全通翻譯/翻譯社

The State of Real Estate

A common complaint of foreigners living in Taiwan is the characterless, monolithic nature of much of the architecture. However, there is a lot more variety than first meets the eye. Japanese takes on Victorian architecture, which fuse neo-Renaissance elements with Greek colonnades, sit quietly in the shadows of glistening skyscrapers. Nearby, red-brick Sanheyuan courtyard buildings bespeak the Fujianese origins of much of Taiwan's population. Communities of ramshackle tenements are a testament to the cheap, makeshift solutions that were required to house the influx of soldiers and their families from China in the late 1940s onward.

Many of the older structures –– the single-story sanheyuan and the veteran's villages –– are becoming increasingly rare as they give way to modern housing. Although invariably less attractive, these modern dwellings address spatial and seismic considerations. From the early 1960s to the mid-1970s, four-story duplexes using reinforced concrete became the norm. Construction of toutian-type housing began in the late ‘70s. These types of row houses are generally three stories with overhanging balconies and an arcade below. Designed with Taiwan's climate in mind, they afford pedestrians protection from the elements. However, many of these were found wanting during the 921 earthquake and improved steel-reinforcement was introduced in the 1980s and ‘90s.

It's no secret that property prices have been sky-high in recent years. Rentals in many parts of town are at an all-time high, and some real estate investors are even turning to cities like Tokyo, where a weak yen has created relatively cheap deals. However, there are some ways to get a better value for money. Tenants or purchasers can consult the actual price registration system implemented by the government last year. Government-sponsored housing initiatives like Tsuei Ma-Ma are also worth checking out.

台灣宜居：住宅大觀園

住在台灣的外國人常會有的埋怨，就是多數建築毫無特色且劃一的性質。不過，台灣建築的多樣性其實比乍看之下高出許多。融合新文藝復興元素與希臘廊柱的日式維多利亞建築，靜靜地坐落在閃亮摩天大樓的影子中。不遠處，紅磚砌成的三合院透露出許多台灣人的閩南淵源。倉卒建成的住宅社區則是廉價、權宜的解決方案，這是要讓一九四○年代末期以來，從中國大量湧入台灣的軍人及其家眷有個棲身之所。

三合院平房和眷村等許多較老舊的建築，因為被現代住宅取代而漸趨罕見。這些現代住宅雖然沒那麼有吸引力，卻滿足了空間與地震方面的考量。從一九六○年代初期至一九七○年代中期，以鋼筋混凝土興建的四層樓雙拼住宅蔚為常態。透天式住宅的建築潮流始於七○年代末期。這類成排的房屋通常為三層樓高，有突出的陽台，底下則有騎樓。這種建築設計考量了台灣的氣候，為行人提供了遮風避雨的空間。不過，這類建築有許多都在九二一地震期間消失不見，改良的鋼骨強化材料則在一九八○與九○年代期間引進。

近年來房價狂飆已是眾所皆知的現象。城市裡許多地區的租金都達到史上高點，有些不動產投資人甚至轉往東京等其他城市，東京因日圓疲弱而使得交易價格相對低廉。不過，還是有些方法可找到較划算的住處。租屋或買屋者可查詢政府去年施行的實價登錄系統。崔媽媽基金會這類政府補助的租屋組織也值得參考。

資料來源：biz互動英語報