Hi
I am considering purchasing an apartment in Zhangjiang High-Tech Park but have no idea about the process. Can a foreigner buy an apartment in Zhangjiang? What are the laws? Is it possible to take the money out of China after selling the house? Should I go to a local real estate agency or are there special agencies for foreigners? At what stage should I get a lawyer? I appreciate any information.

Basics for a foreigner concidersing buying property in China
a) Must have been here for one year with a vlaid Work Permit and Residence Visa
b) Must use it as a primary residence...cannot rent it out.

Serach the threads...google box at left of site.

Been a lot of good threads on this already. Will probably answer your questions.

Actually just legally here with a valid residence permit. Students are eligible if somehow they can afford it.

I am a student and I have been here for more than a year. I searched the threads but I need more specific information because I have no experience in buying a property. The rental for a small flat in Zhangjiang is about 3000 RMB a month.I am going to live here for the next 12 years. Considering the taxes and other costs do you think that if I buy a flat I can save a lot of my money? And at what point should I get a lawyer?

Assuming that one has been here legally with a valid residence permit, does it matter whether the apartment is purchased with funds onshore or offshore?

no,. seller will be happy to take your money.

fangrui wrote:I am a student and I have been here for more than a year. I searched the threads but I need more specific information because I have no experience in buying a property. The rental for a small flat in Zhangjiang is about 3000 RMB a month.I am going to live here for the next 12 years. Considering the taxes and other costs do you think that if I buy a flat I can save a lot of my money? And at what point should I get a lawyer?

a lawyer is not required though if you want to invest the money in protecting yourself early with legal representation, I suppose thats your call.

Asking online will only get you general guidance. I recommend you talk to several real estate professionals and compare what they say to get a feel for what the real story is and then get an accountant to give you a better picture of whether or not its a good idea. Then the lawyer (or a damned good agent that you trust) to do the actual transaction.

Info on what one needs to do is available in CHinese online but may not be complete in english.

yu888 wrote:no,. seller will be happy to take your money.

Thanks. I was thinking more along the lines of bringing money offshore here.

Actually it MAY make a difference when selling as if the original funds were from outside China, then it may be easier to take the returns after selling, back out of China.

Thanks for the clarification. I assume then that transferring funds to purchase a home isn't subject to that usd50k per annum limit? How long does this process normally take?

There is a 64m2 flat in Zhangjiang for 115万 which was built in 2005. First of all do you thing that it's a reasonable price for Zhangjiang? Is it common to bargain when buying an apartment? How much do you think that I can bargain?
I read somewhere in the forum that we can not buy second hand houses in Pudong, Does it also include Zhangjiang?

foodcoma, wiring in has no limit, and exchanging to rmb for purchasing a home also has no limit though it does require an application to the foreign exchange commission (whatever its callled) that needs your sales contract to be approved. Keep all documentation of money coming in, incase you want to take your returns later out.

fangrui, you really need a real estate professional to advise you on going rates and the situation in your particular area and price range. But here are a few basics. In china you negotiate EVERYTHING: the broker fees, the price, and heck, if you can even the taxes!
The rest you should get from a trusted professional (or several if possible) and ask lots of questions of them.

yu888 wrote:foodcoma, wiring in has no limit, and exchanging to rmb for purchasing a home also has no limit though it does require an application to the foreign exchange commission (whatever its callled) that needs your sales contract to be approved. Keep all documentation of money coming in, incase you want to take your returns later out.

Thanks

thanks,

Is the Olympic going to change the real estate market in Shanghai?

P.S. I know that I ask too many questions but I wat to get as much information as I can from foreigners before I go to a Chinese real estate agent.

Expect a 20 % drop in the housing market over the next 2 years. Dont buy!!!!!!!!

fangrui wrote:P.S. I know that I ask too many questions but I want to get as much information as I can from foreigners before I go to a Chinese real estate agent.

why? you don't trust the locals as much?
isn't it better to get the infos from the people who actually know the game better, like the locals?

Of course I don't trust them. Do the math, I am a studet, A foreigner, no experince in buying things more expensive than 10000RMB, not very fluent in Chinese,....
however I think that now I have a general idea. It's time to speak with a local agent.

Expect a 20 % drop in the housing market over the next 2 years. Dont buy!!!!!!!!

Why is the market dropping?

around 1m for a place in ZJ sounds ok but u may need to spend some on renovations. i assume the place u are looking at, gvn that its second hand, would have some basic renovations. thus u may need to spend another 100k cny more to do it up. however be aware that ZJ has not much basic facilities and there is no supermkt in ZJ. u may need to travel to longyang rd or even tang qiao to buy basic groceries. of course there is small shops around but they close early. the highlight of ZJ is the mtr station but thats about it. good luck

You will need Proof of Earnings/funds and must be able to pay 30% deposit. If you are staying for 12 years it will be worth buying a place to live.

The process is not hard here in China, it is in fact the same as the UK and in some ways better.

can a student get a mortgage in china?? seems odd but TIC i guess

foodcoma, wiring in has no limit

not luring underwater here for another debation, my experience there is a cap if you could not provide concrete legal doc. my experience was from last year when i like to set up my 2nd office in shanghai (it is a bit long story if you asked me why not transfering from my hq as register capital to the new company, basically, the main reason was that i wanted my new company set up as quick as i could)

Is the >1yr previous (continuous?) residence still applicable?

yu888 wrote:Actually just legally here with a valid residence permit. Students are eligible if somehow they can afford it.

It's actually not that easy to buy or sell your apt. in Shanghai now for foreigners. We bought our duplex in 2004, before there was any law governing foreigners buying/selling houses. In 2006, the Chinese government imposed laws barring any foreign people to buy properties in China. My wife was Shanghai born and immigrated to USA many years ago, so we have some ties here. However, when we moved back to USA, we had trouble selling the place.

As you know, all the laws in China are in the hands of the executor. If you are lucky, the one year residence requirement may be overlooked. But if you are unlucky...Gerenally, it is very very hard for foreign people to buy/sell properties here.

My personal experience is that local real estate agents are not trustworthy, they never tell you the truth, they jack up the price and only interested in selling you the high price unit. International real estate agents are very expensive and don't have access to the local Shanghai market as well as their local peers.

The best way to buy a place is through some trusted friends.

EVERTHING is negotiable here. My suggestion, marry a local. (I did), And we saved RMB 150,000 on our 600,000 apartment, and screw the lawyers, coz they will screw you. A good agent is all you need.

lilymo wrote:It's actually not that easy to buy or sell your apt. in Shanghai now for foreigners.

Why do you say it's not easy to sell?

Just sold our apartment in Pudong.
Had an offer in the same day that my wife went to the real estate agent.

Most difficult part seems to be dealing with banks for transfer of funds.
Now waiting for last bit to come from the bank lending to the buyer.

monalisalee wrote:EVERTHING is negotiable here. My suggestion, marry a local. (I did), And we saved RMB 150,000 on our 600,000 apartment, and screw the lawyers, coz they will screw you. A good agent is all you need.

When you bought your apartment, were you able to register it in both your names? Which agent did you use? Were you able to get a bank loan easily?

blondesands wrote:When you bought your apartment, were you able to register it in both your names? Which agent did you use? Were you able to get a bank loan easily?

Getting a bankloan would probably be the least of your concern, assuming that you are buying within your means. They just need proof of income, either onshore or offshore.

If you are buying a new home, there'll be tons of bank officers lurking around dying to get you a loan. If not, just approach any bank and most would be happy to help you spend by lending you money. International banks like HSBC and Citi offer offshore bank loans, as well as RMB loans.

When you bought your apartment, were you able to register it in both your names? Which agent did you use? Were you able to get a bank loan easily?

Yes, we have joint ownership, because that's the way we wanted it. No, didn't need a bank loan, paid cash, but I am sure my wife could have borrowed, had we needed.
I could find the name of the agent, if you needed, but my wife is away right now. They were a Chinese agent, with no English, but there are good agents out there, that know the laws very well.

fangrui wrote:There is a 64m2 flat in Zhangjiang for 115万 which was built in 2005. First of all do you thing that it's a reasonable price for Zhangjiang? Is it common to bargain when buying an apartment? How much do you think that I can bargain?
I read somewhere in the forum that we can not buy second hand houses in Pudong, Does it also include Zhangjiang?

That prices sounds very high for Zhangjiang. Which xiao qu is it? The most expensive one in ZJ for small apartments might be Urban Classic V, and their smaller apartments are going for RMB16000/sqm approx.

Foreigners cannot buy a second apartment anywhere in Shanghai in theory. Second hand apartment is ok if it's your first property.

maneo wrote:

lilymo wrote:It's actually not that easy to buy or sell your apt. in Shanghai now for foreigners.

Why do you say it's not easy to sell?

Just sold our apartment in Pudong.
Had an offer in the same day that my wife went to the real estate agent.

Most difficult part seems to be dealing with banks for transfer of funds.
Now waiting for last bit to come from the bank lending to the buyer.

It's quite possible that some of us foreigners owning property in China will have to suddenly depart due to change of future regulation due to various reasons.

1. would a foreigner be able in practice to sell their property while being abroad?
1.2 would they be able to than transfer partial amount or total amount of the sale abroad (assuming money invested was from salary etc.)?