Wu Muyang, a businessman from Shanghai, was inspired by the film to start an online house swapping platform, Haoeasy.cn, for those who want to swap houses with others in China.

Wu initially launched the site for travelers who wanted to spend an extended amount of at their destination with low costs and home comforts. Despite Wu's original intention, when his website was up, he found that many members were using the site for much more than travel.

"There are a lot of people trying to swap houses because of job changes and their children's education," Wu explained. "It's common to see o. ce workers in Beijing sent to Shanghai for one or two months."

"In this case, the best way is to find someone who would like to swap houses with you!" Wu laughed, adding that it is a simple and cost e. ective solution. Wu told the Global Times that a pair of o. ce workers recently swapped their homes in Yunnan and Sichuan. The man from Yunnan was sent to Chengdu by his company and the man from Sichuan wanted to visit Yunnan for a holiday. The two met on Haoeasy. cn, exchanged information and made the swap.

"Not only [did the swap] save them money and trouble, but also made them good friends," he added.

Besides inter-city house swapping, many people also want to swap their home for one in a di. erent part of the city, closer to their work or children school. In large cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, the line from home to work or school can sometimes be complicated and lengthy. Many people spend hours zigzagging across the city at least twice a day.

A post on a Beijing-based online education community is themed "Houseswapping for our children's education." The post calls for parents who are keen on swapping their homes to be closer to their children's school to list their details. The thread has 44 pages of responses, many marked "urgent" and "ASAP." People commonly post their mobile numbers and detailed addresses for potential houseswapping partners, which is rarely seen on public forums.

"Our child is enrolled in Beijing No.4 Middle School," posted a mother surnamed Tian. "We are now renting an apartment near my child's school. It's our second year in the house and we are paying a lot of extra rent. The landlords know the psychology of parents too well. They know we want to avoid shifting, so are raising the price. It is typical in the vicinity of a good school."

"That is why I want to swap homes with someone who owns a house near the No.4 Middle School, who has a child studying near our current residence, where there is a famous primary school," she continued.

Yao Sidong, a father who also tried to swap homes, said he found the idea intriguing but the reality difficult.

"The pair of house swappers have to match in several areas. They must both live far from their children's schools and their children's school must be near to their counterpart's current residence. Besides, the conditions of their current residences cannot di. er too much. What are the odds of these conditions being met!" Yao said.

"That is why I set up the online community," Wu explained.

"I want the members of the community to look for their perfect house match by themselves. They are responsible for checking if the location and condition of the house meets their expectations and they are responsible for checking if they can trust their house to their house-swapping partner."

Wu has drafted a sample houseswapping agreement to give first-time house swappers a legal reference. The agreement addresses the exact swap duration, the safety of the house for the duration, the responsibilities of the two parties in case of emergency and house maintenance.

"An agreement can get you some legal protection, but the most important thing is that your house-swapping partner is someone who is honest with good intentions," Wu added. Wu now travels to Hainan for holidays three times a year, thanks to his house-swapping site.

"I personally enjoy house-swapping a lot," he said. "Once you find a good match, you should go and try it out!"