The Development of the Real Estate Industry in China

The real estate industry has become an important part of China's economy in recent years. Beijing's successful bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games and China's acceptance into the World Trade Organization in 2001 are serving as stimuli to speed up the reforms in China's legal and regulatory framework to improve the real estate investment environment. This article focuses on the development of this emerging real estate market and analyzes the challenges and opportunities in the framework of the dynamic economy of China. The goal is to provide a general delineation of the market and identify key issues that foreign and domestic investors may face when considering potential investment opportunities in the market. The article also discusses the three major stages of the development of the real estate market as well as the current real estate registration and financing system.