Hidden Harmonies China Blog

Beijing landlords reap disappointment at Olympics

Overall, I would say that the games have been a staggering success. I’m extremely happy for China.

But… since Xinhua broke the ice, one of the concerns I had leading up to the games was the shortfall of the economic benefit from expectations. Landlords didn’t get the occupancy they hoped for – 60% of the units were vacant. It will be some time before the ledgers are all balanced but I expect that it will be more than the landlords looking at much less profits than expected. A friend of mine in Beijing has decided to return to her home town because business just wasn’t happening for her.

What will the impact be?