.

“If you can pay it off right away, we can give you a 2% discount. The 120 m2 unit comes with its own parking spot. It’s a freebie so it’s a very good deal.” The sales girl could see the hesitation on Shu Yan’s face and added immediately.

Shu Yan nodded. A free parking spot was nice. “Why don’t we round down to $4,000 per square meter. I also want help with the process of enrolling my kids into school.”

“I don’t have the authority to make that decision. I will need to consult my manager.”

“That’s fine. Let’s go!”