Re-emerging from her spotless kitchen with a steaming cafetiere and plate of homemade cookies, Victoria Lenton is clearly content with life in the luxury of her Beijing apartment. Spacious, tastefully decorated and beautifully furnished, the property which Victoria Lenton and her husband rent for 27,000 yuan (nearly $3,400) a month is located in Chaoyang Park, currently one of Beijing's hottest areas for leasing.

Choosing between property rental and purchase in Beijing can be a tough decision. For many foreigners (and Chinese), it is purely a case of economics: mortgage repayments are usually lower than rental costs, and investing money in the capital's rapidly appreciating property "bubble" is more productive than throwing it away on rent. Others are buying properties as investments, gambling that homes in desirable locations will always attract tenants and that their values will inevitably rise. Still, considerable risks remain: there is always a fear the bubble may suddenly burst, construction quality is highly variable, regulations aren't always clear or enforced, and buying a home is expensive, time-consuming and potentially nerve-wracking.

Victoria Lenton is typical of the many foreigners wary of committing themselves to a Beijing property purchase. "We finally decided against buying here-there are too many disreputable developers and too many of our friends have had problems after they have bought homes," she says. "Renting is far more convenient and has actually turned out to be easier than living in France."

Notwithstanding the numerous challenges that those buying a property here face, there is little doubt that Beijing's residential sales market is currently booming. The city was home to the fastest growth in house prices across the whole of China last year According to a report recently released by Sina.com and New Real Estate Magazine, residential real estate prices in Beijing have increased by 42 percent over the past three years, despite attempts by the Chinese Government to cool the market.

In 2004, new homes sold at an average price of 6,178 yuan per square meter-by late 2006 this figure had soared to 8,792 yuan (just under $980). Market analysis by Jones Lang LaSalle, the international property consultant and investor, shows that strong demand for new housing and office space in Beijing is expected to hike up real estate prices by a further 11 percent this year alone.