"I’ve been in China for 27 years, and this is probably the lowest confidence I’ve ever seen,” says Shaun Rein, founder of the China Market Research Group.
Among the more tremulous sectors of the Chinese economy, Rein identified the country’s once-bloated real estate market, which accounts for roughly a third of China’s economic activity and has been tumbling sharply since Beijing’s broad-stroke crackdown on the debt levels of mainland property developers. Real estate giants Evergrande and Country Garden have become key casualties of the clampdown.
″[Buyers] think housing prices might continue to drop, so even if there’s pent-up demand for housing, a lot of home buyers are telling us, we’re not going to buy this month, we’re not going to buy this quarter, because we’re scared prices are going to drop another couple [of] percent in the coming months,” Rein says.
The real estate market doesn’t account for 30% of the economy. Though I suppose there’s a bunch of way to measure “the economy”.
There is pent up demand for housing yet property marketing is dropping. Actually it may have bottomed out but who knows. Beijing wants to correct it and that’s what’s been happening.
I have property in tier 1 and tier 2, it dropped to pre covid levels. I wasn’t doing property for quick flips but I definitely noticed it.
The scars of covid are everywhere in China just like most countries. its going to take a while for it to recover. just like everywhere else.
China collapse remains a click bait dream for the time being if you ask me.