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anonymous
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Q: how foreigners can buy a house in China?

especially in Shanghai

12 years 26 weeks ago in  Business & Jobs - Shanghai

 
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Comments (6)
Posts: 1318

Emperor

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Yeah you can buy a house, just remember that the land the house is on still belongs to China, it's just leased for a period of time (that period varies depending on what they want to do with the land). So don't think that you can invest for foreign money to buy a big house now that your great grand kids will be able to live off of till their old and gray.

grammarman:

You haven't answered the question at all! The Question was HOW can foreigners buy a house in China, not IF they can, followed by some typical clever-dick know-all point about 'ownership' which probably applies in any country - it's rare to own the land in perpetuity or for much more than the average lifespan. What we need to know is HOW to QUALIFY to buy a house (apartment) and then some details about the legal and financial proceess. For example: 1) Do we have to have a resident visa at the time of purchase? 2) How long must we have resided/worked in China (on full resident visas) before we can buy a place? 3) Do we have to be married to a Chinese National? Or put the title in their name? Can we own it in our own name, and will it still be ours if we go home? 4) (How) can we get a mortgage (loan)? 5) As there are restrictions on how much foreign currency we can import per year ($50k I believe?), how can we pay for it, if we cannot/do not get a loan? 6) I believe (from previous reading) that there is some dodgy business with non-refundable (20%) deposits when making an offer/purchase - what are the rules/processes here? And ther must be differences between buying a new place from a developer and buying 2nd hand (resale). 7) What does the price you pay entitle you to? Communal areas like gardens, reception, elevators are included or not? And if it's a new place, basic installations like kitchens, bathrooms, floors, doors, and 'decoration' are not usually included, so what advice/tips do you have on these matters? And so forth. I hope you're/your/yore not an English teacher, btw, as not only can you not answer a simple straight question relevantly, but you include the usual their/there/they're mistakes and 'off of' nonsense and several other errors which make your 'post' almost worthless and indecipherable! But I see your/you're/yore amassing points like there/their/they're is no tomorrow here - ugh!

12 years 25 weeks ago
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12 years 26 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1006

Shifu

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Use the term "buy" loosely, you own nothing in China, but you can lease it for what? 70 years is it?

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12 years 26 weeks ago
 
Posts: 3025

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a foreigner in China can buy a house or apartment, only one, and must use it for living himslef or herself, can not be used to be rented or any other commercial possibility. It can be placed in your name, your type of visa could be of some importance, and you must have the total amount of money required, no bank will loan you money to buy a house unless you have resided and worked in China for many years.

Be aware that new homes in China are delivered to you in an unfinished condition, just doors and windows, but no floors, no plaster on walls, no appliances, no lamps, no painting of the inside, not even a shower head or a wash basin, and of course no toilet either.

So, figure at least another 200,000 yuan to finish and furnish the house after buying it. And I have seen some blow 1/2 million yuan on just this last part.

Franck3:

Not sure you are right about the plastering in a house. The ones I looked at were all plastered. 1/2 million rmb is cheap compared with where I live.

10 years 18 weeks ago
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ironman510:

You must go to your Embassy and announce that you have bought a house in China and have it stamped by the officer.

10 years 18 weeks ago
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HappyExPat:


I  do know a few foreigners who have bought homes in China, representing countries like Australia, Sweden, Holland, England, Germany, USA, etc, and in some cases they do have more than one home, and none had to take either the home or the documents of ownership to their respective Embassies to be stamped.  What could that accomplish?


 

10 years 18 weeks ago
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12 years 23 weeks ago
 
Posts: 960

Shifu

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It is my belief that you have to have evidence that you have resided in China for 12 months prior to the purchase. That is what I was told in the Shenyang property office. Is this correct?

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12 years 23 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1263

Shifu

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Why would you want to?

ironman510:

Because some of us have a wife here and will retire here. Stupid question Mike. How old are you? 12?

10 years 18 weeks ago
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Scandinavian:

@ironman. Where we live, thanks to the hyperinflated property prices, and the huge supply of "luxury apartments" no one can afford, renting is the better deal. It might not be the case all over the country, but buying a place in a super polluted country that is bound to blow up with social unrest just doesn't make it onto my list of "Best Ideas Ever"

10 years 18 weeks ago
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10 years 18 weeks ago
 
Posts: 456

Shifu

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Chinese houses are built like fortresses. They must be hard to heat. But they are built to last. No termites.

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10 years 18 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1198

Shifu

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@franck

do you live in china? seriously? made to last? what a fucking joke. the houses here look after 5 years already like they are already 150 years old and almost fall apart.

 

leasing for 70 years.... yeah if the house will last 70 years, i give them 20 at max

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10 years 18 weeks ago
 
Posts: 9631

Emperor

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: alternatively he is from one of those countries where they build houses out of flimsy wood constructions despite having severe weather like tornadoes. but you're right, the buildings do not have a strong quality feel to them.

 

actually I saw the inside of a 1980 building during renovation. To my surprise this 6 floor architectural marvel was built from bricks not concrete. The walls at 6th floor are very thick, mostly solid, and I think witness that those who built it, either have no idea of the structural properties of the building material or had little faith in the quality of the building materials. 

 

I have had the conversation at a dinner table.

Me: So this is a a nice place, how long time have you had it

Happy Home Owner: Since the building was built

Me: So you've taken it over from your parents ? 

Happy Home Owner: No, we bought it 3 years ago when we got married

 

The building I live in is from 2009, it has rusty stuff running down the sides, not from mounting brackets where windows are ac's are, but just from the sides of the main pillars carrying the weight. There is no way in hell this building will stand 70 years.

The whole structure is made to sell for as high profit as possible. Even if we say the building is going to be structurally sound for the next 70 years, then the interior is not made to be in a modern world. Heating/Cooling/Water supply is made, so it is there, that is it. It is not made so it works well, is energy efficient, so it is discrete. I am sure if this building was built up to western standards, energy consumption could be cut in half, easily. I have a couple of patent pending ideas on how to boost energy efficiency of "modern" Chinese "houses". 

 

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10 years 18 weeks ago
 
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