A nice reader sends more info on the Chinese couple locked in a three-year battle with developers. But it's not entirely clear to us if they live in the house. From the Financial Times: "Ms Wu now uses pulleys to lift food and water into her house. Her husband, a kung fu master, has used his martial arts skills to fend off gangs sent by the developers to evict them."
According to the FT, the Wus have become champions to anti-development folks via her demand for Rmb140,000 ($17,950) per square meter for her home. Houses sell for less than Rmb10,000 ($1,280) a square meter in the area, but Wu believes that first figure represents how much the site is worth once the commercial property is developed. Meanwhile, this NY Times article claims the house is locked up and inaccessible to the couple, who are likely on the verge of losing the property.
· Couple challenges Chinese property laws [FT]
· In China, Fight Over Development Creates a Star [NY Times]
· Stay Strong, Home Owners [Curbed LA]