Our house, in the middle of the street

A resilient “nail house” owner is the latest in a string of residents to finally accept compensation and move house.

The image of a Xiayangzhang couple stubbornly defending their “nail home”, encircled by a two-lane highway, became an instant Internet sensation.

Intransigent duck farmer, Luo Baogen, and his wife had refused to sell their home to make way for further construction, leaving the five-story building standing incongruously in the middle of the road.

After talks with the Zhejiang provincial government, however, the couple has now agreed a price of $40,000 to bulldoze their home, which they only recently spent around $92,000 to build.

The 67-year-old Luo’s motivation to accept the compensation is unclear, although local village chief Chen attributed it to media pressure. At the time of demolition, Luo still enjoyed running water and electricity.

Mr Luo is the latest in a series of now famous, or infamous, home owners who have resolutely stood in the way of progress, ensuring that their homes have remained intact despite new infrastructure being built around them.

In almost every case the dispute has been about compensation offered to the owners, although some are clearly just happy to live they way they always have, despite the world outside moving on.