[Fun Fact about China] Population - Shanghai has 2.6 times the population of NYC

Once upon a time, I saw some documentary talking about mega cities claiming that New York City is the biggest city in the world. Guess what? Not even close!

Here's a list of top 5 populated cities in China and in US. 

Well, densely populated urban area is not fun at all. Terrible pollution drives upper middle class, known as "Eco-Refugee", flee the country. 

To conclude, if you ever have the chance to visit one of those mega cities in China, one thing you would expect to encounter is people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, a whole lot of people.

[Fun Facts about China] Housing market in Shanghai (3)

6, Mortgage, let's talk about mortgage. Why do bank even lend money to people who obviously have a hard time keeping up with the payment?

• Banks are mostly state owned. Risk? Not mine anyway.
• There have not been a major real estate bubble burst in China before. As long as the price keep raising, there's virtually no risk.
• Large down payment. A 30% down payment is required for purchasing 1st property, while 50% down is required for 2nd property.
• Mortgage rate is a lot lower now, 5.4% APR to be precise. Part of the loan can be backed by 401k, which further lower the APR to around 3.5%.

7, Kiss Single Family Home, even townhouse goodbye. Those properties are rare and often sold for multi-million US dollars. So, basically, just condo.

Here's screenshot of some townhouse listing about 10 miles away from the city center (inner ring if you know what I mean).

8, New homes account for more than 30% of the total volume in Shanghai, while it only accounts for around 10% in US.

9, There's no public record available to track property ownership. Rumor says that it is common certain officials own, let's say a lot more than 10 properties.

10, It is common to lower the purchasing price reported to the authority to avoid tax. 

Hope you're having fun with the article. 
Middle class in China found it a depressing story. :(

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[Fun Facts about China] Housing market in Shanghai (2)

4, Just when you are thinking, "It's not so bad! Why not purchase property outside of city center and drive to work?" 
Driving to work may not be an option considering limited numbers of license plates available plus terrible traffic. In fact, it actually takes longer than simply taking the subway.

You ACTUALLY have a choice?!

• License Plate are sold in an online auction, but it is really more like a lottery because a upper limit of bidding price is set by the authority.
• License Plate sold for 12,931 USD in Sep/2015.  
• There's a 5.26% chance of getting your license plate.

5, Renting is a lot more affordable compared with buying. Since the rental market is highly unregulated, we can only have an estimate that Avg rent is close to $400/bedroom/month in city center.

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[Fun Facts about China] Housing market in Shanghai

Just when you think the housing market in Bay Area is crazy. Let's take a look at Shanghai.

Here're the Fun Facts:
1, Shanghai is not the most expensive city in China. Beijing is.

2, Shanghai is a mega city. By mega, I mean huuuuge. Therefore, housing price outside of
the city center (20-50 miles away) is a whole different story. 

• Shanghai - Price per Sqft to Buy Apartment in City Centre $1,051.28 
• Shanghai - Price per Sqft to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre $432.63
• San Francisco - Median Price per Sqft $966

3, Shanghai Avg Gross Income in 2014 according to the Social Security Bureau, is 850 USD/month, around 10,200 USD annually. Life is tough there! Home maker? Never heard of this term!

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Amazon Underground still does not support their Firephone

It seems rather clear that Amazon is giving up their Fire Phone completely. Their new amazon underground app market does NOT support their own Fire Phone! Well, they dismissed almost all of the firephone developers lately, so, it is kind of official.

The new Amazon Underground app market actually looks exiting to me at first glance. Free games, movies, absolutely free with no in-app-purchase to leave me hanging. All of these features make it an excellent choice for parents who want to give their kids a tablet yet hope to avoid a huge credit card bill. (BTW, their new tablet has a price tag of $49.) 

Well, enjoy Amazon Underground if you have android device other than a Fire Phone. 

Disclaimer: This site is not associated with Amazon for any marketing purpose. What you're reading is just a disappointed customer of theirs whining all the time.