From overlooked, provincial satellite to modern industrial hub boasting international companies and living standards to match, Suzhou has undergone a remarkable transformation during the last decade. Matching this growth prices for property, and land in particular, have also shot up, with the gap between Shanghai and Suzhou prices diminishing every month.

In the beginning it was Suzhou New District (SND) spearheading this development. Foreign companies invested millions in factories with luxury compounds springing up to house their newly arrived workers. Supermarkets were the next big arrival along with the obligatory KFC outlet in most of them.

But within a few years it was the ambitious plans for Suzhou Singapore Industrial Park (SIP) that was gaining all the attention. What were once farms and rice fields have now become brightly lit boulevards and towering apartment blocks. And as expectations rose, so too did standards. Many villas and apartments today have central air conditioning and underfloor heating as standard. As foreign influences became more apparent, a greater number of western restaurants have opened up too. In the beginning this may have been more a case of Chinese-style western food as opposed to the real thing, but restauranteurs in Suzhou have been quick to learn how to cater to expat palates. More recently the Suzhou Elevated Ring Road has made traveling around the city a lot less hassle. And dotted along the roadsides, international hotel chains are also making their presence felt. Next, in the pipeline are a number of high-end retails malls which will hopefully make those shopping trips to Shanghai a thing of the past.

Today, the west side of JinJi (Golden Rooster) Lake is the number one recreational and living destination in Suzhou – but maybe not for long. On the east side of the lake, the Hyatt and Intercontinental are building hotels side by side; a Times Square shopping mall will soon join them; and Modern Plaza, which for the last three years has struggled to find its feet, will finally start getting the business that the area's tenants have been longing for.

Suzhou or Little Shanghai (as some people still call it) has in 10 years grown from an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan in terms of being the home city, albeit temporarily, for expats from all over the globe. 

Birthe Eriksen is the Corporate Marketing Manager of Maxxelli Real Estate

This month's hot properties

Old-style Suzhou elegance

Location: Baijia Xiang, downtown Suzhou
You'll need to be more than a humble administrator to end up living this well. Part of a new luxury villa compound designed in exactly the same layout as the eponymous classical garden, if features four bedrooms inside a 320 sqm property. Because of the similarity with its UNESCO-listed doppelganger it has already acquired the nickname of 'mini Zhuozheng Garden'. The spectacular circular gongmen gateways alone would have impressed any imperial merchant with a few bob to spare.
Monthly rental: 50,000 RMB

Location: at the crossroad of Nanshi Jie and Qiongji Lu SIP
This five-bedroom, 338 sqm villa (going by the English name Eastwest) is in one of the more luxurious, new compounds being developed by real-estate group Vanke and is located on the east side of Jinji Lake, close to Xietang River. The location is particularly good because of the proximity of useful amenities and areas including the Commercial Plaza, the Neighborhood Centre and Ligongdi. A good bet because of its transport links including light railway lines numbers 1 and 3.
Monthly rental: 35,000 RMB

Location: Baita Dong Lu, downtown Suzhou
Situated in a compound known as Shilin Yuan, this property is centrally located near to Lion's Garden, the Humble Administrator's Garden and Pingjiang Road. Again the architecture follows typical Suzhou Garden culture representing  the more delicate characteristics of the style most noticeably in the windows and walls. There are three bedrooms over a cosy 140 sqm.
Monthly rental: 5,500 RMB. 

To view any of these properties, please contact Maxxelli Real Estate Ltd on 6762 6351 / 6347, via emai (info@maxxelli.net), or via www.maxxelli.net.