Let me begin with the conclusion: Josh and I signed a contract to teach next year! We are leaving Jinzhou, our humble, gritty, coal-mining home, and moving to Qingdao, sparkling city by the sea.
In America, Qingdao is mostly known for Tsingtao Beer, but it has so much more than that. The old German architecture is everywhere. Imagine Georgetown with an Italian Market on every other block, and you are starting to get the right picture of the historic district.
The ritziest neighborhood in Qingdao is called the Eight Passes Area. Much of it was closed to traffic while we were visiting because a former Premier was staying there with his entourage. This is where China’s leaders come to vacation. This is also where Chiang Kai-Shek stayed right before fleeing to Taiwan. He stayed in the mansion built by the former German Governor. Chiang stole a lot of booty, but he couldn’t steal the house, which is now a museum.
Qingdao is also a beach town, and it definitely has that feeling. The air smells good, and the people are relaxed and casual. This is the city that will host the sailing events (and windsurfing, and beach volleyball) during the 2008 Olympics. When this city starts to get global publicity, the world will find out what a gem it is. If I could offer one piece of investment advice it would be this: buy real estate in Qingdao.
We will move to Qingdao when the fall semester begins, sometime at the end of August. The University is giving us a real apartment, with a private kitchen and no curfew! Welcome to the New China!
6 Comments
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Maybe we should form a corporation and buy an apartment, or small house. Check out the market. Really!!
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We cant wait to see you guys there. Betty and I were talking about maybe visiting you two next summer with the baby. It would be B,B,B,B & me. What do you think? I’ve really been enjoying the blog. Esp now that I’m feeling like my old self again. Love ya both.
-molly
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looks really fantastic … and so convenient for the beer!
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Hey guys,
I heard from Jackie that you guys have a blog, so I googled your names and viola! I have been rolling on the floor reading your entries - and makes me miss China already. I am really excited about your job in Qingdao - Ocean University is a great school, their head English guy is very nice, and Qingdao is about my favorite city in NE China. I have been lobbying the State Department to open a consulate there, but so far to no avail. Also, I have a friend there - a Chinese guy who graduated from Temple’s LLM program in Beijing. Let me know when you get to Qingdao and and I will put you in touch.
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My firm leases an apartment in Qingdao. We paid $5500 for a full year. It has two good sized bedrooms and an office and is nicely furnished. It has a balcony overlooking the water and it is right across the street from a Chinese 5 star garden hotel. Now it’s the kicker. It would sell for about $275,000. How can one make money buying a property for $275,000 and then renting it for less than $500 a month?
There are countless new condo buildings in Qingdao that are vacant. They were bought for speculation by HK or Taiwan investors. Qingdao property values went up nearly 20% last year, more than just about anywhere.
Qingdao is a great city, but I for one am very skeptical that there are many deals to be had. Maybe in the old part of town near the “art district” where they are just starting to build more, but near the center looks pretty overbuilt.
PS — Great blog. I love your descriptions of Jinzhou.
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Now, it is the end of 2007 and real estate prices in Qingdao have probably reached their plateau. It seems that the new 2008 trend is to promote serviced apartments in Qingdao. It will be interesting to see what happens after 2008. It is true that there is still lots of vacant property in Qingdao.