Hot Property - A Guide To Foreign Investment in China's Property Market

October 2006 China Briefing

This issue deals with the purchase, rental and subsequent sale of foreign invested property in China. It looks at the medium term view as whether or not property acquisition is a good investment, highlights matters concerning due diligence, the purchasing process, required qualifications, financing property acquisition and a review of the new laws and regulations that have just been introduced to cater for this market, including new taxes affecting this.

Comment is by Dezan Shira & Associates property unit with additional comment by Debenham Tie Leung and Colliers International. A final article refers to the legal minimum salary levels across China and identifies the extent of these. The main article, "Hot Property - A Guide To Real Estate Investment in China" is contributed by Cher Lim, Head, Special Projects Advisory Team, Dezan Shira & Associates Beijing, Grace Wu, Dezan Shira & Associates Beijing, Zoe Zhou, Senior Associate, Dezan Shira & Associates Guangzhou, Fiona Yuan, Senior Associate, Dezan Shira & Associates Shenzhen, and Marco Cesarini, Dezan Shira & Associates Shanghai Office. This deals with the practical aspects of acquisition, including China land use rights, and the procedures and qualifications for purchasing property in China, in addition to conducting due diligence on China property acquisitions. Charles Zhang, Associate Director at Colliers International, comments also on the performance of Chinas property market and likely trends. The article also covers buying, renting and selling property in China, again by Dezan Shira & Associates, and the legal and tax implications of this, with additional comment on the new Chinese regulations that have been introduced to curb speculation in the Chinese property market. A useful table showing differences in procedures between purchasing property in China directly from developers and also the Chinese second hand property market is included. Nicholas N.K. Cho, Director of Debenham Tie Leung also comments on financing options for foreigners in Chinas property market. The issue is completed with a national overview of Chinas minimum salary levels, with an updated guide, detailing minimum wage levels in 24 of Chinas provinces and municipalities.