My family and I are new to KM and have been apt hunting. Since I work near Wen Lin Jie / Wen Hua Xiang and have an irregular work schedule, we thought it would be best if I lived as close to work as possible. We looked at an apt off Wen Lin Jie (Xian Sheng Po to be specific) the other day and although the apt and bldg were a bit shabby, we felt like we might be able to make it work. It's a 2 BR for 2,500 w a Western toilet and super minimalist kitchen (but w lots of windows that kinda give the kitchen character despite it all).

I know apt hunting is very subjective, but I was wondering if anyone out there has any caveats about living in an old building like this or is familiar w the area. Since I have two small children, I worry about hot water being spotty (the agent said it has 24 hr hot water available - the shower has one of those big round heating things (not sure what they are called) but who knows if he is truly informed about the bldg. It's not solar powered. I also hate critters! Roaches and mice and bedbugs, even though I seem to always live in cities that have lots of those so maybe I should just accept our coexistence...

There seem to be a lot of newer apts for slightly higher in price around Yi Er Yi / Hong Shan Dong Lu / Jian She Lu (which I think would be a 20 min walk or a 10 min bike ride or a short bus ride). If you live in that area, how do you like it? Are there a lot of convenient services within quick walking distance?

Thanks for any advice.

Nancy

Whenever I've been in Kunming long term I've always liked the Hong Shan area for actually living much better than Wen Lin Jie even though I spend a lot of time down there. As you mentioned it is only a 20 minute walk and when I was commuting to Yunda this provided nice daily exercise. Hong Shan is much quieter, many of the complexes have nice new apartments, and there are indeed plenty of restaurants and services nearby including Slice of Heaven which provides good coffee and food if you are in need of a western food break and don't want to head down to the Wen Hua Xiang area. There are also two large markets (one on Hong Shan Nan Lu) for buying produce, two banks including ICBC at the end of the road, and a variety of other services. Next year when I move back for a year or longer my soon to be wife and I are definitely planning to live in this area based upon what is available there and also the low level of noise.

From personal experience.
Even new places can have 'critters', especially if they are near restaurants.

20 Mins is a nice walk, and a break state from work. By the time you get home the office is well behind you, psychologically and physically.
China is surprisingly noisy, I look for peace wherever I can.

I visited the new buildings near McDonald's on hongshan donglu and they aren't bad. They're just next to a supermarket, cinema, vegetables market, and several other facilities, with a good number of buses. The other new complexes at the end of Jianshe Lu also have other local facilities nearby, and seem to be a lot quieter (if you aren't facing the new construction). Some restaurants and stores can also deliver to your door.
For the water heater, if you have kids, you might have to wait 15mins for the water inside the tank to finish heating each time someone has to shower. You can also have a small electric instant heater that doesn't require you to wait and doesn't have limits on the amount of heated water, but i am not sure if it's safe to be used by kids. Also, lower floors tend to get visited by critters sooner than higher floors.
A 20min walk isn't really that far. Even a taxi ride would seem too short.

Check your mailbox. I sent you a PM.

This summer having sold a home here, closed a rented office, renting a new home and moving three times I have a few comments. Do not trust anything the largest Xx agency agents say. We experienced lying, cheating, lack of knowlwedge and fabrication from most every one of them. They solely wanted a commission as fast as possible. Even my home buyer refused to pay them. We found the smaller private agents to be much more customer service oriented and knowledgable. 24 hour hot water is only one issue. Having regular water has been a major issue in many areas of Kunming in recent times. You will need space heater too in the winter. I found some Wen Lin Jie area rental places to be not as many sq meters as stated by some, especially those targeted at foreign students. The rental price is based partly on sq. meters and location. I would suggest a good rental contract not the one Xx agency uses. This is not to discount all the good honest landlords here who treat all fairly.

I live on Yuantong North road, two bus stops to Wenlin, one to Wenhua Xiang. Prices here are certainly cheaper. The apartment is large with two bedrooms. We pay 1400 per month. The only problem is solar powered hot water.

@Ningsi
Old places come with old things - old water pipes, old electrical wiring, old sewage, old mold & bugs.

Newer places come with newer stuff - which can also include newer toxic chemicals in the wallpaper, glues, furniture, etc.

Your best guide will be your own nose, your own eyes, and your own ears - be meticulous with each sense and trust your feelings. Most real estate agents are best relegated to background noise or elevator music - ignore what they say - any imbecile can become a real estate agent here - it's part of China's social responsibility - employing those with unmarketable job skills to keep them off the streets (and from stealing my bicycle...'nother thread).

Quiet is critical with kids. Check out the locations during the five major peak human traffic periods - morning, lunch, and late afternoon rush hours, dinner time, and somewhere around 10-12pm at nite.

Look at parking (regardless of vehicle ownership) for both cars and e-bikes. Cars indicate the socio-economic level of the neighborhood. A plethora of e-bikes generally indicates a plethora of somewhat lower skilled to unskilled laborers - a potential burglary risk.

The level and quality of restaurants in the area similarly indicates the general mood and night life of the area...and restaurants are bug and rodent ultra-mega-super magnets.

If your desired location is a newer high-rise with an elevator - check out the elevator during rush hours. Check the elevator make - if it's foreign, the place might actually be quite nice. If the elevator is domestic - the builder went cheap - you should expect a plethora of miniscule but incredibly annoying and time-consuming problems to surmount. Older places - hope you like stairs and nosy neighbors.

Bluntly, a rental contract rarely means anything in China and especially in Kunming. This is why most landlords prefer advance payment of the contract in full. The disadvantage - hot water issues, broken toilets, plumbing, wiring issues - all at your own expense. FYI - that big ol hunkin tank in the bathroom is most probably an electric water heater. For a large family - you'll have to stagger your bathing times, bathe together, or opt for an on-demand gas heater which is virtually infinite (as will your gas bill be)...but - dirty gas fouling the heating elements requiring monthly to quarterly service - it can be more effective for larger families. FYI - most gas heaters have an auto-shutoff timer - so you'll have to be careful when, for example, filling the bathtub. Also - fouling of the heating elements accelerates the auto-shutoff - sporadically...and increases your gas bill exponentially.

Cooking and heating gas in older places is toxic. You'll occasionally notice stenches in the kitchen similar to that of burning tires or similarly toxic rubbish. If the kitchen is electric - better for families.

As you're family enabled - unless you opt for a car with the inherent parking, theft, and vandalism woes - you'll probably want to opt for an e-bike (as opposed to turning your husband into the grocery mule). Surf the gokm threads on the wonders and woes of e-bikes. They remain high target theft items - but my bike store tells me mountain bikes (like my last TWO) are the highest theft of convenience item, for those looking for quick pocket money.

We rented an old apartment in Wenlinjie close to the carpark next to Salvadores. We only stayed there for a few months and although it had a large balcony which was really nice the big negative was that it was really cold at night due to not much sunlight making it into the apartment.

That winter 2010 to 2011 was a cold one and our kids got sick due to cold bedrooms.

I would suggest Hong Shan Dong Lu area would have better quality apartments.

Thanks everyone for all of the responses. It's helped to wake me up from my momentary romantic vision of living in a shabby-kinda-cool-but-potentially-miserable-apt.

We went back over to the Hong Shan area tonight for a stroll and definitely you are right about the access to services being sufficient so we'll keep searching there and other neighboring areas.

Exercise and peace are also good points! I'm sure I'll need a bit of both while in China.

@tigertiger - on a separate note, I can't wait to finally find a place so I can give the DIY yogurt making a go :)