Category Archives: Real estate

Post-doctoral Fellow: Political economy of land development in China’s metropolises

Post-doctoral Fellow: Political economy of land development in China’s metropolises
Department of Geography, Faculty of Social Sciences, The University of Hong Kong (China)

Applicants are invited for appointment as Post-doctoral Fellow in the Department of Geography, Faculty of Social Sciences, from September 1, 2014 or as soon as possible thereafter, but not later than February 28, 2015. The appointment will be made for a period of 3 years.

We are seeking energetic and productive candidates to strengthen our ongoing research on China’s urban and regional development. Applicants should have research experiences in one or preferably more of the following key subfields in the study of China:

  • political economy of land development in China’s metropolises;
  • central-local relations and land finance;
  • urban internal restructuring and redevelopments of urban land;
  • mega-events, local debts, and uneven urban developments;
  • privatization of SOEs and redevelopment of their land.

A Ph.D. degree in Geography or a closely related discipline (politics, sociology, economics, planning, etc.) and a demonstrated record of relevant scholarly publications are required. Relevant field work experience in China is desirable. The appointee will participate in an interdisciplinary research project concerning land development in China’s metropolises: A political economy perspective under the University’s strategic research theme on contemporary China studies.

Information about the Department can be obtained at http://geog.hku.hk.

Enquires about the post should be addressed to the project leader, Professor George C.S. Lin (e-mail: gcslin@hku.hk) or Mr. Tommy Liu (e-mail: twkliu@hku.hk), Executive Officer, Department of Geography.

Applications close on 30 April 2014.

A highly competitive salary commensurate with qualifications and experience will be offered. The appointment carries leave, and medical/dental benefits.

Applicants should send a completed application form, together with a C.V., by e-mail to geogjobs@hku.hk. They should also arrange for submission, to the same email address as above, three references from senior academics, who are familiar with their academic and research background, skills and experience. Please indicate clearly “Post-doctoral Fellow in Contemporary China Studies” in the subject of the e-mail.

Application forms (341/1111) can be obtained at http://www.hku.hk/apptunit/form-ext.doc. Further particulars can be obtained at http://jobs.hku.hk

or at http://geog.hku.hk/about_JOB.html

The University thanks applicants for their interests, but advise that only short-listed applicants will be notified of the application result.

 

Marriage entry and real estate

Newlywed photo session at Haikou beach, Hainan, Goulard Sébastien

In September 2013, the Population Studies Center of the University of Michigan released a research report on how the factors for marriage entry in China have evolved1.

The authors, Jia Yu and Yu Xie, explore the determinants of marriage age in China and the changes caused by economic reforms.

Their study, based on the 2005 mini-census, reveals that in urban China people marry later and are more selective in their choice of partner than in the past.

This paper suggests that the timing of marriage is related to employment status, education and real estate prices. In the pre-reform era, people with less education tended to get married earlier. However, this has changed with the economic reforms. People (and especially men) with less education have become undesirable as marriage partners, as they lack financial resources to support a family.

The most interesting part of this study regards the impact of real estate prices on when people get married. Because of privatization and marketization, real estate prices have increased dramatically since the early 1980s, and young couples need to save first to afford to live together and get married. In cities with high housing prices, marriage is often delayed, but graduates get married earlier, as they have a higher social position and earn more. People in poverty or without stable jobs face many challenges if they wish to get married.

  1. Jia Yu & Yu Xie (2013). Changes in the determinants of marriage entry in post-reform urban China. PSC research report No. 13-802. September []

Shanghai to modify residential rental management regulations

Shanghai street view, Ai Chi-HanThe Shanghai city government is currently trying to amend its residential rental management regulations; once passed, future residential renting will have the following changes:

First, the number of tenants per room shall not exceed two people, exclusive of those with relations of statutory duty of maintenance, legal obligation of support and dependence.

Second, the living area per capita shall not be less than five square meters.

Third, the lessor is explicitly required to sign a letter of guaranty for responsibility of public security with a police station.

Fourth, the penalty , which was originally between 5,000 to 30,000 RMB, will be raised after the amendment to 10,000 to 100,000 RMB.

For more information: http://www.dfdaily.com/html/3/2014/3/1/1123670.shtml

Chinese Journal of Urban and Environmental Studies (CJUES)

A new journal in urban and environmental studies, edited by Pan Jiahua, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Ni Pengfei (CAS and UrbaChina research team), is a member of the editorial board.

CJUESChinese Journal of Urban and Environmental Studies (CJUES) (ISSN 2345-7481 print /2345-752X online) is a peer-reviewed journal that seeks to publish high-quality research papers and book reviews to explore a wide range of academic and policy concerns of urban and environmental studies. CJUES publishes scholarly work with a special emphasis on the following fields:

  • theoretical and conceptual frameworks for urban and environmental studies
  • the trend of urban and environmental development in both China and international context
  • issues of urban studies, including urbanization, urban planning, urban form, urban problems, urban land use, urban transportation
  • issues of sustainability and environmental developments, including environmental protection, environmental policy, climate change
  • linkage between urban, environmental and other areas of social and economic policy
  • international comparison and developments

Table of contents (vol. 1, n° 1, December 2013)

Free access to all CJUES issues is provided until 31 March 2015
(registration online required)

 

Extravagant

Extravagant, Elosua Miguel

A commercial sign in a luxury residence in Pudong, Shanghai. May 2013. Real estate commercial ads often lure potential buyers with messages and photos depicting a fantasy world of affluence, where social life revolves around glamorous soirées such as the one in the photo. When reading this ad one cannot also help but wonder what sort of influence the developer is referring to and how it can be gauged. This is especially puzzling when contrasting the photo where the models are all Western whereas target buyers are surely not. In any case, they must be running short of influential people, as sales have stagnated lately. However, this does not seem to be an isolated case but a general trend in large cities. This could indicate that the real estate market is losing momentum. The interesting (or troubling) point here is that the decrease in sales can be solely attributed to the invisible hand of the market, for there are no government tightening to control prices currently in place, nor plans to implement any.

Green apartments in Nanjing, China

Hu, Hong, Stan Geertman and Pieter Hooimeijer. (2014) Green apartments in Nanjing China: do developers and planners understand the valuation by residents? Housing Studies, 29 (1), 26-43. DOI:10.1080/02673037.2014.848268

The Chinese government promotes green construction as part of the strategy to reduce energy consumption. In practice, green construction can be impeded because various stakeholders valuate green attributes in different ways. This paper uses the analytic hierarchy process to analyse the extent to which developers and planners understand the valuation of green apartment attributes by residents in Nanjing. Results show that buyers of green apartments rank green attributes lower than safety and accessibility, and rank healthy construction materials and comfort much higher than thermal isolation or reduced energy costs. Green developers tend to focus on aspects that define their margin, such as green attributes and locational benefits and overlook the social needs, which are not addressed in building codes and not under their control. They have better understanding of green residents’ priorities with health issues; planners are more familiar with the social needs of residents and lack green marketing knowledge.

Read full text on Taylor&Francis Online (restricted access)

Hu, Hong, Stan Geertman and Pieter Hooimeijer. (2014) The willingness to pay for green apartments: The case of Nanjing, China. Urban Studies. Prepublished January, 7, 2014. DOI: 10.1177/0042098013516686

Faced with the challenge of developing sustainable cities, the Chinese government sets green construction as part of the national strategy to reduce energy consumption. However, the consumer market has shown limited response to such policies. To upscale green building, it is crucial to understand the market demands for green apartments. This article employs a conjoint model to estimate the willingness to pay for green dwellings versus accessibility to metros and jobs and neighbourhood quality by different socio-economic groups in Nanjing, China. Results show that the socio-economic status of homebuyers determines their willingness to pay for green attributes. Only the rich are prepared to pay for green apartments to improve their living comfort. To all, the notion of health is appealing as consumers are willing to pay for an unpolluted environment and for non-toxic construction materials used in buildings in good locations.

Read full text on SAGE Journals Online (restricted access)

Shopping in an urban village

Electrical equipment shop in an urban village, Elosua Miguel

An electrical equipment shop in an urban village in Kunming, Yunnan. Urban villages are informal settlements that have proliferated in many Chinese cities (for other articles on urban villages click here:  http://urbachina.hypotheses.org/5981). Although usually described by officials as dirty and insalubrious, urban villages are not slums, or at least not the ones the writer of this article has visited. However, it’s difficult to define these informal settlements as homogeneous living communities for their location and construction vary considerably. In many cases, original villagers construct five to six stories buildings (it seems it is the maximum height recommended to avoid having to install an elevator) with a few facilities. Sometimes, the urban village preserves its original layout, thus keeping some resemblance to a rural settlement in the midst of urban structures.

Urban villages are often lively neighbourhoods, with a buoyant service trade for residents and outsiders lured by the affordable prices. They can play an important role in helping migrants integrate into urban life. Some Chinese scholars (see for example Wu Fulong) advocate protecting these villages and supporting the informal market. It is interesting to note that the original villagers (farmers transformed into landlords) turn the double property system to their advantage and make good profits renting out rooms and retail space. (This is not the case of this shop, which is still run by the original resident.) The paradox here is that had farmers the right to sell their homesteads (which they do not), they could exploit the inherent value of land and profit from it. As a consequence, the urban village would probably be dismantled, making way for new residential or commercial developments, and its residents, migrant workers for the most part, would be forced to look for affordable housing in places far away from the city centre.

Urban village 4 (chengzhongcun - 城中村), Elosua Miguel

Therefore, until governments make urban social housing policies for migrant workers more flexible, it seems desirable to preserve urban villages and acknowledge their role in providing affordable housing in a somewhat integrative community. The government could introduce regulations regarding safety and hygiene issues to guarantee an acceptable standard of living, as well as levying business taxes on rental activities that could then be returned to the village in the form of basic services.

 

How urban housing demand can be met in China

Gottschalch, Sören (2013).  Urbanization in China and how urban housing demand can be met. Berlin : Institute for International Political Economy, 42 p. (Working Paper, 27).

As it has rightfully been recognized by China’s central government, successful urbanization will be decisive for the nation’s future development. Key challenges will be to realize urbanization economies, improve production and innovation capabilities, direct urban and suburban growth and improve a more equal distribution of benefits of economic growth to the population. This paper contributes to the discussion with illuminating the main drivers of urbanization: (i) migration and (ii) in situ urbanization, and the housing necessities for migrants that evolve from them. It attempts to support the establishment of an integrated and sustainable urbanization path by considering migrants urban housing demand in China’s socio economic transitional environment and indicating proper match. Migrant’s housing choices are driven by underlying priorities determined by their characteristics and their exposure to the immediate socio economic environment. Therefore, both, migrant’s characteristics as well as their immediate socio economic environment are put in relation to urban growth and its spatial features. The result is a set of housing supply forms and a set of distinctive migrant housing demands. Urban housing outcome and the match of housing supply and demand reveals housing preferences and housing market constraints. Based on these findings further housing recommendations can be given.

Read full text on EconStor (accessed 19 December 2013)

Home prices in China still rising

Chen Tian (2013-12-18), Home prices in China still rising, Global Times.

Top 10 cities

Prices of new homes continued to rise in November, official data showed Wednesday, with government measures to cool the property market failing to deter buyers.

Out of 70 major cities tracked by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen saw the largest year-on-year rise in new home prices in November, according to figures published by the NBS Wednesday.

Shanghai led the rise, with a year-on-year increase of 21.9 percent in November. Beijing saw an increase of 21.1 percent, Shenzhen saw a 21 percent jump, and Guangzhou’s prices rose by 20.9 percent.

Out of the 70 cities, only Wenzhou in East China’s Zhejiang Province saw a fall in prices, with a slight drop of 1.2 percent year-on-year in November.

The November price rise in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou was smaller than in October, the NBS said, noting that the 70 cities’ average month-on-month price increase declined from 0.7 percent in October to 0.6 percent in November. The average year-on-year price gain in the 70 cities has been slowing down for three consecutive months since September, it said.

“The annual price increase slowed down, because some local governments have been putting more effort into controlling the real estate market,” Liu Jianwei, a senior NBS statistician, was quoted as saying in a statement posted by the agency Wednesday.

Major cities in China have introduced a slew of measures since September, including raising the down payment requirements and tightening scrutiny of non-local buyers, to curb the rising home prices.

Read the post at  Global Times

Drivers of China’s urbanisation and property development

Hu, Richard1 (2013) Drivers of China’s urbanisation and property development. The Australasian Journal of Regional Studies, 19:2, pp.156-180. [accessed 19 November 2013].

The mainstream scholarship that seeks to explain China’s urban development tends to favour a macro discourse that focuses on institutional factors, such as globalisation, economic growth, and national policy reforms. These are important contributing factors, but they do not necessarily suffice to capture the complexities and interrelations of the immense magnitude of China’s urban development. In this article, I approach the endogenous factors to explain China’s urban development through the lenses of urbanisation and property development. I posit a dichotomy of institutional drivers and noninstitutional drivers. I argue that the dichotomy of institutional and noninstitutional drivers provides an integrated framework to explain China’s urban development, and fills the gap of missing non-institutional drivers in the mainstream scholarship. Discussions through this dichotomy reflect progress, identify problems and suggest further research agendas for both institutional and non-institutional drivers.

1. Associate Professor, Faculty of Business, Government and Law, University of Canberra, Bruce, ACT, 2601, Australia

A well deserved break

A well deserved break, Elosua Miguel

A 104 year-old woman playing pai gow (paijiu – 牌九) with her friends in Kaiping, Guangdong, May 2013. Living standards in the Chinese countryside are improving steadily. The elderly are granted pensions (yanglao baoxian − 养老保险), provided there are no children to take care of them (zinü fuyang – 子女抚养). The monthly allocation is meagre, between 80 to 90 yuan per month, depending on the age of the beneficiary. In the province of Guangdong many villagers have been able to benefit from the economic development by an urbanisation model that is unique in many respects. By converting collectives into property companies that develop industrial zones (and residential property), farmers are able to generate profits and receive dividends in return. These ladies enjoy now a placid life and may spend more than three hours a day chatting and playing this game.

Beijing’s rise as a global city

Wang, Feng (2013) Beijing as a globally fluent city. Washington, DC : Brookings-Tsinghua Center for Public Policy & Global Cities Initiative. 20 p. (accessed 28 October 2013)

Beijing is without any doubt already a global city. A symbol of China’s emergence as a global power, Beijing ranks among the world’s most influential cities. Beijing has developed into an important global city in a relatively short period of time. Beijing has benefited from efforts by the Chinese government and Beijing’s municipal government to elevate the city’s international reputation, and from Beijing’s legacy and position as China’s political and cultural center. There has also been massive investment in infrastructure to support business and innovation activities and to enhance Beijing’s global connectivity. However, Beijing’s rise as a global city is still incomplete.

Beijing’s global influence in terms of economic competitiveness and financial interconnectedness still do not measure up to the top cities in the world. In Beijing as a Globally Fluent City, Feng Wang examines four key questions on Beijing’s rise towards becoming a top tier global city:

  1. What kind of city does Beijing aspire to be?
  2. How can Beijing improve its governance?
  3. What does it take to build a more vibrant economy?
  4. How can Beijing’s global identity be further enhanced?
  • Wang Feng (Brookings-Tsinghua Center for Public Policy)

World tallest skyscraper in Dubai? No, Changsha.

Sky-CityWhere will the world’s tallest skyscraper be erected next? In Dubai, London, New York, Shanghai? The correct answer is in Changsha, Hunan. Currently, few people outside China can point Changsha out on a map. The city is best known for its communist past (Mao spent his youth in Changsha), but that will change if it becomes home to the “Sky City” tower.

The plans for the “Sky City” state that it will reach 838 meters and will take only 90 days to build. This rapid and unprecedented construction will be possible thanks to the use of pre-fabricated units1.

However, last July authorities halted construction because the building company had not completed all the necessary legal procedures2. Furthermore, experts are concerned about safety issues and question the company’s ability to build such a tall structure, as it has previously only constructed a handful of small buildings.

It is possible that this company, “Broad Sustainable Building”, has the innovative technology to construct high structures; in which case, their architects will soon be as famous as Gustave Eiffel. Be that as it may, perhaps a more important question relating to this project is why are taller and taller structures constantly being built?

Certainly, his “Sky City” tower would help Changsha increase its attractiveness. I am sure tourists would enjoy visiting this unique structure. But for how long? The problem with this kind of “record-breaking building” is that soon another “record-breaking building” will be planned and steal the limelight. In less than two decades, the race to build the tallest structure has taken a frantic pace. In 1998, Kuala Lumpur’s Petronas towers (452 meters) were inaugurated and became “iconic” thanks to a blockbuster movie (“Entrapment”) setting its climactic moment on their skybridge. Then, in 2004, Taipei broke the record with the 509-meter Taipei 101. Since then, tallest buildings have been constructed in New York, Mecca, Shanghai, Dubai (Burj Khalifa with 828 meters). There is no reason to believe new structures will not be planned. In this case, Changsha tower will only be one among many, and its construction will simply not be worth investment.  I understand that the “Sky City” could become Changsha and maybe even provincial China’s flagship. However, the same technology, if reliable, could be used to construct social housing for migrants, quickly and cheaply. This would make Changsha a truly innovative city and achieve global appeal in a much more sustainable way.

  1. LIU, E., (July 25, 2013), China starts work on tallest building, CNN, http://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/24/travel/sky-city-breaks-ground/index.html, accessed October 2, 2013 []
  2. Sky city tower halts construction after just 10 days’ work, Curbed.com, http://curbed.com/tags/sky-city-tower, accessed October 2, 2013 []

The Lion’s Share. What’s behind China’s economic slowdown

Working papers series FMSH

Guilhem Fabre (2013), The Lion’s Share. What’s behind China’s economic slowdown N°53 | octobre

Following the global crisis, the stimulus package of 2009-2010, with its huge expansion of credit, marked the end of ” Cheap China “, with the underpricing of labor, capital, land, energy and currency, and disproportionally shifted growth in favor of the public sector and real estate, the lion’s share of the State-Party system. The present process of deleveraging must adress the unprecedented inequities which stem from distortions in the allocations of resources and the respective functions of the central and local governments.

Full text of the article available in ont the French openarchive HAL-EHESS

Xiao Hu, driver

Xiao Hu

Xiao Hu is a local Shanghainese. He works as a private driver for a local businessman with a net monthly salary of 3000RMB. He has been doing this job since 1999. In 1997, he joined the ranks of millions of xiagang zhigong (下岗职工), the workers layed off by the SOE (State Owned Enterprises), who no longer could enjoy the so-called iron rice bowl, or tiefanwan  (铁饭碗). Nonetheless, leaving his work unit or danwei (单位) didn’t go hand in hand with leaving his home: like most factories did at the time, unit homes were handed over to their occupants, and Xiao Hu became a home owner overnight (he obtained a leasing that, since the promulgation of the Real Estate Law in 2007, has an explicit duration of 70 years, automatically renewable, with right to transfer and to inherit).

It took him 10 years to get his personal dwelling. At that time, the housing shortage in many cities in China was such that workers had to wait as long as a lifetime to get public housing (until the mid-nineties half the population stayed in their parents homes due to this housing shortage)1. In the meantime, three generations, eight members in total, had to live in the same 24 square meters room. As the roof was high enough, they managed to build another floor so that they could double the living space, despite feeling more cramped. They had to share the bathroom and kitchen with other neighbours. When he first moved to his new home he was overjoyed. It was a 15.7 square meter apartment in one of the old Xuhui district. Back in 1985, the average living space per capita in China’s cities was just 7 square meters (one fourth the living space per capita in 2010)2. The monthly lease was, and still is, 50RMB per month.

In 1997 the number of vehicles in Shanghai was still low. He thought becoming a taxi driver could be quite profitable, with so many people earning higher salaries, expatriates flocking to Shanghai who were not allowed to drive in China, as well as tourists who came attracted by the revival of the “Paris of the Orient”. Being a local Shanghainese was an advantage since migrant workers were not allowed to get a taxi driver’s licence.  He studied how to drive and obtained his licence, but he soon discovered that it was very difficult to earn a livelihood as a taxi driver, unless he gave up sleeping. He had to pay a monthly fixed sum of 4,500 RMB from his revenue to the cab company (which was owned by the Shanghai Government). After meals, cigarettes, gas, and car maintenance, he calculated he would need to double that amount just to get by. Therefore, he quit the job after just one year and started his current job as private driver.

While during the last fifteen years the city’s economy has increased sixfold, his salary has not kept up with this pace. He has seen how soaring prices eat up his income every year, and feels nostalgic for the time when he started and had a greater purchasing power. However, this sentimentalism doesn’t go as far as longing once more for the iron rice bowl because, as he remarks, he can fill his stomach and dress warmly (chibao chuannuan – 吃饱穿暖). As is the case in many Shanghainese households, his wife oversees the household economy, giving him a 50 RMB daily allowance. Fortunately, he holds another account for himself where he deposits tips and money he gets from overtime work. As he enjoys his daily breakfast of youtiao (sort of Chinese churros) and rice congee, he reflects on the changes society has undergone during the last two decades. He has witnessed the comeback of social classes. Among his comrades from the old factory there are many who have succeeded in business and hold several apartments and luxury cars. They belong to a new rich class who flee to Sanya during winter, and who feast on hairy crabs every weekend.

Learning how to live in a consumer society where the number of unaffordable goods does not cease to grow hasn’t been difficult, as he belongs to those who learnt how to be happy with little. However, housing is a source of anxiety again, although this time for his daughter, who is already 28 years old, and won’t get married anytime soon. Had she a boyfriend, this problem would be solved, as Xiao Hu expects any prospective candidate to have an apartment as a prerequisite for further discussions about marriage. As is the case for most young people working in Shanghai, buying an apartment is almost unthinkable with just a salary (the average price per square meter is as much as 30 times average yearly incomes3). Despite the wave of redevelopments undergone in the city in the last two decades, his neighbourhood hasn’t changed, and probably will remain like this since the local government has declared the area as protected. There is little hope for an eventual expropriation that could land the family with a large apartment located in one of the city’s new districts. He considers himself lucky though, since compensation for expropriation is something that hasn’t always been satisfying. The family is contemplating buying an apartment built on farmers’ land. Although they are aware that it’s illegal, as the law forbids citizens to buy farmers’ homesteads (and forbids farmers to sell their homesteads), they are willing to take the risk. Prices are half those of similar properties in adjacent urban areas, and the local government has been lenient so far, although demolitions do happen now and again. Risk of demolition is low, he says, as he inhales the last drag of his cigarette. They still have to wait three years till Xiao Hu’s retirement, at which point they will probably leave the apartment to their daughter and the couple will move to the outskirts of the city. Or they will stay and continue sharing housing with her, and perhaps with the next generation, like the time when Xiao Hu was working at the state owned factory.

 

 

 

  1. Xing Quan Zhang (2008) Housing and Urban Upgrading in Yantai, China. United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT []
  2. ibid 1 []
  3. China Daily. 2013, February 21. Addressing Realty Price Rises http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2013-02/21/content_16242064.htm Accessed 3 October, 2013 []