Hainan-Sanya-Haikou Expat

Seems that 20 celebrities including British Actor Hugh Grant and Matthew McConaughey will be at the Celebrity ProAm Golf Tournament chasing an incredible "winner takes all" purse of 1.28 million dollars. Taking place at the end of October, "two-time Open Championship winner Greg Norman, China's multiple Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast Li Ning and Japan's No. 1 comedian and talk show host Akashiya Sanma will serve as Host Ambassadors for the Mission Hills Star Trophy.", according to a story found at World Golf. The rich continue being rich while, by the way, I am daily receiving articles and reports from numerous sources suggesting that Hainan property prices, true or not, are dropping like a rock.

So is that "Buyer Beware" or "Buyers Be Where?"...?

The description of northern Hainan Island's expansion around the golf industry is impressive. According to a press statement released by Buffalo Communications, "Mission Hills Hainan lies in the volcanic region of exotic Hainan Island, China. The resort sets a new standard in leisure, recreation and wellness experiences. Nestled amid lush, green gardens, the resort caters to golf enthusiasts and comprises specially-designed golf courses, each one incorporating the native lava rock formations. Other state-of-the-art features include 525 tastefully-appointed guest rooms and suites, a three-story clubhouse, meeting facilities, 12 world-class restaurants, a fully-equipped sports and recreation center, Hainan's only aquatic theme park, therapeutic natural mineral springs, a spa oasis, and a shopping arcade. A magnificent addition to Hainan's tropical island paradise, Mission Hills Hainan is poised to be the island's premier sanctuary, attracting visitors from around the globe."

World Golf Article Here

Well we can certainly agree they don't belong on the same plate together no matter how good a cook you are! You'll find the answer by heading over to the Coffee World Pizza Corner located in the lobby of the Herton Hotel right on the beachfront at Dadonghai to enjoy some of their new recipes including a Banana Split, Oreo Mocha Smoothie, Homemade Baked Lasagna and a Fisherman's Pizza. Gotta try the Shepherd's Pie too... !

This interesting juxtaposition just in from CapitalVue.com. Money just flows in and out of different places on the whims of what?....we've got plunging home sales along with rocketing auto sales here in China...as if the roads aren't already crowded enough with too many cars?...Cheers, Mario

July 7 -- The transaction volume of Shanghai's previously-owned properties plummeted 50 percent year-on-year to 69,100 units in the first half of 2010, reports Yicai.com, citing statistics from Century 21, a real estate services provider.

July 7 -- SAIC Motor (600104) recorded 43.93 percent and 44.89 percent year-on-year increases in auto production and sales volume in the first half of 2010 to 1.74 million units and 1.77 million units, respectively, according to a company filing

And now this...Sanya Restaurant Corner Sneak Preview...CoffeeWorld's got some new menu items including a new Homemade Lasagna and tasty Shepherd's Pie...that's mashed potatoes, ground beef with tomatoes, baked with bubbly cheese on top...post and photos coming soon!

Hotels in the Asia Pacific region experienced
increases in all three key performance metrics for
May 2010, according to data compiled by STR Global. In
year-on-year measurements,the Asia Pacifi c region’s
occupancy rose 15.3% to 63.1%, average daily rates (ADR)
increased 8.6% to US$126, and revenue per available room
(revPAR) jumped 25.2% to US$79. The largest increase
was in Shanghai, where the fi rst month of the World Expo
saw revPAR surge 100.5% to US$102. Three other markets
posted revPAR increases of more than 40%: Hong Kong
(+51.9% to US$146), Beijing (+45.4% to US$63), and Kuala
Lumpur (+40.4% to US$72). Bangkok reported the only
revPAR decrease, falling 45.8% to just US$20, following the
clampdown on anti-government protests in the Thai capital.

Travel Daily Asia Website

It is reported recently that, as across many bubbly spots in China, Hainan real estate has PLUNGED 30% from its high. Let's analyze this nonsense a bit closer.

June 17 -- CapitalVue News reporting that...

...Average transaction prices plunged 29.74 percent month-on-month...

The Hainan commercial residential property market experienced a significant decline in both transaction area and transaction prices since March this year, reports Xinhua, citing the provincial Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.

"...The province recorded a 19.05 percent month-on-month decline in the transaction area of commercial residential properties to 627,700 square meters in March. Average transaction prices were down 12.82 percent month-on-month to 12,280 yuan per square meter..."

Oh Really?...this roller coaster is getting to be nonsense, check out my real estate videos comparing luxury oceanfront apartment developments in Penang Island, Malaysia at 16,000rmb psqm to Sanya Bay at 42,000 psqm

Penang Island At One Third The Cost of Sanya Bay

Prices on Hainan did an orchestrated "pump and dump" jump of 50 to 100% in January....Lord help all those January suckers who let themselves get sucked in like addicted table gamblers in Vegas after the Wenzhou clan smelled money, went in, bought it all up, dumped it and went back home to leave the mom and pop retail buyers holding the bag, no different than the Wall Street game might I add and a sad commentary on greedy ways and fools in just about any country on earth...

So let me do the calculation: A sample newer beachfront apartment in Sanya was going for 15-20,000rmb psqm. In January, the price jumped to 25 to 50,000rmb psqm depending on whom you ask, and now the price has PLUNGED back down 30% which would make it 17,500-35,000rmb psqm...is that the size of it? Oh yea, now we all know the real prices and understand the real estate market.

Did you know that the real prices of properties is based in the U.S. on the MLS, the multiple listing system, where you can see the actual sale price of every property in a given neighborhood. Did you realize that the same information IS available in China. Go to the Sanya government property office to inquire about how many transactions there have been in the past month and at what price and guess what, that information IS available to you.

I am told by a number of experienced real estate agent that in Ban Shan Ban Dao there are dozens of sellers who all have their properties for sale asking over 40,000rmb per square meter and that there has not been one single transaction there since the January pump and dump. People who have their apartments for sale have them on sale at pumped up retail prices and don't really want to sell them, they're just fishing to find an idiot and unfortunately there are plenty of idiots out there.

Am I being negative? No, I'm being HELPFUL!

Missing the beach yet enjoying our Century Park Shanghai apt immensely,

Cheers, Mario

Link to Full Article Here

We can't deny that the unexpected highlight of our road trip from Sanya to Shanghai has been discovering the mountain and lake country beauty of southern Zhejiang province. Like so many people who live in Phoenix, Arizona only four hours' drive to the magnificent Grand Canyon yet have never visited there, we've spent the better part of 10 years in Shanghai and had not ventured locally much past Hangzhou further into Zhejiang revealing a lush, green mountainous region of China that seemed to me every bit as beautiful as the countryside of Yunnan province and even Tuscany and Umbria in Italy.

I've driven through them all over the years and let's be frank, as one is driving along a beautiful landscape or swimming a perfect white crystal blue water beach, it is easy to forget where you are. When the landscape beauty unexpectedly extends along hundreds of kilometers as you zip along the way, the emotional impact gives way to appreciation and surprise as one utters "Wow, I had no idea this part of this country was so beautiful". Its a delightful feeling and I especially remember it while traveling along Perugia to Florence three years earlier when I had gone to the Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy and also when driving along for six hours from Shangri-La to Li Jiang past the Tiger's Leaping Gorge region in Yunnan province where I had been to shoot a commercial for Proctor & Gamble back in '04. Its much the same when driving along the great road trips of America and many other countries across the globe.

And so goes our journey toward Shanghai where the majestic mountain landscape had begun about 1800 kilometers earlier in Jiangxi Province and continued as we crossed into Zhejiang and made our next stops at Quzhou and Yong Kang. Replete with numerous mountain tunnels reminiscent of scenes from endless Hollywood movies, the aches and strains in my back and neck from 12 hours a day in the driver's seat were far easier to bear. More so, with our plan to visit my marketing director in Suzhou, we decided to skip Hangzhou and instead, visit Zhejiang's famous 1000 Island Lakes, that's Qian Dao Hu in Chinese, region. I can't disagree with a reviewer's comments at TripAdvisor who said the lake area here reminded her of Lake Cuomo in Italy. Beauty is beauty. Magnificent is magnificent. We can't add to it or take away from it. It is just there to be enjoyed and appreciated.

If you feel like splurging on luxury, while a fancy Sheraton is now under construction, check out the New Century Resort, a fancy 5 star resort high up on the lake side cliffs. It seems this resort has been home to most all of China's dignitaries, leaders and media stars and offered us a lovely experience with excellent, attentive service and those heavenly views. On the budget side, for only around 360rmb weekdays/440rmb weekends per night, consider the QianDao Hu Houseboat Hotel, its actually floating right on the lake and you will surprisingly find yourself in an excellent room with balcony right on the lake. Touring the place, we had to walk across their pier over the water to get to the lobby and we actually saw a guest fishing off his balcony! QianDao Hu Plaza, the downtown square of the city is a fresh and lively hangout right along the lakeside and there are plenty of local hotel accomodations available for well under 200rmb per night. This past weekend we also happened to catch the China Triathlon event taking place here. The area feels much more pristine and pure than even Hangzhou's lovely lakeside residential regions.

To remind you of beauty, to lift your soul, to refresh your mind, to clear away the stress; exactly what road trips are supposed to do, yes? Facebook's Zuckerberg just had his Nixon moment, now I'm having my Charles Kuralt moment.

Mario Cavolo, reporting from the road in China.