Story By: Scott Feng, Sub-Editor: Francis George, Agency: AsiaWire Report

This nail house keeps getting hit by cars as it has been encroaching on a ‘new’ eight-lane road for a decade but the homeowner still refuses to sell it to the government.

The owner, surnamed Guo, and other residents were approached by local officials in 2008 during the planning phase for the eight-lane main road in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province in south-western China.

Local party secretary Gu Li revealed that Guo was offered 2,000 RMB (219 GBP) per square metre for his one-storey family home, which was built in 1971 and renovated over the years.

Guo, however, refused the sum – presumably to hold out for a better offer.

Chengdu’s plans to build the thoroughfare known as Jinhua Road went ahead, but workers were forced to build around Guo’s home, reducing four driving lanes into one.

Guo told local media that over the years, it had been repeatedly hit by numerous cars but that luckily no one had been seriously injured yet.

In early 2018, Guo had revealed that he hoped to sell the property by September, but an agreement seemingly was not reached.

As a result, the holdout property known in Chinese as a “dingzihu” or “nail house” has remained standing for 10 years, forcing passing cars into a one-lane bottleneck.

It is now being used by a scooter repair business.

Guo said about being a holdout owner: “I don’t mind being called a nail house owner. It’s not like I’m holding out for an astronomical offer; I’m just trying to protect my rights as a homeowner.”