有的城市人滿為患，巴不得很多人搬走；有的城市卻為了吸引人們居住，而不惜倒貼錢。讓我們一起來看看這些城市，是不是真有這樣的便宜可占呢？

In the face of declining or slowing population growth， some cities have decided to get aggressive1） about their survival. Some cities are giving away free land， while others are literally handing out stacks2） of cash to folks who agree to move. If you're in the mood for a new town， why not have the town pay to have all of your awesomeness？ Here are the 6 cities that really， really want you to move ...

面對(duì)人口增長銳減或緩慢這一形勢(shì)，一些城市為求生存，已經(jīng)決定積極展開行動(dòng)。對(duì)于愿意遷入者，有的城市免費(fèi)贈(zèng)送土地，有的城市則實(shí)打?qū)嵉匕l(fā)放大把鈔票。如果你有意換個(gè)新城鎮(zhèn)住住，何不讓這個(gè)新城鎮(zhèn)為你的心中所想買單呢？下面六個(gè)城市真心希望你搬去它們那里居住。

Detroit， Michigan， U.S.

We all know the trouble Detroit has had in recent years and it seems they've decided to do something.

For starters， the town is giving away 100 beaten—down3） homes that are in need of some TLC4）. They'll even give you $150，000 to help with the renovations5）. Some of the houses are pretty cool looking， but they'll no doubt need more than $150，000 in repairs ...

Another program in Detroit is offering college graduates a $2500 first year allowance and a $1000 second year allowance towards the cost of renting an apartment in the city. They're also offering up to $20，000 in forgivable loans6） for new homebuyers who purchase a property in the city.

In order to participate， you've got to work for one of the companies that have partnered with the city to offer this program. Some of those companies include Compuware， Quicken Loans， and Strategic Staffing Solutions.

Lincoln， Kansas， U.S.

Anyone who's ever driven cross—country via I—70 knows that Kansas is in no shortage of open space. Kansas has had a declining population since the early 1900's， so towns like Lincoln and Osborne have taken to giving out free plots of land in order to entice7） new residents.

Depending on the city， there are different qualifications that you need to meet. You usually need to agree to build a single—family home on the land and live there for a set amount of time （5 years or so）.

Anywhere， Alaska， U.S.

This is probably the most famous example of a city/state giving away cash. Since 1976， Alaska has paid its residents to live there via its Permanent Fund Reserve. The payouts are funded by Alaska's oil royalties8） and are divided up evenly among citizens.

Over the years the payouts have varied from the smallest （$331.29 per person in 1984） to the largest （$3269 per person in 2008 when a one—time $1200 Alaska Resource Rebate9） was added to the dividend10） amount）， but the average is usually around $1250.

In order to be eligible11） for the rebate， you must not claim residence in any other state or country.

Any City in Saskatchewan， Canada

In an effort to attract more college graduates， Saskatchewan is offering both Canadians and immigrants C$20，000 to live and work in the city for 7 years. You've got to be a recent graduate though （after 2006）.

The \"Graduate Retention Program\" used to be just a tuition—reimbursement12） program for natives， but was expanded in 2008 to help entice graduates from all over the world. The C$20，000 bonus is paid in chunks13） each year when you file your taxes.

Camden， Maine， U.S.

If you're a business owner in need of land， Camden will give you a prime14） 2.8 acres if you agree to create 24 new jobs in the city. The town recently spent $1 million dollars to restore the site and the land is currently valued at $175，000.

You have to put up the initial cash for the deal， but the town will refund you your money once you meet all of the requirements.

Curtis， Nebraska， U.S.

How'd you like a prime piece of golf course real estate for free？ That's the message currently coming out of Curtis， Nebraska.

The town's all—grass， nine—hole Arrowhead Meadows Golf Course （apparently one of the best in the state） has 8 plots of land left and if you agree to build a house， they'll give it to you for free. All of the lots are utility—ready and located on paved streets.

美國密歇根州的底特律市

底特律近年來遇到的麻煩大家都知道，而該市似乎已經(jīng)決定要做點(diǎn)什么了。（編注：由于底特律汽車業(yè)和經(jīng)濟(jì)的衰退，該市人口大量流失。）

對(duì)于新遷入的居民，底特律目前不僅會(huì)贈(zèng)送100套需要費(fèi)心修葺的廢棄房，甚至還發(fā)放15萬美元的整修費(fèi)。有些廢棄房雖然看上去相當(dāng)不錯(cuò)，但要把它們整修好，毫無疑問要花上不止15萬美元……

底特律還有一項(xiàng)計(jì)劃：大學(xué)生畢業(yè)后第一年和第二年可分別獲得2500美元和1000美元的市內(nèi)租房補(bǔ)貼。底特律還為在本市首次購房的住戶提供多達(dá)兩萬美元的可免除貸款。

要享受這些好處，你必須要在參與該計(jì)劃的多家公司之一工作?？挡┸浖⒖焖儋J款、戰(zhàn)略招聘解決方案公司等都在其中（編注：這幾家公司在底特律都是數(shù)一數(shù)二的大公司）。

美國堪薩斯州的林肯縣

開車駛過70號(hào)州際公路的人都知道，堪薩斯州這個(gè)地方不缺閑地。自20世紀(jì)初以來，堪薩斯州的人口就一直在不斷減少，因此像林肯縣和奧斯本縣這些縣市為吸引新居民入住已經(jīng)不惜采取了免費(fèi)送地的方法。

地方不同，你所需滿足的免費(fèi)獲地的條件也有所不同。你通常需要同意在獲贈(zèng)的土地上建一個(gè)單戶住宅，并在那里居住滿一定年限（五年左右）。

美國阿拉斯加州全境

在那些發(fā)放現(xiàn)金的城市或州里，阿拉斯加州大概算是最有名的一個(gè)。自1976年以來，阿拉斯加州一直通過永久基金儲(chǔ)備向本州居民發(fā)錢，用以留住他們。發(fā)的錢來自阿拉斯加州石油開采權(quán)使用費(fèi)，按居民人數(shù)平均分配。

幾十年來，派發(fā)現(xiàn)金的數(shù)額變化不定。1984年最少時(shí)，僅為每人331.29美元；2008年最多時(shí)，可達(dá)每人3269美元（因?yàn)楫?dāng)年的分紅里多了一次性發(fā)放的1200美元阿拉斯加資源補(bǔ)貼費(fèi)）。不過，這筆錢平均下來一般在1250美元左右。

要想獲得這筆錢，你不能在美國其他州或其他國家居住。

加拿大薩斯喀徹溫省各市

為吸引更多的大學(xué)畢業(yè)生，薩斯喀徹溫省目前正在向愿在省內(nèi)城市生活和工作七年的本土居民和外來移民提供高達(dá)兩萬加元的獎(jiǎng)金。不過只有近年（2006年以后）畢業(yè)的大學(xué)生才可領(lǐng)取。

這項(xiàng)“畢業(yè)生保留計(jì)劃”原本只是為本土大學(xué)生提供學(xué)費(fèi)退還的項(xiàng)目，但在2008年擴(kuò)大了范圍，以吸引來自世界各地的大學(xué)畢業(yè)生。這兩萬加元的獎(jiǎng)金將在領(lǐng)取者每年報(bào)稅時(shí)大額支付。

美國緬因州的卡姆登市

如果你是一個(gè)需要土地的企業(yè)主，卡姆登市可以送你2.8英畝黃金地段的土地，前提是你同意為該市提供24個(gè)新增就業(yè)崗位?？返鞘凶罱赓Y100萬美元對(duì)這塊地進(jìn)行了整修，目前該地段的市值達(dá)17.5萬美元。

要獲得這塊地，你必須要投入啟動(dòng)資金，但一旦你達(dá)到所有條件，卡姆登市便將退還你投入的資金。

美國內(nèi)布拉斯加州的柯蒂斯市

想要免費(fèi)獲得一塊頂級(jí)的高爾夫球場(chǎng)場(chǎng)地嗎？內(nèi)布拉斯加州柯蒂斯市目前就發(fā)布了這樣一條消息。

柯蒂斯市的全草皮九洞箭頭草甸高爾夫球場(chǎng)顯然是內(nèi)布拉斯加州最好的高爾夫球場(chǎng)之一。該場(chǎng)地目前有八塊空地，如果你愿意在這里興建房屋，柯蒂斯市就會(huì)免費(fèi)送你一塊。這些空地的公共設(shè)施都已到位，并且全部毗鄰鋪好的街道。

1.aggressive [??ɡres?v] adj. 活躍有為的；積極進(jìn)取的

2.stack [st?k] n. [常作～s] <口>大量，許多

3.beaten—down： 廢舊的

4.TLC： 親切的照料（= tender loving care）

5.renovation [?ren??ve??n] n. 整修；修復(fù)

6.forgivable loan： 可免除的貸款，指在一個(gè)指定地方工作一定時(shí)間（一般為4年）后即可不用償還的貸款。

7.entice [?n?ta?s] vt. 誘惑；吸引

8.royalty [?r???lti] n. （石油、礦山等的）開采權(quán)使用費(fèi)

9.rebate [?ri?be?t] n. （作為減免或折扣的）部分退款

10.dividend [?d?v?dend] n. 【經(jīng)】紅利

11.eligible [?el?d??bl] adj. 有資格當(dāng)選的

12.reimbursement [?ri??m?b??sm?nt] n. 償還；補(bǔ)償

13.chunk [t???k] n. 相當(dāng)大的部分（或數(shù)量）

14. prime [pra?m] adj. 最好的，頭等的