It reads more like a press release than a serious report, but a reader directs us to the “Chinese property hunters to raid US” piece in the Financial Times. The counterpoint:

“Unless these people need a house in the US to live in, this is senseless,” said Yi Xianrong, a real estate expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. “A few years ago there was a lot of talk about investing in German real estate but most of the people who did so lost a lot of money.”

Ah, those mythical foreign saviors.
Chinese property hunters to raid US [Financial Times]
Recap: What’s The Scoop On Foreign Investment In San Francisco? [SocketSite]

9 thoughts on “Chinese To Raid San Francisco (And Lose Like In Germany?)”
  1. Ummm… did you miss the massive $600 bn USD economic stimulus package just announced in China? They have a slowing economy too. They are in need of tax cuts and infrastructure spending to help offset a major slow down. They hurt when we (US consumers) have less demand for their goods and when we (US homeowners) default on our mortgages. Remember China has been buying US RMBS on which spreads have blown out. Anyone waiting for a Chinese white knight to bail them out of poorly timed developments and over-priced condos is going to be disappointed (Yes, I’m talking to you guys at the Millennium!)

  2. I love this! Just like in the late 1980s when the Japanese were organizing tours to buy in NYC and other high profile places in the US. Rockefeller Center Redo? Pebble Beach anyone?
    Whoever said that the only thing we learn from reading history is that we never learn from reading history was right on! (just a paraphrase from memory, so don’t hold me to the exact quote 🙂 )

  3. Santayana’s saying:
    Those that do not study history are doomed to repeat it.
    Santayana’s corollary:
    The only thing we learn from studying history is that nobody ever learns anything from studying history.

  4. Ummm. The Japanese were benefitting from loose underwriting and easy money. This time, the Chinese themselves are hurting. You can learn from history if you pay attention to the facts. If you are expecting a Chinese White Knight you will be disappointed.

  5. “All is well! Economy will recover in 6 months!
    At least that’s what NAR’s spokesperson/cheerleader Lawrence Yun is saying”
    Amazing. That guy makes Baghdad Bob sound credible…

  6. Foolio: if I had to write it phonetically, it’d be “gio jing shan,” which translates roughly to “old gold mountain” (throwback to the gold rush era).
    In any case, I was on the verge of writing a veritable dissertation at how absurd this concept is – that rich Chinese investors will swoop in to buy here. But I have better things to spend my time on.
    In any case, anyone who’s actually been to China knows that there are very few people who have the wherewithal, ability, and desire to buy real estate here.
    I pointed this out last year, when the rich European investors were going to buy everything: if even locals living and working in this city can’t afford these prices, how are foreigners making a fraction of what we do going to afford them?

  7. FWIW, there are plenty of people in china who have the ability to buy real estate in SF. believe it or not, there are places in china where real estate costs even more than it does in “real SF”. yes, i have lived in china.
    that said, i’m not sure why they would want to… seems like a bad idea to me.

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