How far would your savings to buy a house stretch in different cities around the world? We had a look around a Beijing house valued at four million yuan (around 600,000 US dollars) and compared it to places of the same price in nine other hot and not-so-hot property markets. From apartments to villas, residences confined in school districts to ones overlooking the sea, we take you on a global tour around property markets. First up in the series is the property in Beijing, a low-rise block on the city’s East Fourth Ring Road. The house owner gives us the nickel tour and shares his thoughts on the relationship between property prices and a city’s overall development.