A TWO-STORY apartment in a residential complex named Fulin Garden on Shangbao Road in Futian District was recently found to have been renovated into 14 small rooms, a program with SZTV reported.

    The more than 200-square-meter duplex apartment used to be divided into five rooms, but it was renovated into two floors without a staircase and seven separate rooms on each floor.

    Inside each room, there is a personal electricity and water meter as well as a water heater, air-conditioner and washing machine. The apartment was obviously renovated to be rented.

    The property management company said that the total electricity consumption of the apartment had largely exceeded the original capacity, which caused a blackout for all of the apartments inside the building during peak hours. The company had to cut electricity usage of the apartment, and the tenants inside the small rooms could not use electricity during peak hours.

    Insiders told the program that the apartment had been rented to a second landlord who then renovated it into 14 individual rooms.

    The second landlord refused to face the camera and give a response, but he promised to return the rent to the current tenants and help them find other places to live.

    The case is being investigated. (Zhang Qian)