China Real Estate: Boom Not Limited to Just Beijing, Shanghai Magnet Markets

There was a good article this week issued by Reuters, and authored by Langi Chiang and David Stanway, on yet another part of China where a booming real estate market is raising serious concerns. Hainan is a tropical island off the country’s southern coast, part of the region I call China’s Back Door, which is being developed as a “fun in the sun” tourist destination. The island has already seen one real estate boom and bust in the early 1990s, and is now a focal point for property speculators all across China.

The reason I mention the article is because it highlights some of the key features of China’s real estate “riddle” that I’ve been noting again and again. First, there is the phenomenon of sold but empty apartments: