Best places to live in China

[Sebastian]

Ken - ya - we differ a bit in 'what to look for' -

 

I want a larger city where I can get some internet access and expat food (on occasion), without the huge f'ing sprawl of BeiJing.

 

So I'm looking at Chengdu, Wuhan and Guangzhou. Guangzhou weather is dead similar to Houston, and I've lived there before - so I wanna try Wuhan or Chengdu.

[tonado]

http://www.china.org.cn/english/environment/231177.htm

 

Hangzhou tops the list of happiest cities. It was voted the happiest city in similar surveys in 2004 and 2006.

 

The other nine cities are Shenyang, Zhongshan, Ningbo, Qingdao, Taizhou, Zhuhai, Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu.

 

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-03...tent_831242.htm

Edited May 19, 2008 by tonado (see edit history)

[rogerluli]

Ken - ya - we differ a bit in 'what to look for' -

 

I want a larger city where I can get some internet access and expat food (on occasion), without the huge f'ing sprawl of BeiJing.

 

So I'm looking at Chengdu, Wuhan and Guangzhou. Guangzhou weather is dead similar to Houston, and I've lived there before - so I wanna try Wuhan or Chengdu.

 

Well Darnell the advantage to living in Wuhan is that you don't have to go to the steam baths in the summer because Wuhan IS a steam bath...

 

Chengdu has much better weather...

[Don]

Ken - ya - we differ a bit in 'what to look for' -

 

I want a larger city where I can get some internet access and expat food (on occasion), without the huge f'ing sprawl of BeiJing.

 

So I'm looking at Chengdu, Wuhan and Guangzhou. Guangzhou weather is dead similar to Houston, and I've lived there before - so I wanna try Wuhan or Chengdu.

 

Grandma's kitchen in chengdu is really goood for american food. I love that place.

[ken88]

Ken - ya - we differ a bit in 'what to look for' -

 

I want a larger city where I can get some internet access and expat food (on occasion), without the huge f'ing sprawl of BeiJing.

 

So I'm looking at Chengdu, Wuhan and Guangzhou. Guangzhou weather is dead similar to Houston, and I've lived there before - so I wanna try Wuhan or Chengdu.

 

Grandma's kitchen in chengdu is really goood for american food. I love that place.

 

 

Isn't Chengdu devastated by the earthquake now?

[ken88]

Well everybody makes their own choices for their own reasons... B)

 

We decided that the climate and the environment were at the top of our list. We also wanted a relatively small city that was NOT congested.

 

I've written extensively about our two choices here with their own threads so I won't go into all the details...And the winners were...

 

Qionghai, Hainan, a metro area of 450,000, great weather in the fall - spring time, 15 km from the sea, 8 km from the hot springs, fairly cheap house prices when we bought, 2006, but about double since then. A lot to see and do on Hainan and Guangdong and Vietnam are nearby.

 

Yuxi, Yunnan, same size city, 5300 ft. elevation, great weather year around but more cool in the winter, fairly cheap house prices in 2006 and have gone up just a bit since, 98 km from Kunming. Again a lot to see and do in Yunnan and all of southeast asia is a train ride away.

 

Lately we've been looking at even smaller places. We "acquired" an old family place in a Hunan town of 58,000 and we are looking at a Hainan town of 110,000. So who knows how it will all shake out for us. It seems we'll be moving around quite a bit which makes it interesting...

 

 

Thanks for your contributions. I am still going thru them. Your house in Hainan is beautiful, out of this world. How much was it? You do not have to answer if don't want to. Is this a water front house? The water in the front of the house is a lake or a river?

 

It appeared that you have been trvelling around looking for houses. Are you a real estate investor? For a $50,000 USD home, how much you put down and how much would be the monthly payment, (PITI) ?

 

Thanks - - Ken88

[ken88]

If I had my choice I think it would be fun to go to Urumqi, for a while anyway.

 

Me, too. I've always wanted to get blown up riding a city bus.

 

Bill you are such a card... B)

I lived in Abu Dhabi for a year. The cultural mix would be interesting.

 

Dang, I wish I had the money to take my wife and grandson to China and really explore. It would be so interesting to go to the far northeast also and look for Russian influences.

 

There are really inexpensive package tours to China for 10-15 days. It would only cost you about half of what it would cost you if you did it on your own. I did not take one yet; but I have been looking into it.

 

Ken88

[Don]

Ken - ya - we differ a bit in 'what to look for' -

 

I want a larger city where I can get some internet access and expat food (on occasion), without the huge f'ing sprawl of BeiJing.

 

So I'm looking at Chengdu, Wuhan and Guangzhou. Guangzhou weather is dead similar to Houston, and I've lived there before - so I wanna try Wuhan or Chengdu.

 

Grandma's kitchen in chengdu is really goood for american food. I love that place.

 

 

Isn't Chengdu devastated by the earthquake now?

 

Chengdu is not damaged too much. The area north of Chengdu is were most of the damage is.

[rogerluli]

Well everybody makes their own choices for their own reasons...

 

We decided that the climate and the environment were at the top of our list. We also wanted a relatively small city that was NOT congested.

 

I've written extensively about our two choices here with their own threads so I won't go into all the details...And the winners were...

 

Qionghai, Hainan, a metro area of 450,000, great weather in the fall - spring time, 15 km from the sea, 8 km from the hot springs, fairly cheap house prices when we bought, 2006, but about double since then. A lot to see and do on Hainan and Guangdong and Vietnam are nearby.

 

Yuxi, Yunnan, same size city, 5300 ft. elevation, great weather year around but more cool in the winter, fairly cheap house prices in 2006 and have gone up just a bit since, 98 km from Kunming. Again a lot to see and do in Yunnan and all of southeast asia is a train ride away.

 

Lately we've been looking at even smaller places. We "acquired" an old family place in a Hunan town of 58,000 and we are looking at a Hainan town of 110,000. So who knows how it will all shake out for us. It seems we'll be moving around quite a bit which makes it interesting...

 

 

Thanks for your contributions. I am still going thru them. Your house in Hainan is beautiful, out of this world. How much was it? You do not have to answer if don't want to. Is this a water front house? The water in the front of the house is a lake or a river?

 

It appeared that you have been trvelling around looking for houses. Are you a real estate investor? For a $50,000 USD home, how much you put down and how much would be the monthly payment, (PITI) ?

 

Thanks - - Ken88

 

Ah I've confused you Ken... The last house I posted a pic of on my Hainan thread is NOT ours... It is in a new devlopment in Wuzhishan, a mountain town 75 km from Sanya. This place is 286 m2 and is going for 5380 RMB/m2...you can do the math,,, That price is unfinished of course...Free-standing houses like this (villas) are quite pricey in China because the land is expensive... We have 2 apartments on Hainan in Qionghai...a 3rd floor one (stairs) of 145 m2 and a 12th floor one (elevator) of 181 m2...Here's more on the story...

 

http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30159

[GZBILL]

 

It appeared that you have been trvelling around looking for houses. Are you a real estate investor? For a $50,000 USD home, how much you put down and how much would be the monthly payment, (PITI) ?

 

Thanks - - Ken88

 

Right now for new homes the minimum downpayment is 30% I think. If the mortgage is in the expat's name, banks are supposed to be able to finance no more than 50%, but many banks ignore this and allow you to finance as much as a Chinese person could.

 

Interest rates for first time buyers of new homes are approximately 7% minus a 15% discount. Subsequent homes carry a mandatory 25% premium over the base rate of approximately 7%.

[Bill and Linda]

 

It appeared that you have been trvelling around looking for houses. Are you a real estate investor? For a $50,000 USD home, how much you put down and how much would be the monthly payment, (PITI) ?

 

Thanks - - Ken88

 

Right now for new homes the minimum downpayment is 30% I think. If the mortgage is in the expat's name, banks are supposed to be able to finance no more than 50%, but many banks ignore this and allow you to finance as much as a Chinese person could.

 

Interest rates for first time buyers of new homes are approximately 7% minus a 15% discount. Subsequent homes carry a mandatory 25% premium over the base rate of approximately 7%.

 

 

GZBILL, I have no experience in buying a home (apartment) in China and my Lao Po has two mortgages at this time and says she doesn't want another. Is it possible for me as an expat to get a mortgage at this time? I'm leaning toward a used home, not new, and we will be living in it, not renting out. I don't have any contacts here in Chengdu and her brother is a little hard to communicate with.

 

Thanks!

 

Bill

[ken88]

How is your wife's home town?

 

I am thinking of moving to China in about 2-3 months, if my wife does not get her visa (23 months and waiting).

 

I do not want Beijing or Shanghai. They are too large, very crowed and polluted. I am looking for a small town (1-2 million, according to Chinese standards) with clean air and clean water, with apartment rents and the cost of living on the low side. Some other Americans living in town, and some English speaking doctors in town would be bonuses.

 

Thanks - - - - - Ken88

 

I really like Kunming, Yunnan. It has really good weather all year. It is a few million people, fairly clean real nice country around it. I have visited Yunnan a few times and really like it. I am also trying Chengdu, but maybe now is not the best time to live there. Or maybe with the money bing pored into rebuilding it might be good. We own houses in south Yunnan in Jinghong. It is good, but hot and humid. We might trade that house for one in Kunming. Decent air quality in that area.

 

 

How would you compare Kunming and Jinghong, dollar wise and comfort wise? These are cities close to each other. Why is Jinghong hotter and more humid? Do you know if there is an earthquake fault line running thru Yunnan? I am going to rent for 1 year anyway. What would be the rent for a 2-3 bedroom apartment in these two cities?

[ken88]

I recently bought a place in Zhongshan which is located south of Guangzhou. It's a very beautiful city and clean. There is access to many good hospitals and they have staffs that speak English as there are many foreigners in the Guangdong province. Also it is not very crowded and the cost of living there is well below that of any major city in China. Here is a quote from one of many articles on Zhongshan:

"In recent years, Zhongshan has successively obtained such honors as National Clean City, National Advanced Unit in City Planning and Management, National Garden City, National Advanced City Practising Rejuvenation through Science and Technology, National Model City of Environmental Protection, China's Excellent Tourism City, National Advanced City in the Campaign of Building Culturally-advanced Cities and Guangdong Culturally-advanced City. In 1997, the city was selected by the United Nations as the recipient of Habitat Scroll of Honor Award."

 

Also it is not uncommon the see several USA people each day there. Zhongshan does not have the pollution problems that other cities experience in the Pearl River delta region.

 

This sounds like a nice place. How far is it from GZ? Beaches nearby? What would be the rent for a 2-3 bedroom apt?

 

Ken88

[ken88]

I like Shantou, also in Guangdong. It's a coastal city about 45 minutes away from the beach. It is very clean, the weather is fantastic and it is inexpensive.

 

Are there any developments next to the beach itself? Did you spend some time there? Is your wife from there? Tell me little bit more about it. How much would be the apt rentals?

[Sebastian]

wa wa wa - that will mondo suck. Steam Bath Bad! Wuhan Hot !

Wait a mo, I swear I wrote up something about Wuhan Cold! Snow Bad!! grrrr.. Ok - i'll be in Chengdu in June, so i can figure it out. I just hope these f'in aftershocks stop soon, her family is getting worried.

 

Ken - ya - we differ a bit in 'what to look for' -

 

I want a larger city where I can get some internet access and expat food (on occasion), without the huge f'ing sprawl of BeiJing.

 

So I'm looking at Chengdu, Wuhan and Guangzhou. Guangzhou weather is dead similar to Houston, and I've lived there before - so I wanna try Wuhan or Chengdu.

 

Well Darnell the advantage to living in Wuhan is that you don't have to go to the steam baths in the summer because Wuhan IS a steam bath...

 

Chengdu has much better weather...