Meaning:
Literally meaning “old, shabby and small,” this term refers to the kind of apartments in the downtown sections of Chinese cities that are rather small (normally 40-60㎡), old, and with no elevators or proper management. Usually built by government or State-owned enterprises in the era of the planned economy in China, these apartments, with a history of more than two decades, are easy to identify among high-rise buildings and new housing estates in cities.
Example:
A: 听说你买房了？
Tīngshuō nǐ mǎifáng le？
Is it true that you’ve bought an apartment?
B: 是的。我积蓄不多，所以买了间老破小，好处是离公司近，生活方便。
Shì de。Wǒ jīxù bù duō，suǒyǐ mǎi le jiān lǎopòxiǎo，hǎochù shì lí gōngsī jìn，shēnghuó fāngbiàn。
True. I don’t have a lot of savings, so I bought a small old apartment in downtown. The bright side is its closeness to my office, so it makes life convenient.