在哈佛附近買房比上哈佛更難
For centuries, Harvard University was the only show in town in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a prosperous enclave just over the Charles river from Boston.
哈佛大學幾百年來在馬薩諸塞州的坎布里奇(Cambridge, Massachusetts)一枝獨秀，坎布里奇這塊繁榮興旺的“福地”與波士頓隔查爾斯河(Charles river)相望。
Today, with an endowment of $37.6bn (the largest in the world) and a yearly tuition fee of $63,025 (among the highest in the US), Harvard is home to one of the largest populations of affluent young people in the US.
如今，哈佛大學總共獲得376億美元的捐款（冠絕全球），每年收取每個學生的學費高達6.3025萬美元（在美國也是數一數二），使其成爲全美國有錢年輕人最扎堆的地方。
In fact, the only thing harder than getting into Harvard — which this year accepted only 5.2 per cent of applicants, a record low — might be finding a property nearby. In March, the median price of a home in Cambridge reached $2.22m, up a dizzying 45.9 per cent from March 2015, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors.
事實上，在難度上唯一能勝過入讀哈佛的事可能要算是就近找房了。今年哈佛的錄取比例只有5.2%，爲史上最低。根據麻省房地產經紀人協會(Massachusetts Association of Realtors)的統計：坎布里奇今年三月的房價中位價達222萬美元，同比飈漲了45. 9%。
“[The university] is an economic powerhouse that directly affects real estate values in this town,” says Stephen Rankin, an estate agent with Remax Destiny. “The rise in property prices here is almost directly linked to the rise of Harvard’s place on the national academic map.”
“哈佛大學是直接影響坎布里奇房價走勢的火車頭。” Remax Destiny房屋經紀人史蒂芬•蘭金(Stephen Rankin)說。“這裏房價漲幅差不多直接關聯哈佛大學在全美高校的排名。”
Yet over the past 12 months the sharp rise in home values has also been driven by the city’s dramatically changing economic landscape.
然而，推動過去一年房價飈升的另一大因素是坎布里奇日新月異的經濟格局。
Biotechnology and pharmaceutical businesses are joining technology companies in opening offices in Cambridge in an effort to attract young talent from Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the city’s other leading university.
生物科技與製藥公司正連同高科技公司一起在此安營紮寨，其目的旨在吸引哈佛以及另一知名學府麻省理工學院(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)的青年才俊。
Amazon, the online retailer, has a 100,000 sq ft office in the city while technology group Google is expanding its footprint there by 40,000 sq ft. Fellow tech companies Microsoft and IBM have bases in Cambridge and, like pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Novartis, employ large numbers of people in the city.
在線零售巨擎亞馬遜(Amazon)在此設有10萬平方英尺的辦公區域，而高科技公司谷歌(Google)正擴建4萬平方英尺的辦公場所。其同行微軟(Microsoft)與IBM在此也建有科研基地，它們與製藥業鉅子輝瑞(Pfizer)以及諾華(Novartis)一樣，僱傭了大量當地員工。
“These new companies are bringing high-paying jobs here and really driving the high end of this property market,” says Christian Jones, a broker in the Cambridge office of real estate services provider Compass.
“這些新紮營的公司創造了大量高收入職位，真正帶動了本地高端房屋的行情。”Compass房屋經紀公司坎布里奇分部中介克里斯蒂安•瓊斯(Christian Jones)說。
Cambridge was first settled by English Puritans in the 1600s, and swiftly became a centre of academic excellence. Harvard — and its law school — has educated seven US presidents, beginning with John Adams (class of 1755) up to Barack Obama.
坎布里奇是17世紀英國清教徒在美洲大陸的首個定居地，並很快發展成爲優質教育資源的中心。從1755級的約翰•亞當斯(John Adams)到奧巴馬(Barack Obama)，哈佛大學及其法學院總共培養了七位美國總統。
In the early 1900s Franklin D Roosevelt was a cheerleader for the college football team.
20世紀初，富蘭克林•羅斯福(Franklin D Roosevelt)曾是大學橄欖球隊的拉拉隊長。
A series of squares — more like major street intersections than leafy parks — mark out the city’s densely populated, culturally distinct neighbourhoods, and are a boon to outsiders attempting to navigate its diverse property market.
一連串的廣場（與其說它們是綠樹成蔭的公園，倒不如說更象一個個主交叉路口）把坎布里奇人口稠密、文化風格迥異的各個街區劃分得一目瞭然，對於想弄清楚各種樓市行情的外來者來說，它們着實是個好幫手。
Harvard Square, the triangular plaza near the centre of Cambridge, is generally seen as the city’s hub. On the doorstep of Harvard’s 200-acre campus, the neighbourhood is filled with bookstores and bustling cafés. Teeming with students and commuters, it is one of the city’s most popular tourist stops and is much sought after by homebuyers.
哈佛廣場(Harvard Square)是緊鄰坎布里奇市中心的一個三角形狀廣場，它通常被視爲整座城市的中心。它位於哈佛大學佔地200英畝的校園大門口，這裏雲集各種書店以及人頭攢動的咖啡屋。哈佛廣場到處是大學生及上班族，是坎布里奇最知名的旅遊景點，也是購房族趨之若鶩的地方。
A three-bedroom home near Harvard Square is for sale for $2.38m through Coldwell Banker. The 2,600 sq ft house has four full bathrooms and a large sitting room leading to a private garden.
科威國際不動產(Coldwell Banker)推出的一套毗鄰哈佛廣場的三臥住宅，售價高達238萬美元。這套面積2600平方英尺的住宅有4個臥室，還有一個直通私家花園的大客廳。
A dwindling number of homes for sale remains the biggest challenge for buyers in Cambridge, says Gail Roberts of Coldwell Banker, with the market at its tightest since the housing boom in 2006.
自2006年房地產大行情啓動以來，這裏的房源越來越供不應求，樓市買家們面臨的最大問題依然是坎布里奇漸趨減少的待售房屋，科威國際不動產經紀人蓋爾•羅伯茨(Gail Roberts)說。
“New home listings sell in about a week,” she says, adding that several years of low inventory and rising prices have made the real estate market in Cambridge the toughest in decades. “Homes in desirable areas can sell in a day or two.”
“新上市的房屋大約一週就能賣掉。”她說，“持續幾年的低庫存與房價上漲造就了坎布里奇幾十年以來最爲緊俏的樓市行情。“黃金地段的房屋一兩天就被搶購一空。”
Just west of the Harvard campus on Brattle Street, a 10-bedroom home is on sale for $10.5m through Sotheby’s International Realty.
在西臨哈佛大學校園的普雷多街(Brattle Street)上，蘇富比國際房地產(Sotheby’s International Realty)推出的一套10臥住宅售價高達1050萬美元。
Built in 1888, the 8,300 sq ft, colonial revival property sits on about half an acre of land. The house has a wood-panelled salon with carvings by Lockwood de Forest, a furniture designer who was a leader of the 19th-century aesthetic movement.
這套面積8300平方英尺、全面翻新的殖民風格豪宅始建於1888年，坐落於約半英畝的土地上。豪宅的客廳用實木護牆板裝飾，上面是19世紀唯美主義運動(aesthetic movement)的先驅、傢俱設計大師洛克伍德•德•福雷斯特(Lockwood de Forest)的雕刻作品。
Other districts seeing increased activity from buyers include North Cambridge — near the suburban towns of Arlington and Belmont — and Kendall Square, the centre of Cambridge’s technology and biotechnology industries.
買家紛至沓來的其它地段還包括毗鄰郊區城鎮阿靈頓(Arlington)與貝蒙特(Belmont)的North Cambridge以及坎布里奇高科技及生物科技雲集之地肯德爾廣場(Kendall Square)。
Buying guide
購房指南
Harvard is the oldest higher education institution in the US, established in 1636
哈佛是美國曆史最悠久的高校，始建於1636年。
Cambridge has a population of just over 107,000; 26 per cent are students
坎布里奇人口超過10.7萬人，其中26%爲大學生。
No restrictions on foreign buyers
外國買家購房沒有任何政策限制。
It is one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the US, with an extensive cycle network
坎布里奇是美國自行車最爲普及的城市，建有四通八達的自行車線路。
What you can buy for . . .
實際購買力
$500,000 A two-bedroom condominium in Harvard Square
50萬美元可在哈佛廣場購買一套2臥公寓房；
$1m A four-bedroom home in the North Cambridge neighbourhood
100萬美元可在North Cambridge一帶購買一套四臥住宅；
$10m A newly renovated, seven-bedroom house near Harvard Square
1000萬美元可在哈佛廣場購買一套翻新的七臥豪宅；
